Review / Test: Nitecore 18650 [ 2600mAh ]

NITECORE 18650 Review by old4570

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Nitecore 18650 - 2600mAh Test

Manufacturers Product Page

Battery Length 69mm
Battery Diameter 18.3mm
Voltage Out of the Packet 3.77 volts
Claimed Capacity 2600mAh
1A Discharge 2523mAh to 2.5volt
2A Discharge 2557mAh to 2.5volt
3A Discharge 2633mAh to 2.5volt







Wow ! ok this is a somewhat expensive battery , but it certainly looks to perform really well . Im charging the battery again , and hope to have some flashlight performance figures [ Amps Delivered ] to post soon . But looking at the discharge results , it looks like the Nitecore 18650 can do 3A rather easy , so I hope the performance figures , from running in some XM-L lights will reflect this .

The Nitecore 18650 has a very small button for the + end , and is supposedly overdischarge and overcharge protected , but I have to wonder when these features cut in as I did discharge to 2.5v , and I also went to the trouble of overcharging to 4.26 volt . Now 4.26v is a little on the high side , and Im kind of wondering why the overcharge protection did not cut in and at what voltages do the overdischarge and overcharge protection actually cut in and protect ? Now I did test the current output , and its good but not excellent . 3.6amp in my Manafont XM-L P60 drop in , for comparison I had solarforce battery [ Blue and white V2 ] that did about 3.7amp under the same conditions . The Nitecore certainly looks to be 2600mAh capacity , and the discharge ability is on the higher side of average . The price is on the premium side for a 2600mAh battery , but the performance is not . [ You decide ]

Wait, the capacity is higher at 3 amps then at 1 amp? Da fuq?

Nice but how expensive old?

$12 per cell shipped ! VIA Ebay ..

Yes Higher capacity at higher output , I can only assume the battery is getting better with some use , this is rather normal , as a lot of batteries need a few cycles to be at there peak performance .

ps/ All testing is now done with a MM measuring actual battery voltage [ cant trust the hobby charger ] , so the results are as near as possible true [ depending on Hobby Charger ]

So I hope the Hobby Charger can at least measure discharge [mAh] relatively accurately

Thanks very much! Sticky’d.

It cannot be that a cell has less resistance at a higher current flow. Not even A123 LiFePo4 would match this Nitecore cell.

When cells get warm, the internal resistance goes down. This leads to a higher capacity.

Yes in fact the resistance will go down with higher temperature.

Can you show me a review where this can be seen, because of higher current there is a higher capacity at the end.

http://www.fasttech.com/products/0/10001848/1134002-nitecore-nl186-18650-2600mah-37v-rechargeable-lith

18650 (2600mh) $8.48

Coupon code LAUNCH –5%

Well.. this one? ;)

Also, this:

And I have the MM reading battery voltage , rather than trusting the hobby charger .. So voltage sag under load should be less of a factor , so discharges are more accurate ..

So now it terminates at set voltage , and any induced error with the hobby charger is now negated .

So its about as accurate a result as I can give you .

Wow :open_mouth: Really interesting. Thanks for the info :wink:

I was thinking to get some 18650 for a future light and was wondering if you’d recommend these Nitecore or the Xtar 2600 mAh (sanyo) instead?

i have 3x xtar 2400mah also sanyo based and they work fine. Dont know how they compare, but first check the length, if they’d fit in your light. You can’t go wrong with either of these.

according to a nother thread the light I am thinking about works with the Xtar 2600 which are 18.4 x 69.3 mm. The Nitecore cells seem to be a bit longer at 18.4 x 70 mm but I hope they will fit…

I was thinking to get the Nitecore Intellicharger i4 as well, so thought it would be a good fit with their own batteries. Both seem to be a good choise :slight_smile: