Test / Review: Fake Eneloop batteries from DinoDirect and Manafont, buyers BEWARE!

Well done with the refund (45$ giftcard, sweet!). You can still make good use of these fake cells.

I measured the exact weight of Eneloop AA Glitter in ChibiM's thread, feel free to compare if you have an accurate scale.

Is there a manufacture date/code on the wrappers? Just above the join in the wrapper.

So did DD CS admit they are selling fake eneloops. The gift card suggests to me that they did.

I also have these fakeloops.

No datecode.

They admit they are selling fake eneloops but they continue selling. AVOID!

thanks for the information. very careful not to fall into this trap.

Since my only AA light is a Mini-Mag this isn’t much of a problem for me as I only got it to fill the gap of lights with different “standard” (alkaline - AAA, AA, C, D, 9v) battery types. I’ve given some thought to getting a few rechargable batteries for it but don’t want to get stuck with fakes. Anybody know for sure where to get “REALloops”? Is there a Sanyo part number I should look for?

Costco, or Amazon

Oh no!!! Too late for me!

I ordered them last wednesday. At least I used a 6$ giftcard, but still… is money.

hmmm…. let´s see what I can I do with paypal buyers protection

Thanks for the info!!!

I don't get it. Why are these considered fake?

The capacity matched the claimed minimum 1900mAh, some even exceeded that quite a lot. 2weeks charge retain was quite good too. What actually gave it up as fake?

The shitty wrapping is a dead giveaway, and the HFR NI-MH printed on the shell probably means that they are really, well, HFR brand batteries (which do exist, and can be purchased by the thousands on places like Alibaba).

The plastic on the packaging appears to be glossy, real eneloops are matte. Another giveaway is eneloops have extremely strict quality control: There is almost no variation in appearance and voltage & capacities are usually pretty consistent from cell to cell. Finally, every single one of my eneloops is a perfect cylinder, no evidence of the bulges at the end that look like a protection circuit is placed under the skin.

Good eyes for fake guys! I would have been taken in by the numbers alone.

After some calculations, yes, definitely consistency and the discharge rates were not Eneloop level:-

Charge After 2hr Discharge% After 2wks Discharge%
1823 1895 103.95 1771 97.15
1966 1966 100 1889 96.08
2015 2015 100 1790 88.83
2109 2109 100 1909 90.52
2183 2237 102.47 2064 94.55
2278 2331 102.33 2143 94.07
2313 2356 101.86 2197 94.98
2370 2370 100 2162 91.22
2468 2388 96.76 2218 89.87
2409 2409 100 1780 73.89
2530 2416 95.49 2272 89.8
2420 2420 100 2094 86.53

Still, if this was indeed HFR cheap cells, I can't help but be amazed at the achievement of the "cheapies".

As Troop said, Costco - I just purchased a set there today. The deal isn’t as good as it was last spring, but still not bad…10 AA or AAA’s for $20. I’ve found Duraloops at Walmart, but you have to look closely…they are Duracell rechargeables…you have to look for samples that say ‘made in Japan’ and have a white top. The others are gray top and made in China…but as I understand, these are the real deal. Wally World gets just under $12 for 4.

Little update:
I threw cells #10 and #11 into digital camera today, it showed low battery alarm instantly.
Another proof these are not true LSD.

The problem, vëer, is that apart from they are not LSD, they dont perform well under high loads.

Another problem. Multicell arrangements:

All the cells have different capacity, and the difference is appreciable.

Today I installed 2 in a mobile phone emergency charger. The emergency charger stopped working and I didn´t wondered why.

I took the cells, measured the voltage: one was 0,9v the other was 1.2v. And both were charged in the same charger in the same moment…

I will abuse them, and after a few cycles I will recycle them

Thanks for let us know…

Very useful post! Thanks for the heads up. This will be a good reference if we suspect having received fakes in the future. Frontpage’d and Sticky’d.

I guess they are just decent NiMH with no LSD properties…… not too bad if it’s a low enough price.

I need 8 NiMH AAs for my 2 camera flashes. As cheap as possible, as long as they can charge up my Nikon SB-900 within 5 seconds. :smiley:

I doubt these will handle such task - read above, me and Fran are having hard time getting them to work with higher loads.

Hi friend,thanks for your great information,I am summer,I found your post today ,and would you like send your order nubmer to me ? I need help you confirm ,and our cs also need treat every customer as their God,and if you have anything about your order items,you can find our oneline chat ,and if they donot help you solve ,you can let me know ,ok ?
And I will treat every people as my dear friend,so please let me know your order problem,and then will help you solve .
have a great day
summer

Avoid buying from DD. I have given up already!