Will aaa eneloops work better or the same in a non regulated headlight?
I meant in comparison to alkaline batts
They should, but possibly lower output, since the Eneloops would be slight lower voltage, I think. I’m using Eneloops in one of my headlights (a Coast).
good question. my guess is they’ll work longer.
at the very least, you don’t have to worry about leakage.
In a non-regulated light, it will be dimmer to begin but will maintain the output a little longer. I tried this in my headlamp. 3 fresh Duracell AAAs were noticeably bright than 3 AAA Eneloops but the Eneloops have more capacity so they will go longer between charges/changes.
If you want max performance, go with Alkalines or lithium primaries. If you max runtime, go with the newest gen Eneloops. I use Eneloops for hiking trips and bring a set of alkalines as backup but never need them.
It depends on the current draw. For ~100ma or less, it doesn’t make much of a difference. For higher draws, the runtime curves look like longer versions of this*:
Eneloops maintain higher output longer, but they drop off faster once they reach the end of their charge. Alkalines dim more quickly, but they have more runtime near the tail end of their life.
*image borrowed from HKJ’s Thrunite Ti review.
well I want the max brightness but hate the idea of buying alk aaa’s, the only aa’s I use are rechargeable and I really am stuck on not buying one shot batts.
How about NiZn's? (Which of course means a new charger.) Wait, these batteries are AA, are AAA NiZn available? Come to think of it I've never seen AAA NiZn's mentioned.
-Garry
Yes, there are AAA NiZn cells.
Nichia maglight on alkalines: All SOLD - 2AA Maglites "Flag Light" Nichia 219, Carlco TIR -
Nichia maglight on NiZn: All SOLD - 2AA Maglites "Flag Light" Nichia 219, Carlco TIR -
Those seem powerful but I want to stick with batts that can be charged like my aa eneloops….too many chargers already,….
but it would solve all my problems if I could find a headlight that takes 1 or 2 aa’s - with out the back batt pack design, seems like all the nice ones use 3 aaa’s.
I know what you mean. I would love to find a good headlamp that takes 2 AAs but they are rare for some reason. Most use the 3 AAA set up. AAAs really are not that bad these days. I think I am more put off by the number 3 than the batty type. AAAs come in packs of 2 or 4 not 3.
I just got back from a trip to Puerto Rico to do some hiking and kayaking. I did some kayaking at night as well as walks and stuff. I have every kind of flashlight and headlamp in all battery sizes. What I ended up taking all turned out to be AAA lights. Didn’t really plan it but it happened that way. I had my 3AAA headlamp, Princeton Tec Eos because it is waterproof. Since I was bringing that, I decided to take a 1-AAA and took my ITP Eos. I prefer my Olight Eos but brought the ITP in case I lost it. I also tossed in a Hugby 2AAA penlight.
I ended up using the penlight the most and it turned out to be waterproof in the sea which I was surprised at. I had it in my shorts pocket clipped like a knife while kayaking. It was submerged in several inches of water while I paddled for several hours.
I guess my point is, AAAs have become my go to cell. Not out of choice but out of the simple fact that they are small and light and easy to travel with. I could have brought anything but I brought cells that could be replaced anywhere in the world and were small enough to always have with me. 18650s are great but I rarely use them outside of the house.
Thats the way I feel about it too. There are aa headlights out there but not much choice in brands like Princeton tec, Petzl, ect. Its crazy and isnt 1 or 2 aa batts more powerful than 3 aaa’s?…….anyone?
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Why is Fenix not mentioned, they use AAs.