Test / Review: EnerPower+ 18650 2900mAh 3C (Blue)

EnerPower+ 18650 2900mAh 3C (Blue)



Official specifications:

  • Panasonic NCR18650PD 2900 mAh
  • Minimum capacity: 2800 mAh
  • High Drain - this battery is made for high current (up to 10A) applications. With our 7A PCB this battery loses hardly any capacity on high discharge current
  • Standard charging current: 580mAh for 5.5 hours to 4.2 V
  • Maximum charge current 1450 mA
  • Protection circuit: 7 A - For Flashlights with over 20 Wh
  • Deep discharge protection: at 3V
  • Raised positive nipple - Button Top
  • Nickel base plate for added durability
  • Panasonic Cell - UL - certification
  • Diameter: 18 mm
  • Length: 69 mm
  • Weight: 48g +/- 1-2g
  • With our own welding innovation the button-top would be weld directly on the cell - lower internal resistance and more robustness.
  • CE certification
  • Assembly "Made in Germany"




This battery uses a new version of the Panasonic 2900 mAh cell designed for higher current.
The cell used can be discharged down to 2.5 volt, in my test I only discharges to 2.8 volt, i.e. I do not measure the full capacity. But then, not all lights will be able to use the full capacity.











The voltage and capacity at higher current is slighty higher then the old 2900 mAh cell (Use my comperator to compare).
The two batteries I got does show a very good match.















Conclusion

The higher voltage at high currents is a nice improvement to the 2900 cell.
The battery gets a very good rating.



Notes and links

The batteries was supplied by ENERDan for review.


How is the test done and how to read the charts
How is a protected LiIon battery constructed
More about button top and flat top batteries

Nice.. but I do miss the 7A discharge. :P

Quite pricey at £22 each.

So… 9 amps per cell?

I did not have any specifications on the cells, when I started the test. That is the reason I only did the standard test.

Maybe I will add a 7A trace later.

The cell might be able to deliver it, but I doubt the protection will allow it. When protection gets hot it will usual trip at a lower current.

Is the PCB plate soft and easily dented like the Panasonic 3100s?

I do not believe that the metal is that soft, but I know that some lights can dent it.

I do not know how strong the plate on this battery is, but it is both the plate and the PCB that must be dented.

That would be great. At 5A the curve looks almost like the curve of the 2250mAh "IMR", but with more capacity.

7A discharge added.

Great, thank you. Seems to be a pretty awesome battery. Performs almost as good as the 2250mAh "IMR" but has more capacity.

LG D1 is still superior tho..

In a German board, I read about the LG D1 and this improved Panasonic cells that these two have a more dangerous chemistry than normal LiIon cells. Not more unstable, but when something goes wrong, it might go wrong worse.

Hi Kreisler

The NCR18650PD seems very affordable, and readily available.
The Enerpower+ 2900mAh 3C seems to be the only protected version on the market. I bought 1 to try a few months ago. It is a good cell. I find it best in my lights that pull upto about 3.75A, but the Panasonic CGR18650CH is better above that.

Cheers
Matt

linergy shop charges 5€ extra for small orders. Also, according to HKJ tests, PD is superior to the CH up to about 7A. Protected PD vs unprotected CD are about equal at 5A.

From HKJ’s comparison charts, under initial load, the CH holds voltage better than the PD at all discharge currents, but the PD starts to hold voltage better as the cell starts to discharge.
But at 5A and above the CH holds voltage far higher initially, then matches the PD down to 3.2v, then the PD’s greater capacity shows.

One thing i have found though is that using a 4.5A light, the PD will give about 3.8-3.9A at the tail. The CH will give 4.25A.
This must be down to the lower internal resistance of the unprotected CH cell.

These are great cells Kreisler. I ran my Enerpower+ 2900mAh/3C in a direct drive XM-L u3 that i put together today using an Led-Tech copper star. I measured 7A @ the tail.
I then got curious and tried a Samsung INR18650-20R, and measured 9.5A at the tail for about 2 seconds, then fried the Led :cry:

Fasttech has these bare 18650pd cells for 16$ in Stock and i am Planning to Buy a pair for High current mods.

But I can’t find a datasheet? Any hints?

Well, what do you want to know?

I want to know where I can find the datasheet.

There is none available. But you can take the one from the NCR18650 as reference. There is a lot of info about that cell spread around the internet, so if you have any specific question, just ask. ;)