Test / Review: Xtar SP2 charger

Does this look like the real thing??
http://www.powerwholesale.net/xtar-wp2-ii-charger-with-car-charger-p-376.html

Looks like a real WP2 ll, but not a SP2. Some nice prices on that site, but shipping is extra (and usually high).

good review,Thanks!

Wow :open_mouth: So no quite budget I’d say :open_mouth: Could worth those 35 bucks, but I will be in when the price drops to ~$25. Thanks for heads up, Shadow :wink:

Hm, “powerwholesale” is be offering the SP2 for about $20, and their info pages they say free shipping within a 2 kilograms (the SP2 is around half a kilogram), and explain you can’t choose a shipping method if that free shipping applies — which is how their website cart behaves. Apparently they want you to create an order then send PayPal for it, it’s kind of an arcane set of FAQs and explanations. Curious. What the heck, worth trying.

——-EDIT —AVOID “powerwholesale” — They won’t even look at your order until you send payment for it.
After you pay, despite their claim that to 2 kilograms will ship free, they email saying pay more, much more, for shipping.

Glad I didn’t give them a credit card number!

They’re at best very confusing with contradictory info on various pages about shipping.

Great review but I have a question. You have listed a 18370 battery as a supported battery size. Did you mean 18350? I could be wrong but I’m pretty sure there is no 18370 battery. None that I can find anyway.

I don’t think, that the price will drop so extremly. In Germany you pay about 35€ for it.
In the first days XTAR made good products for an excellent price like the WP2. The next products are also good and the prices increase a little bit for example WP2 II ot the Xtar 2600mAh.
Now they product excellent products and want the price for it, which the market pay like for the XTAR 3100mAh (one pair of the 2600mAh is cheaper as one 3100mAh). But take a look at the advantages of the charger: 0,5A, 1A, 2A. Good charging results, you can charge most batteries.
I do not know a charger, which could do the same (I ignore the RC modell chargers). The XTAR SP2 isn’t a budget chargrr, but maybe one of the best avialable chargers at the moment.

Formerly the Pila IBC was one of the best chargers and it was more expensive as the Xtar SP2.

@Buwuve: Yup, you’d probably pay the same here in Spain. That’s why I buy most things from China :bigsmile:

@hank: now that’s a really good price, mate :slight_smile: AFAIK, PWS doesn’t offer free shipping (unless specified), but I wouldn’t mind to pay 5 bucks more for shipping :stuck_out_tongue: BTW, here is the link. Thanks again :wink:

- Yellowhorse: don’t know if that size exists, but don’t worry, SP2 will charge it w/o any prob :wink: It will charge any li-ion cell. Only those small ones, i.e.10440 or 16350, should been charged @0.5A (IMHO) only and with caution.

@HKJ: is that me, or this charger doesn’t have any noise? :open_mouth: (compare them to WP2 or I4 and see the diff)

SashiX - No doubt it will charge a 18370 lithium battery if it existed. I was just trying to clarify/correct the chart that was posted. I know HKJ wouldn’t want any mistakes/typo’s to remain.
Appears to be a real upgrade to previous chargers made by Xtar. I like the adjustable amperage settings and the fact it will do 26650’s without having to tinker with it. Also nice to have another charger with CC/CV AND termination at the end of the charge cycle. If I wasn’t already overloaded with very good chargers, I would buy this one.

You are correct and I have fixed it (Thanks).

:slight_smile:

Cells discharged below 2.8V are considered not safe. Should not the charger provide at least an indication of the fact? Perhaps the charger should not charge them?

This depends on the cell, the current Panasonic 2900/3100/3400 can be discharged down to 2.5 volt.

I believe that Panasonic specify that you must soft charge below 2.8 volt.

One of the problems with LiIon safety is that the limits are depend on the actual cell used, this is no problem in a full battery pack with the charger build in, but it a problem when using a loose battery. It would be more safe if it did not charge below a low limit, but then there would be problems with tripped protections and depending on limit, some types of cells.

HKJ, this charger will actually try to charge a dead unprotected Li-ion?

For example, we have a salvaged battery at 0.8V, this charger will not refuse to charge, but instead it will try a soft charge?

And will it stop if the 0.8V battery is not chargeable? A timer perhaps - 10min charge does not bring up V -> terminate charge?

All in all, it still sounds dangerous for a normal user IMO. Maybe this charger should be for someone who knows what they're doing.

At low voltage it will use a very low current, that does not really charge the battery, but will reset protection, you can also see that the light stays green instead of showing red for charge.

The charger is not more dangerous than many other chargers on the market, many chargers supplies some current at low voltage, often more than this charger.

That low voltage may rise quickly, even with very low current.
Perhaps the 4.23V also should not be dismissed so easily, some people cry “Terrible!” at seeing 4.23V.

Some people does, without even reading a data sheet for a LiIon battery or knowing how to measure the charger voltage (This is not the same as the battery voltage, when the charging is stopped).

As long as the voltage is within the limits in the LiIon data sheet, I will not call it a problem.

Quoting myself :slight_smile:

Sorry, I missed it first time.

The current on this charger is mostly stable, there is only small variations while the charger is adjust it, no switching between 0 and full charger current.

Thanks very much for the review! Frontpage’d and Sticky’d.