What is the best high capacity 18650 battery?

In my opinion the Samsung 30Q (and LG HG2) are better than all of them because they also work when it’s cold outside. They also worksbetter in high-powered flashlights and can be charged more quickly. In addition to all of this they are very cheap. Sony cells are also good, but they usually cost much more.

The runtime of the 35E is higher than the NCR18650GA at ALL currents.
Go to the website to compare them at other loads.

It does have more voltage drop at higher currents like 5A, but that only changes the Wh not the mAh.
The MJ1 is definitely worse.

You guys have forgotten the original posters intent and gone way off on a tangent.

What do you expect? This is a website for Enthusiasts! :smiling_imp: LOL!

I think the OP got what he wanted from this thread anyway. :student: :+1:

I’d still buy which ever was cheaper. 100 mah isn’t gonna make much difference unless your driving a led at 1 ma.
Differences in manufacturing and age could make up such a small difference. Same reason HKJ always test two batteries instead of just one.

I decided to order few of each :smiley: All 3 brands seem to be good quality product, so the best is I try them all :+1:
Thank you for your advise!

You have to love Liion shipping rates to Canada. Minimum $52.51 CAD to ship just four 30Qs lol

In the case of a linear regulator it doesn’t matter (apart from the fact that it may fall out of regulation earlier), but if you have a buck or boost driver then Wh is what you care about. Higher input voltage means less current with DC-DC drivers.

That is crazy money. What gives? Is that the shipper’s fault or is it Canada’s?

I don't know but I've been hoarding batteries from Banggood every time they announce they can ship to Canada again. For Liions shipping price, I could just drive across the border and pick up the batteries myself, go spend some money at Harbor Freight and Burger King and still come back with a few bucks in my pocket!

This was talked about in another thread. Apparently, liionwholesale is strictly obeying shipping rules from USPS, and it basically makes it cost-prohibitive to use them. So, they use UPS, which is

(1) Way more expensive, and

(2) You’re going to get burned with additional brokerage fees and taxes when your order arrives in Canada.

It makes ordering batteries from liionwholesale ridiculously expensive for Canadians. So, forget about buying from them.

Instead, I’ve placed a couple of battery orders from Illumn this year. They will use USPS. It costs $15 shipping, but I think that’s for any order size. You won’t have to pay additional fees and taxes when you get your order, either. Much less expensive than liionwholesale, and they’re genuine batteries and extremely well packaged. (Cells in plastic cases, inside a padded cardboard box, inside a bubble-wrap package.)

Anyway, I know liionwholesale gets a lot of kudos here, but I’m guessing that’s just from US customers. Oh, one other issue I have with them is that they won’t guarantee your order, and make you sign a waiver saying that any losses are your problem. What’s with that? They’re the only retailer I know that does that.

How could I forget about Illumn, they are the best of the best. Need to order from them right away as they back their products 100%+

Yeah, you are right about lllum. Apparently they haven’t changed their shipping fees to reflect the new rules. (according to liionWholesale here). Get um while you can .

All three cells are good… you will use them accordingly to your flashlight needs.

Example

Blf gt xhp35… it doesnt matter. as long as 10a or above are fine… lg mj1 is fine.

Some xhp70.2 might need samsung 30q, or higher end sony cells.

Without HKJ and Mooch, we’d be in a poorer place.

And if anyone ever finds themselves within proximity of Illumn in California, I’d urge you to stop by the B&M store (weekdays only), even if just passing by like I did. Those guys are laid back and very much enthusiasts, and have a tonne of stuff on display.

Better leave your credit card in the car, though, if you can’t resist temptation.

How about the LG INR18650-M36 3600mAh - 10A?

As I said before, the manufacturer ratings on the cells are BS and don’t represent real world performance and usable currents like in a flashlight. Always look at reliable test data from people like HKJ

https://lygte-info.dk/review/batteries2012/LG%2018650%20M36%203600mAh%20(Cyan)%20UK.html

Just wondering.
Here in AUST. we buy most avail items from China, Eastern country’s. Incl battery’s.
We pay no freight charges. unless a coupla $$’s for tracking on exxy torches etc.

IE 4 x 30Q del to door. $18.60AUD. BLF L6 Del $88.00 AUD.
full prices I paid, not coupons.
Lion seems to be US/Canada only. NO access to AUST.

I never buy anything from US anymore. their freight even for letter size is ridiculous.
Your US/Canada would have to be politics. Yes.

We used to send presents to a coupla NC Neices and son.
Freight was always 3 or 4 times more than cost of parcels.
Nowadays. just transfer some cash.

Getting harder for us Canadians as well. Very few US companies have reasonable shipping to Canada anymore. That is why I purchased many batteries from Banggood to stock up. Got more than I need right now and glad I did. Illumn in the US is still the best price to send batteries to Canada but you still end up paying about 50% or more than buying the same batteries from Banggood. Right now BG does not ship to Canada again.

The cost being so high for ordering cells inside of Canada is because the shipping permits for shipping lithium ion are prohibitively expensive, being about 10 000$US, and because the regulations in Canada are even tighter than the ones in the US.

That is a recipe for a price and competition trap: since it costs so much to get a permit, and even if you can pay, that is hard to get, there are very few players selling lithium ion cells, and there being little competition, prices are sky high for lithium ion cells sold separately.

TLDR: I hate the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 for making shipping 18650s that are safer extremely hard and expensive to do so.