Travel Technology - Battery tip: Sanyo Eneloop batteris on sale at CostCo

I just found out about these batteries last week (how I missed them during BF I'll never know). I've used them and they are fantastic!

These are rechargeable batteries, but lose 15% of their charge per year (according to Sanyo, here's an in depth review (http://www.stefanv.com/electronics/sanyo_eneloop.html) ).

That means you can finally treat your rechargeables like regular alkalines!!

Get them while they're on sale now at CostCo, about $21 or so.

Enjoy. I hope they make your old rechargeable batteries obsolete, like the dozens I have laying around. They will save you on new battery purchases as well, helping the environment. :)

Yeah, these are indeed great. I got 2 sets during the BF sale, but wish I had picked up more...

Yeah, these are indeed great. I got 2 sets during the BF sale, but wish I had picked up more...
You can pick them up now for only $1 more than BF, Scott. Be aware there are two type of chargers, one with a sliding cover, which has 4 independent channels (can charge 1 or more batteries), and one with two indepdendent channels (can charge batteries in sets of two only).

The two independent channel charger (newer one) can work internationally, whereas the older one only works in the US.

More info here (http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=180987&page=2)

Get them before they are discontinued by CostCo soon.

Picked up some of these on the BF sale too. My Costco had both versions. The new ones specifically say the charger works on 110/240V in the lower right corner of the package.

How do these batteries hold up when used in cold temps (0-40 deg F)?

Note that NiMH cells don't deliver full voltage for very long. In this chart (http://www.hardingenergy.com/pdfs/NiMH.pdf#page=7), it can be seen that the voltage is between 1.2 and 1.3 volts for most of the discharge cycle. Many devices, especially digital cameras, will not function at this voltage - you take a few pictures, and the camera quits working.

With devices that are more voltage-tolerant (most audio players, for example), you'll be fine. I still use a 386/16 laptop that runs for about 22 hours on a NiMH AA battery pack.

How do these batteries hold up when used in cold temps (0-40 deg F)?
Here (http://www.hardingenergy.com/pdfs/NiMH.pdf#page=9) is your temperature/discharge graph.

Note that NiMH cells don't deliver full voltage for very long. In this chart (http://www.hardingenergy.com/pdfs/NiMH.pdf#page=7), it can be seen that the voltage is between 1.2 and 1.3 volts for most of the discharge cycle. Many devices, especially digital cameras, will not function at this voltage - you take a few pictures, and the camera quits working.

With devices that are more voltage-tolerant (most audio players, for example), you'll be fine. I still use a 386/16 laptop that runs for about 22 hours on a NiMH AA battery pack.
Please read the end of the Sanyo review -- "I recently purchased a Nikon MB-E5700 external battery pack for my Coolpix 8700 camera. This attaches to the bottom of the camera and holds six AA cells. I put a freshly charged set of Eneloops in them before our trip to Florida. One and a half months and 160 photos later, the camera's battery indicator is still showing "full".
[May 2007 Update: I finally had to recharge the Eneloops after three months and 320 pictures.] "


Also, the review said: Like any rechargeable battery, Eneloops should not be left connected to a low current "wall-wart" type slow charger indefinitely. Fortunately, the main reason for doing this has been to ensure there are always charged batteries on hand. With the Eneloops' slow self discharge rate, this is not really necessary.
Could someone please tell me why the bolded part is the case? That's exactly what we do with 4 regular NiMH batteries.

One and a half months and 160 photos later, the camera's battery indicator is still showing "full".

Obviously, the camera in question will function on 1.2-1.3V. But don't count on yours doing so. My Fuji CoolPix won't. My point (and my YMMV title) is that not all of them will.

Obviously, the camera in question will function on 1.2-1.3V. But don't count on yours doing so. My Fuji CoolPix won't. My point (and my YMMV title) is that not all of them will.

Any device that runs off batteries must be designed with wide voltage swings in mind. The nature of batteries ensure that their voltage declines over the course of discharge. If this didn't occur, battery meters would need to operate on guesswork. I had a Finepix (Nikons are Coolpix, Fujis are Finepix) 4700 that would NOT run off Alkalines. It would last perhaps 10 minutes and turn off. Lithium disposables and NiMH were fine.

Here (http://www.maxim-ic.com/appnotes.cfm/an_pk/3958) is an interesting white paper on rechargeable batteries and how remaining charge is measured as well as their discharge curves.

Here (http://data.energizer.com/PDFs/alkaline_appman.pdf) is a PDF from Energizer on their batteries and the discharge curves.

Alkalines have a much steeper curve and can't deliver consistent current over a given period of time as rechargeables can. This is why many devices stipulate NiCD/NiMH cells as a requirement despite the common form factor.

The nature of batteries ensure that their voltage declines over the course of discharge.
(Slaps forehead.) Holy smoke! Who would have guessed anything like that?!

Nikons are Coolpix, Fujis are Finepix
And is yours a NitPix?

Alkalines have a much steeper curve and can't deliver consistent current over a given period of time as rechargeables can. This is why many devices stipulate NiCD/NiMH cells as a requirement despite the common form factor.

The newer Fuji Finepix's are notorious for not running on Alkalines and my Pentax *ist D won't even power up with them.