Do you have a battery preference?

[Darrell KSR]

Do you use regular alkaline batteries, or do you use some rechargeable batteries? If you use alkaline batteries, do you find a difference in Energizer, Duracell, Rayovac? How about those Lithium cell ones?

I've heard in some situations, rechargeable batteries work better; in others, they work worse. Do you use rechargeables, and how well do they work for you? I've heard of some sort of "eneloop" rechargeables that supposedly retain their charge better than the old-timer ones do. I'll be honest; I have tried rechargeables in the past and had awful results with them--but if there is new technology out and I can save money in the long run, and the performance is equal or better--then I'd like to know.

I'm going walking about every night, and probably will be burning through AAA batteries with the small flashlight, or AA or C-cell with the bat light if I get that. So I am receptive to rechargeables. Otherwise, I'll do what I always do. Wait til a super deal (Black Friday kinda deal), then stock up, and use them all year until the next big sale.

[dan_bgblue]

Sanyo Eneloop. They are worth every penny you could spend on them. They are 1.2 volts versus 1.5 volts for an alkaline battery, but I have never found that to be a disadvantage in any application.

[badrose]

I've been using rechargeables in my cameras and flash for years and they're still going.

[CitizenBBN]

partial to D cells myself.

[jazyd]

I use rechargeable for my camera and have no problems. I used to buy the higher priced but found energizer s last just as well for my flashlights.

[BigBluePappy]

Gullett and Bench? :sign0157:

[badrose]

Gullett and Bench? :sign0157:

:D Gullet is from my old neck of the woods, Greenup County. The kid had some heat.

[PedroDaGr8]

Eneloops are quite good. Duracell actually rebrands some eneloops, their "Pre-Charged" rechargable NiMH batteries. You can tell because they have a white rim on the top and they say Made In Japan on the side. The annoying thing is that in the same model they also have some that have green rings on top that say "Made In China", these are not nearly as good. Sometimes stores will clear them out to get a new batch in so you can get them for relatively cheap. Supposedly the Ray-O-Vac hybrids are pretty well rated too.

[Darrell KSR]

I'm going to have to get them.

I noticed two nights ago that my "black" Defiant flashlight just didn't seem as bright. It was fine for my use, but it wasn't that just blasting bright light. I thought I might be getting used to it.

So I used the silver one last night, and sure enough, it was brighter; much brighter. So apparently the black one was on its way out. I used the silver one again tonight, and the light was a little less bright, noticeably so. That makes sense, as I've used them almost interchangeably, although I probably had used the black one a little more.

So I've gone through two flashlights since I first purchased them and the AA batteries, and if I want to get the full Monty, I'll need to refresh the batteries. I keep a bunch of AA batteries, but I don't necessarily want to replace them this quickly. I'll go back and see when I bought them, and figure I've been using them 5 nights a week for 45 minutes average and see how quickly the AA batteries are going down.

** EDIT HERE **

I've had the 2 flashlights for 4 weeks. The math is approximate, but probably in the ballpark.

Each one has been used about 10 times x 45 minutes average. (I have used each a tiny amount around the house, too). So 450 minutes each/60 = 7.5 hours. They "say" they last 8 hours.

Pretty darn accurate, although, again, my math is approximate and I have not kept records.

[dan_bgblue]

SANYO ENELOOPS:4chsmu1:

Darrell you know my hobby is dependent on battery life and them working first time and lasting a long time. I used everything but a rechargeable battery pack before I was advised to buy the ones in bold above. I do not believe you will be disappointed. Buy an extra set or two and always have a set charged when you notice the light not being to your needs. I have a set of AA's that have been thru a few hundred recharges and they still work at 80% efficiency.

[Darrell KSR]

SANYO ENELOOPS:4chsmu1:

Darrell you know my hobby is dependent on battery life and them working first time and lasting a long time. I used everything but a rechargeable battery pack before I was advised to buy the ones in bold above. I do not believe you will be disappointed. Buy an extra set or two and always have a set charged when you notice the light not being to your needs. I have a set of AA's that have been thru a few hundred recharges and they still work at 80% efficiency.

Thanks, Dan. I will take your advice. Do you buy a separate charger for them, and if so, what do you recommend?

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[jazyd]

Dan. Where do you get them? Didnt see them in Wally world




SANYO ENELOOPS:4chsmu1:

Darrell you know my hobby is dependent on battery life and them working first time and lasting a long time. I used everything but a rechargeable battery pack before I was advised to buy the ones in bold above. I do not believe you will be disappointed. Buy an extra set or two and always have a set charged when you notice the light not being to your needs. I have a set of AA's that have been thru a few hundred recharges and they still work at 80% efficiency.

[dan_bgblue]

Darrell, if you shop around online you can find nice deals where the charger and 4 or 8 batteries can be bought together at a good price. Any NiMH charger will work, and I have one from Batteries Plus that works just fine. Please buy the 2,000 mAmp batteries.

Jazy I have never seen them at Walmart, Target, Best Buy, etc. I have always bought them online from Amazon. If you have a Costco in your area and you are a member, they do carry them.

[Darrell KSR]

So just look for a package deal on Amazon, et al with the recharger it comes with, and I'll be fine.

Sounds good. Thanks for the advice. I know your hobby requires a lot of battery power; can't get much more useful than that. With walking on a nightly basis, I'll try to get a lot of use out of the AA batteries/flashlights, too.

Will the AA batteries be carried in the 2000mah? I thought I saw (and I have not looked in a couple of weeks) where I saw some that were like 800 mah. Maybe those were AAA? Can I get AA and AAA in that size?

[dan_bgblue]

You can get the AAs in 750 to 800 and 1500 mAH. Used to be that 1500 was the highest amp rating they made, but when they went to 2000, it upped the usage per charge significantly.

[Darrell KSR]

Thanks. I will hunt for the 2000

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[jazyd]

Thanks Dan, don't have Costco. Nor do I buy on line, prefer dealing with locals even Walmart as they at least employee local people and contribute to local charities



Darrell, if you shop around online you can find nice deals where the charger and 4 or 8 batteries can be bought together at a good price. Any NiMH charger will work, and I have one from Batterieseven Plus that works just fine. Please buy the 2,000 mAmp batteries.

Jazy I have never seen them at Walmart, Target, Best Buy, etc. I have always bought them online from Amazon. If you have a Costco in your area and you are a member, they do carry them.

[dan_bgblue]

jazy, do you have a Ritz/Wolfe camera store in your area? They should have them

[PedroDaGr8]

If you can't buy online. As I mentioned before look for the Duracell precharged rechargables. The ones that are made in Japan are supposedly rebadged Sanyos. While the Made In China are rebadged Ray-O-Vac Hybrids. The Eneloops are better.

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/81gBTk3q%2B6L._SX425_.jpg

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