Eneloop Battery Questions

[WALABOOM]

I believe a few weeks ago something was discussed about SANYO'S eneloop batteries and charger. I hope someone can refresh my memory. I've seen them in the store for about 20.00. A pack of 4 aa's included. This is supposed to give you about 500 shots! I have heard you should try and get 2500 mah.
These are 2000 mah but you still get 500 shots! I already bought a charger kit, but I'm having second thoughts. I shot about 260 shots before needing a recharge, acceptable for me, but the next time I charged it it ran out after only a few shots , mostly I scanned approximatley 400 shots already taken by my camera, simply viewing and deleting some. I like the idea of only an hour charge, I suppose the eneloop is 6-8 hours, argggg! Does anyone know if its that long? These are also manufactured in Japan and China; redflag China! Has anyone had any long-term experiences with SANYO'S eneloop? The outside package says it takes any nimh batteries and has no charging time listed. Any comments welcomed. Thanks WALABOOM.

[Sintares]

The main point of Eneloops is the low self discharge, ie even after 6months of sitting in the camera doing nothing, the battery should still have 90% charge.

Compare that to an ordinary nimh battery that can lose around 2% of charge per day.

For a casual shooter it probably makes sense, for anyone with a dedicated routine of charging batteries just before use or topping them up every few days then a normal higher capacity battery such as the 2700nimhs may be better.

Nimh batteries and I assume eneloops as well will need a couple of cycles of charge-discharge-charge to reach full capacity. Ie the nimhs that came with my Sony H1 only lasted about 50shots on first charge, they now a couple of years later still reach 300-400 shots.

I have no idea what the eneloop charger is like, I use a proper intelligent charger that can monitor voltage levels, charge etc and can charge/discharge and refresh my batteries.

[Visual Reality]

I have these batteries as well, got them from Amazon for $20 for an 8-pack.

They state "only use a Sanyo Eneloop charger" which I think is bs. Is it okay to stick them in my Energizer 8 hour charger?

[FlashX83]

I have these batteries as well, got them from Amazon for $20 for an 8-pack.

They state "only use a Sanyo Eneloop charger" which I think is bs. Is it okay to stick them in my Energizer 8 hour charger?

I've been charging my Eneloops in a Maha charger for months now, no problem.

I think any decent quality NiMH charger will charge them without issue.

[WALABOOM]

Thanks to all for the info. I'm wondering if I should return my charger and batteries and get the new eneloop batteries with its charger. Its about the same price but the total number of expected shots is a lot more. I cycled my batteries 2 or 3 times and it seemed fine until lately when it needed a charge after mostly just scrolling through my 400 approximate pictures 2/3 times. I know the "spike" of battery use comes at each shot, but wasn't expecting it to need a recharge so quickly, with just scrolling my pix. I don't like the 6-8
hour charge time, but may get it anyway. Has anyone used these batteries
with flashlights or small portable radios? I use so many I would like to decide on one type to reuse over and over again, not only for my digital camera. Any comments welcomed. WALABOOM.

[jcon]

Eneloops and Rayovac Hybrids are the pretty much the best rechargeables on the market today. They both blow Energizers 2500mAh out of the water!

I use Hybrids btw, they are 2100mAh and work wonderfully. The Energizers are supposed to be recharged before each use. Not the case with the Hybrids or Eneloops. As previously stated, you can use any charger.

[Visual Reality]

Eneloops and Rayovac Hybrids are the pretty much the best rechargeables on the market today. They both blow Energizers 2500mAh out of the water!
I wouldn't say that - it depends what you are talking about. My Eneloops can NOT take as many pictures as my Energizers, which can max out a 4gb card before calling it quits.

[speaklightly]

I have only had my Hybrid batteries for about three weeks now, but the do appear to be measurably better in their operational performance.

Sarah Joyce

[WALABOOM]

Has anyone used these eneloop batteries for items like flashlights or small radios? If I buy a large quantity I would like to use them for not only my digital camera but for these items as well. If you use these type batteries on slow drain items like a radio will it harm the integrity of the battery? Its longterm recharge capacity? Just curious. Any comments welcomed. Thanks
WALABOOM.

[Visual Reality]

That's where they really shine. In low drain devices it would take a long time to use all the energy. Instead of the battery going dead because it discharged itself it would last a very long time.

[WALABOOM]

That was a concern of mine, I use so many aa, aaa, batteries on small items that it would be nice to use rechargeables over and over again. Not only for the saving of money, but simply for the convienience. Any idea on how much longer they might last? WALABOOM.

[Rob vdKam]

I just saw this thread and thought some of you might be interested in some independent testing done on the Eneloops. It's a very good review of the pros and cons.

http://www.stefanv.com/electronics/sanyo_eneloop.html

[WALABOOM]

Just saw your post, haven't had time to go over all of it but looks very interesting. Had a couple of questions to ask . Are the charge times for eneloop 6-8 hours? I saw a set of 4 aaa's with a charger but nothing on the label as far as time. I would prefer 1-2 hours, if possible. The 6-8 hours, (arggggh)! The 1-2 hours is what I would like. I will check the internet for their site for more info. Are you saying that for slow drain use like for small radios it would be o.k.? Due to the fact that they hold their charge a long time? What actually is the difference between the 2000 mah and for example, the 2500 mah that my present batteries are? Any difference in the performance of my digital camera in 2000 mah as opposed to 2500? Will look over your info more closely; looks very good. Any comments welcomed.
WALABOOM.

[Rob vdKam]

Just saw your post, haven't had time to go over all of it but looks very interesting. Had a couple of questions to ask . Are the charge times for eneloop 6-8 hours? I saw a set of 4 aaa's with a charger but nothing on the label as far as time. I would prefer 1-2 hours, if possible. The 6-8 hours, (arggggh)! The 1-2 hours is what I would like. I will check the internet for their site for more info. Are you saying that for slow drain use like for small radios it would be o.k.? Due to the fact that they hold their charge a long time? What actually is the difference between the 2000 mah and for example, the 2500 mah that my present batteries are? Any difference in the performance of my digital camera in 2000 mah as opposed to 2500? Will look over your info more closely; looks very good. Any comments welcomed.
WALABOOM.

Just quickly...
- charge times depend on your charger and I use the RipVan100 product that works fast but uses a cpu to ensure the batteries never overheat
- I can't comment on radio use except to say that alkalines work fine, but my radio came with NiMH and also works fine
- the link I provided has a graph right at the bottom that shows the voltage provided by a normal 2500 NiMH and a eneloop and in many normal use scenarios, you will find the 2000 eneloops give as much or more use (according to the graph)
cheers