iGo Green Battery Charger with 8 Rechargeable Batteries
$9.99 + $5 Shipping
Condition: New
DISCLAIMER Wootalyzer! is in no way affiliated with Woot!, and this post may not always be here!
Are these batteries worth the cash?
Big question is how do they compare to the legendary Eneloops?
Now you can say “My rechargeable batteries are revolting.”
I wonder how many pictures with a higher quality camera you can take running on these.
Manufacturer’s site has 4 batteries + charger for $12.99.
http://www.igo.com/charger-with-4-aa-rechargeable-alkaline-batteries/invt/ac051060001/
I need a charger to hold all 8 of the stupid batteries at once. Actually, only 7 since my son’s new RC truck is odd.
That write-up deserves a Sulu-style OHHH MYYYYY.
I have no knowledge of this specific product. However, rechargeable alkalines have been produced in the past, and have leaked. I’m doubly suspicious of the claim that it will also recharge NiMH batteries, because that takes a lot more current than alkalines can handle. It may well have the microprocessor needed to recharge alkalines without much risk of them exploding, but this is claiming a lot for such a low price…
EDIT: I found some reviews at QVC, and at best these batteries work ok as short-term rechargeables. They don’t appear to hold their charge a long time like Eneloops (which also have higher capacity) and they are more prone to failure. Here’s the link:
I wonder if these batteries deplete when not in use
$28 on ebay store:
http://compare.ebay.com/like/250889302543?_lwgsi=y<yp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar
that doesn’t seem to fit well with the company price quoted above.
These batteries are only 2000 mah rated. That is low for a AA size rechargable. My Panasonic rechargable NiMH are 2300 mah rated. These won’t last long before they need recharging, especially in high drain devices.
Unless I’m mistaken, these are not NiMh.
But FWIW, it looks like the charger will handle both Alkaline and NiMh.
Most people I know hate rechargeable because they were always dead when you needed them. Regular rechargeable batteries loose power even when you are not using them, so even though you would charge them up if you didn’t use them right away you would find they were drained when you did need them. Furthermore people tried to use these in devices like mice and remote controls where they wouldn’t last long because, again, they would loose their charge just by sitting there even when the device wasn’t being used.
Fortunately these new ‘hybrid’ type solve that problem and while they still drain when not being used they drain much, much slower than than non-hybrid rechargeable batteries do. I have switched all my rechargeable batteries over to this kind and even use them in my computer mice and remote controls.
Those of you who hate rechargeables but haven’t tried ‘hybrids’ should give them a shot.
I also highly recommend the BC-700 LaCrosse Smart Battery Charger. It will keep your batteries charged properly without overcharging, will let you know when you have a bad cell and can attempt to ‘recover’ bad batteries as well. It allows you to charge at different rates so if you need a quick charge (which shortens the life of the batteries, you will get fewer rechargeable cycles if you always do quick charges) you can, but you can also charge at a slower rate to maximize the recharge life of the battery. If you don’t have a smart charger, be sure to follow the directions on the charger that it comes with, if it says don’t charge for more than ‘x’ hours then don’t!
P.S. I have no experience with this brand of rechargeable. I usually use sanyo eneloops which seem to the be the creme of the crop, but I also have some Rayovac 4.0 and trucell brand that work very well and were about 1/4 the price of the eneloops.
Darn it.
Just a few weeks late Woot.
Just picked up some amazon basic rechargeables, so now I’m all set on batteries for a while.
Well, you could buy 2- then have a set charging while you have a set in the truck. (plus an additional 2 for the TV remote).
$20.98 plus shipping for apples to apples on the igo site:
http://www.igo.com/power/batteries/icat/batteries/
$59.95 plus shipping for three chargers with batteries plus an 8-pack of batteries plus a 4-pack of batteries compared to the $34.97 I gave to woot. I am saving $25 plus freight by going with woot.