NiZn AAA Batteries - Just received - Testing them

Has anybody tried the li-ion AAA cells that have an micro usb built in to charge them, They are regulated to 1.5v but what capacity are they.

I have a pack of 4 but i have not done any tests on them.

John.

Havent seen those. Have a link?
I’m interested in Kentli batteries.
They are LiPo inside I believe but are usually around $9.00 PER CELL (Yow!!)

I have the ZNTER AAA 400mah 4.25v 1.5v written on them.

EDIT: I think i tried to do a capacity test when i got them, but the low voltage protection must have kicked in so i lost the capacity information.

John.

I got 490mAh out of one of the test AAA’s by charging it at 100mAh and discharging it at 100mAh.

I’m not knowledgeable on how the lower discharge rate affects the discharge capacity results.

But……it appears that with 490 mAh, I can run my intended devices for a month or more. That’s more than enough to suit my needs for these batteries.

If they run the devices 2 weeks and 1 day I’ll be satisfied. Thrilled if they can run it for a month.

Just found another potentially stellar use for NiZn batteries.

Smoke detectors / CO detectors

Mine started beeping today. It had top quality Alkalines in it. The cut ouff (warning beep) voltage was 1.46v (I have no idea why so high, but that’s what it is)

In my book, alkalines have a LOT more life at 1.46v, but for some reason maybe smoke detectors have a high voltage threshold.

Anyway, this seems to be yet another superb application for NiZn batts. Just ordered a batch of PowerGenix AA’s for this application.

My only concern is that it uses multiple AA’s (3) and so the initial voltage will be 5.4v instead of 4.6v (ish)

But I’m fairly sure it will handle that difference ok.

I wonder if those Batteriser/Batteroo AA adapter sleeves would work they put out a constant 1.5v at low current, HKJ did a review of them a week or two ago and said they might be of use in certain circumstances.

John.

You got some odd smoke detectors.
I’ve got a 9v one running fine on 8.4v li-on. Get 6 months+ before charge is needed. Completely useless to use NiMh 9v, last a couple weeks.

Don’t think the discharge character of NiZn will work all that well with the application unless you don’t mind pulling and charging them on a routine basis.

I’ll have to test them and see. The same was said about the use I have for my NiZn AAA’s in the alarm remotes (similar circumstances) and so far they are doing very well. 2 weeks in they are at 1.63v I feel certain they will at least make 2 more weeks (if I don’t keep pulling them to check voltage which uses a burst of power when the battery is replaced and the device re-initializes. 4 weeks would be about as good as the best Alkalines I’ve tried. Except the NiZn’s are rechargeable.

With 3 AA’s in the smoke detector, the run time with the NiZn’s should be more than adequate.

These devices work only with disposable batteries. Not rechargeables IIRC…

Unless I’m mistaken, these sleeves contain “Joule Thief” circuitry. Please let me know if that is wrong.

I have not had a chance to test them against rechargeable batteries and while they might maintain voltage…I wonder about maintaining current and if the devices I’m using the NiZn’s in would be compatible with the Batteroo sleeves. Dunno. But I’m also moving away from disposable batteries

It should work great for 1.2v nimh cells as the low voltage will be boosted to 1.5v but only for low drain devices, smoke alarms don't use a lot of power.

Read the review below.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?428675-Test-review-of-Batteroo-AA-with-a-Duracell-battery

John.

His review conclusion didn’t seem overly optimistic.
Conclusion

_The sleeve is not really a product to save a lot of batteries with, there are probably a few products where it will increase the runtime for batteries, if it can fit in them (Many devices has a fairly tight fit on batteries).
With some devices there is also a risk that either the ripple or the switcher noise will prevent them from working correctly.
Due to the nearly constant output voltage until the battery is empty, battery meters will not really work when using this device.

To find devices where it might be useful, look for devices that have very short runtime with NiMH batteries and considerable longer with alkaline. The sleeve might be more useful with NiMH batteries than with alkaline. The question is how hard the 0.6V minimum will affect lifetime of NiMH.

