Not yet, this time, we just sent C2 out, as C4 was still under development
RobertB thank you for your nice review.
Thank you,
I don’t know if this is any indication, but it charged a 14500 at 1.5A, same as an 18650. I don’t own any of those tiny flashlights, but don’t most of them have a built in micro usb charger? Anyone wanting to charge a 10180 would have to make a spacer for it anyway, since they aren’t long enough to fit.
Yikes! That’s way high for a 14500 and WAY too higher for cells smaller than that. Hi drain 18650 are fine there and it’s good for 26650 and the other big cells but I don’t charge 14500 cells above 0.5A personally.
I thought it was a little high for a 14500 too, but I was closely watching and the cell never got hot. Only slightly warm. The 14500 cell is a newer Efest 650mAh
Based on all I’ve ever read on the topic it is too high for smaller cells. A high drain Efest cell and even a Windyfire can take it I’m sure, but my understanding is that it’s hard on the cells and will shorten their lifespan. If it charges all 14500 cells at the same 1.5A rate I would not recommend using it on smaller than 18650. Maybe Leo can chime in on the smart technology being used here. It may need some tuning. If there is an argument against my thinking here I’d like to hear it.
Thats what I would have thought as well. Was also under the impression, as long as the cell doesn’t get hot it shouldn’t be a problem. Maybe MiBoxer is talking about sensing NiMH type cells. It does automatically lower the charge current considerably for those.
I will discharge the same 14500 again and try and chart the curve.
The charger changes the charge current relatively to the cells internal resistance
So high drain unprotected cells will have too high charge currents
I charged here 7 years old 14430 680mAh recycled from an old camera battery pack
they started on 0.2A,
when the cells got more voltage the internal resistance dropped
before the CV started the one cell had 0.5A and the other 0.6A as their internal resistance got lower
The thing that I dont like is that at some point the charger shows an estimated capacity of the cell instead the charged capacity
both those cells were estimated at 1.5Ah but only got 590 and 630mAh charged
for 18650 the 1.5A are fine
I am doing more charges with different cells and do a time lapse for them, so my review takes longer till I can publish it
I dont like the battery revival for overcharged cells
I had from those old camera battery pulls one 2.13v and one 0.47V batteries
They started to charge on 0.1A
I could see how the charger tried to revive em going up to 0.3A and I aborted the test at this point
I agree,
1000mAh is TOO high 1500mAh is wayyy too high!
What I have been told is that IMR 10440, IMR 16340 and IMR 14500 should not be charged higher than 500mAh. I would think the same for protected cells.
A lot of people[incuding myself] would charge a IMR10440 @ 300mAh. My Opus has 200/300/500/700/1000 and 1500/2000 for slots 1 and 4
I had a Fenix ARE-C2+ for a few days and sent it back. The specs. claimed it charged everything @ 1amp. Yet they Approved it for ALL cells!
I emailed HQ in China and they tried to tell me that it ADJUSTS the current according to the battery/size. NOT!! I watched the charge cycles and it was a constant 1AMP except for when the battery first went in and at the end of the charge.
Will be interesting to see what you come up with when you start your thread. I believe 99% of the people who buy this entry level charger won’t be trying to salvage odd size camera batteries, rather more common cells to use in flashlights and ecig devices.
It’s definitely charging a 14500 at 1.5A, unless the readout is wrong. We’ll see how hot it gets with an IR thermometer.
Would a option be to use a old cell phone adapter like 500-800mah ones? The charger does 1.5/1 slot or 1amp/2 slots. Use a weak power supply and pop in two cells. The current should be low enough to charge you small cells.
But in all honesty this charger is provably geared towards normal size cells. I mean really how common are 10440 cells. 99% of people provably don’t even know they exist. Its like the contract builds here for lights. Q8/GT etc You can’t make everyone happy. As long as the majority is happy then its a winner. You can’t please everyone with any product.
And my thought is if you use 10440 or smaller cells then yly already have a charger that charges at the rate your comfortable with. Is this flawed thinking?
Well, that didn’t take long. You can see, the cell never got hot, or even warm (on the outside of the cell). Unless someone can tell me different, with a source, I’m not convinced the way this charger charges a 14500 is a problem.
3.29v - 1.5A
3.90v - 1.5A +8 minutes 78F (25.56C)
3.98v - 1.5A + 3 minutes 79F (26.11C)
4.14v - 1.5A + 5 minutes 80.5F (26.94C)
4.20v - .86A + 5 minutes 81F (27.22C)
4.20v - .68A + 1 minute 80F (26.94C)
4.20v - .50A + 1 minute 79.5F (26.39C)
4.20v - .08A + 5 minutes 75.5F (23.89C)
4.20v - .06A + 5 minutes 74.3F (23.5C)
Useless percentage and remaining time displays instead of displaying status for both cells at the same time. Charge current definitely way too high for that 14500. No adapter included, and 5V USB adapters are not ideal for high output power chargers. Hopefully, this one terminates LiIons at some point unlike the C4. Big meh.
@ speed4goal:
What about 16340 and 14500 cells? A lot of people use those!
All in All,for me this would come in the category of the ARE-C2+ that I returned. If it can not charge ALL cells that they advertise to a current that is beneficial to the cell and its life, I would not want it!
I have always been known to be direct and speak my mind!
I would NOT even consider a charger if it does not have a switch where we have options to safely change the current. Only exception would be my fenix ARE-C2[Original] which has a spring at the bottom to activate 1A……….other than that it charges at 500mah
That is good that it does not get hot. That does NOT mean that 1.5A is good for the health and longevity of the cell.
HKJ and so many others will attest to that!
Haha, that’s why I said I need a source to confirm that. I’ve always been told that heat is the enemy, not necessarily the charge rate. (from the ecig industry) I’m discharging a 16340 right now. Will post that one in an hour or two.
I am just your average Joe who is named Wolfdog!!
I can not remember the numbers, but I have seen charts of the degradation of the cells at higher than recommended charge rates.
I discharged that 14500 to 3.2v and recharged it. You can see in the photo there was only 1 minute left on the timer before the charge terminated. I’d say that is pretty accurate. I agree, the timer is needless though. I believe displaying the cell data for both slots at the same time, when all you have to do is push a button, is needless as well, vs having larger numbers to display.
This is an entry level charger like the Nitecore D2 and most of the Xtar models. No usb wall chargers are included with Xtars either, and the Anker USB charger I have is plenty good for this charger (and Xtar’s). Most people already own a 2A+ USB wall charger.
The timer being accurate just before termination is not that special, the real challenge is for it to be accurate across the entire charging cycle, something obviously very hard as different cells have different voltage curves and capacities. Smartphones of today have battery management systems with extensive data about the cells they manage, and also measure the temperature, and even they can show an incorrect charge estimation. The D2 has a built-in PSU btw and accepts mains voltage though an IEC plug.