Duracell "Stay Charged" NiMh - can't find them anymore

[ChrisGarrett]

That has not been my experience with the hi cap cells with regard to lasting 2-3 years. I have Eneloop XX's from 2011-2 that I use often and still work fine, didn't keep track of the charge cycles but I am guessing I have over 200. I also have a bunch of Ion Cores form when they first came out in 2013 or so and some 3 + year old Energizer Recharge plus cells - again all still work fine after a good amount of use.


I think that most problems with short life of Eneloops and Eneloop rebrands are caused by crappy chargers that are dumb that never shut off or only shut off after 12-16 hrs, cooking the cells or by marginally less chappy "smart chargers" that charge only cells in pairs that typically overcharge half of the cells being charged. A decent smart charger that charges individual cells, like the basic Eneloop BC-17, will charge all of the cells properly. Another type of charger that kills cells are the super quick 15 min - 1 hour types.

I guess you would be the exception to my experiences reading here for 6+ years and my own time with various NiMH batteries.

Check their I.R.s on an analyzing charger and see what you see? They might work in lower drain devices, but I'm sure, even positive that their I.R.s are much higher than when new.

I've used analyzing chargers since before I joined this forum and I've had/have lots of different types/brands, so I have a good sample size.

Now, the 'made in Japan' silver foil Energizer 2300mAh AAs and even their 850mAh AAAs have stood the test of time for me, despite others having so-so luck with them.

I just ran 4 2300s through the break-in on my Maha--dated 7/10 and they were all in the 2025-2075mAh range with I.R.s in the 1.60v range, so pretty good after 8 years.

Chris

 

[lumen aeternum]

So where do I buy the "regular" LSD if Home Depot has the Ion "high cap LSD" ??

 

[ChibiM]

Gauss; the internal resistance was really high. Went down after a refresh.
Walkintothelight: The cells had enough capacity after the refresh. Somethi g around 1900 again.

Test is here: https://eneloop101.com/batteries/eneloop-test-results/#10-year-lsd-test

 

[WalkIntoTheLight]

Gauss; the internal resistance was really high. Went down after a refresh.
Walkintothelight: The cells had enough capacity after the refresh. Somethi g around 1900 again.

Wow, so the only damage from long-term storage is a bit of increase in IR? (I'm not sure what you mean by it went down after a refresh, but I'm assuming it went down close to normal?)

For low-drain uses, such as remotes, this seems to imply that regular Eneloops might have a life span of several decades?!?

 

[ChrisGarrett]

So where do I buy the "regular" LSD if Home Depot has the Ion "high cap LSD" ??

You don't. But Costco sometimes has blister packs with included charger, if you're a member?

Rechargeable batteries are a 'numbers' marketing game. They want people to see a bigger number and well...2450 is a bigger number than 1900, or 2000.

Chris

 

[xxo]

So where do I buy the "regular" LSD if Home Depot has the Ion "high cap LSD" ??

As Chris mentioned sometimes Cosco has Eneloop packages with an assortment of AAA and AA cells, C and D adapters along with a decent but basic smart charger all for a good price, but these seem to come out around Christmas time and are not always stocked year round.

Ikea also sells rebranded Eneloops in both standard and hi capacity varieties, make sure to get the ones made in Japan.


Of course you can order Eneloops online - there are also re-brands available in the form of Amazon basics (again made sure they are the ones made in Japan) or even Fujitsu brand (Fujitsu is the actual manufacture of Eneloop's Japanese made cells).

 

[xxo]

I guess you would be the exception to my experiences reading here for 6+ years and my own time with various NiMH batteries.

Check their I.R.s on an analyzing charger and see what you see? They might work in lower drain devices, but I'm sure, even positive that their I.R.s are much higher than when new.

I've used analyzing chargers since before I joined this forum and I've had/have lots of different types/brands, so I have a good sample size.

Now, the 'made in Japan' silver foil Energizer 2300mAh AAs and even their 850mAh AAAs have stood the test of time for me, despite others having so-so luck with them.

I just ran 4 2300s through the break-in on my Maha--dated 7/10 and they were all in the 2025-2075mAh range with I.R.s in the 1.60v range, so pretty good after 8 years.

Chris

I charged up a couple of cells for a quick IR check on a charger (cells need to be fully charged for an accurate comparison because IR increases as a cell is drained): an old XX Eneloop gave 40 milliOlms and a fairly new standard capacity Eneloop 45 milliOlms! I am not sure what this is in Volts, as that is not how resistance is normally expressed. BTW, I don't completely trust these readings because they include contact resistance between the cells and the charger contacts plus the contacts between the slider and the rail that it moves along, so they are both a bit higher than they should be.

What kind of IR readings did you get over the years on all of your high capacity Eneloops that died after 2-3 years?

 

[lumen aeternum]

This technical jargon side conversation is getting spammy. Can you guys move it elsewhere? TIA.

 

[ChrisGarrett]

This technical jargon side conversation is getting spammy. Can you guys move it elsewhere? TIA.

You don't say where you're located, so how can we accurately suggest where to get them from?

Battery Junction, Ebay, Costco, Walgreens, Walmart and Ikea all have some sort of NiMH batteries for sale. Duracell and Energizer both market 'made in China' batteries, so be careful.

Just use Google and see who has what you want in stock.

As far as the technical stuff goes, you could learn something.

It's not like this place has a lot of action going on.

Chris

 

[Kestrel]

I happened to see that the Eneloops in my local BiMart were still Japan-mfg; our conversation about the less-robust China-version a couple years ago concerned me a lot.

I do have an unopened 4-pack of Eneloop AAA's dated 2006; if you folks are still around in 2026 I'd be happy to send them off for testing.

 

[ChibiM]

That's a long time from now Kestrel! But I would be very very interested. I have an 8-pack AA unopened from 2009 or 2010.. which I also hope to do some discharge tests on.

 

[stephenk]

The white IKEA Ladda NiMH batteries are the same as Eneloop Pros and quite likely the best value for money LSD NiMH battery - far cheaper than Eneloop and Duraloops.

 

[ChibiM]

The white IKEA Ladda NiMH batteries are the same as Eneloop Pros and quite likely the best value for money LSD NiMH battery - far cheaper than Eneloop and Duraloops.

I almost get $%^kk of that answer I see everywhere on the internet.... as if someone finally has seen the light.... pun intended

OP wants LSD cells and is fine with a lower capacity.

Almost every thread about eneloops that comes up in forums, somebody just has to drop that IKEA bomb..... LOL..
Since there was a youtube video going viral everyone is an ikealoop expert