As a general device to extend battery life it is not very useful, but in a very few situations it might be a useable solution._”
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Then I saw this thread……
Batteroo

It’s an interesting idea, but the real benefits don’t seem as great as advertised and I don’t want to risk damage to my rechargeables.

This is exactly my experience. I bought 8 of the Genix AA batteries for use in my Nikon Speedlights. Sets of four went in at a time. Within half a year of moderate use, weekends, 5 of them had gone stone dead. I chucked the rest and went back to old reliable NiMH. When they were working, they really kept the flash cycle time short. But the early death and high failure rate makes them a complete non-starter in precisely those applications where their characteristics would be advantageous.
Wilkey

They’re not ideal in some applications. Yours probably being one of them. The loaded voltage in your application may have constantly dipped well into the danger zone for NiZn’s.

I think you have to consider the application. I don’t personally think NiZn’s are suitable for high drain applications….meaning greater than about maybe 500mA
They are also apparently very susceptible to overcharge and undercharge. Most folks recommend charging to 1.9v. I don’t. I only charge mine to 1.8v
On the opposite end, I use them exclusively in devices that have a voltage cut off point at or above 1.2v (or at least a low voltage warning).
NiZn’s seem to be ruined if they go much below that so I never risk it. So far they are working great in my low drain devices that have a built in voltage cut off.

That said, it’s early in the game for my NiZn’s. I did read where someone here has been using them for over a year and they’re still going strong with quite a few cycles on them. I think your camera might be too high drain for them.
I think they are niche batteries that fit a very narrow application scope……low to very low drain, requiring 1.5v but tolerant of up to 1.8v and protected from draining below ~1.2v

I use them in my alarm remotes and they are right at 3 weeks now and still showing full power on the remote’s meter. I checked the votage yesterday and they were at 1.60v so I’m confident they will easily make it one more week. I could not get 4 weeks out of NiMh’s simply because the cut off voltage for these remotes is 1.3v.

The NiZn’s “seem” to be the Golden Ticket to power these remotes so far.

Of course, these are all unscientific opinions and observations so definitely take them with a grain of salt

Haha!
Turns odd it was indeed odd. The smoke detector had malfunctioned (KIDDIE smoke & CO2 detector)

It beeps every 30 seconds no matter what brand new batteries are installed. Time to get a new SD. (Not Kiddie)

I think using Batteroos with NiZn would not work….well maybe once. The reason being is that they work by boosting the voltage at the expense of current.
They will pull the NiZns (or any battery’s) internal voltage down so far that it will damage the NiZns permanently.
Doesn’t matter what voltage is showing outside the battery, what destroys the battery is the batteries actual voltage.

Someone needs to come up with an inexpensive (under $5.00) adjustable low voltage (1.00v - 5v) cut off board similar to the LN2596 Buck converter boards.

> cut off board

Amen. These are fragile flowers needing protection of some sort.

I had eight PowerGenix AA cells to start. Half of them have failed over several years (fast blink on the charger says it’s got a problem cell in it).

None of the remaining four cells will hold much capacity for more than a day or two, after charging they’ve fallen to 1.16v, .98v, .96v, and .92v.

I hear you, Zebretta and that makes sense. And, relative to Hank’s comment, fragile flowers hold no charm nor utility for me. Even if I have an application that suits these cells’ particular needs, I’m not interested in giving them the coddling they require.
Cheers,
Wilkey

1). Were they ever used in a flashlight or any device drawing more than 500mA?
2). How did you charge them and to what voltage?
3). How did you protect them from overcharge?
4). How did you protect them from over discharge?

These batteries are definitely not for everyone.

Seems I’ve either been lucky or careful. Out of 8 cells almost 10 years old I still have 6 functioning. The latest ‘death’ was using it in a photo strobe exactly like Ginseng. Worked great….while it worked. I’ll go back to Eneloops in that.
For now the remainder are in a cheap portable electric toothbrush and nose hair trimmer. The motors can take the voltage boost and work better, much better, and I can tell when they are getting weak and need charging simply by how they run.