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Sysmax/Nitecore/Jetbeam i4 Intellicharger Review (V2): current/voltage comparisons
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Thought I would get myself registered after reading (and buying) for years now.
I just purchased the i4 from HK based on the review here. I noticed something weird, slightly worrying on mine so I thought lets check with the folks here if they can reproduce it on their i4 or that mine is just a DOA.
Situation is as following. 4 identical 18650 cells that are almost full ... 2 out of the 4 are already showing full because I took out 2 cells to test a flashlight. They were used for like 1 minute and then placed back in the i4.
Now something weird with slot 2. When I take the batt from either slot 1 or 3 that shows 'full' in slot 2 it starts charging again. It is not that it stops after 1 minute but after 10 minutes it still shows charging so I pulled the plug safety wise.
I made a small recording, not very handy swapping batts and holding the camera in the other hand btw.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6odzE0nJxfs
Sending it back to the seller registered costs me more than buying another one and since I will need a reliable 4 port charger within a couple of weeks time it is getting a bit urgent.
What do you guys think about this?
I just purchased the i4 from HK based on the review here. I noticed something weird, slightly worrying on mine so I thought lets check with the folks here if they can reproduce it on their i4 or that mine is just a DOA.
Situation is as following. 4 identical 18650 cells that are almost full ... 2 out of the 4 are already showing full because I took out 2 cells to test a flashlight. They were used for like 1 minute and then placed back in the i4.
Now something weird with slot 2. When I take the batt from either slot 1 or 3 that shows 'full' in slot 2 it starts charging again. It is not that it stops after 1 minute but after 10 minutes it still shows charging so I pulled the plug safety wise.
I made a small recording, not very handy swapping batts and holding the camera in the other hand btw.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6odzE0nJxfs
Sending it back to the seller registered costs me more than buying another one and since I will need a reliable 4 port charger within a couple of weeks time it is getting a bit urgent.
What do you guys think about this?
Good question, and actually not very bright of me not to measure it (just as a 'valid' excuse it was about 2am).
I have 2 Fluke's which should be pretty precise but I don't have a good feeling about it. It obviously kept on charging, even after those 10 minutes, otherwise the leds wouldn't be indicating this. The charger shows as being 1% precise on the bottom so yes measuring should be my next step.
TronPlayer
Newly Enlightened
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- Mar 12, 2013
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NiteCore i4 Innards -
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Decent Li-ion chargers are able to safely top up Li-ion batteries without any problems. They will cut off when the voltage reaches a certain level (usually around 4.2V). A full cell should cut off almost immediately, although I've seen it take up to a number of minutes on the I4v2.
Still caution is recommended and checking voltages with a DMM after and before charging is always a good idea.
InquisitiveInquirer
Enlightened
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- Jul 17, 2010
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- 237
Stupid question, but is it harmful in anyway to the battery or charger if, say, you were to accidently unplug the charger while it was charging? For ex, you tried to disconnect a plug for something else from an ovepopulated outlet and accidently unplugged the i4 v2? Or a power outage. If either of these happen, you could just replug it and it'd continue where it left off, right?
HKJ
Flashaholic
Generally no, as you write you can just replug it.
InquisitiveInquirer
Enlightened
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- Jul 17, 2010
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- 237
Thanks Norm, HKJ for the reply. This looks like a sweet, affordable charger that should serve my eneloops & 18650s well.
Asides from the obvious differences of 2 compared to 4 slots, i wonder how the intellicharger i2 comapares to this i4. Price isn't much less and it only offers 2 slots. I didn't find much info on the i2 on cpf.
Asides from the obvious differences of 2 compared to 4 slots, i wonder how the intellicharger i2 comapares to this i4. Price isn't much less and it only offers 2 slots. I didn't find much info on the i2 on cpf.
HKJ
Flashaholic
I would suggest that you look for my reviews, either here on CPF (including comments) or on my website, I have tested both of them.
InquisitiveInquirer
Enlightened
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- Jul 17, 2010
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- 237
I just found the review. My bad! So the in the conclusions, you say, "For most purposes I will say this charger is better than the i4, the lower charge current makes it much better for the 14500 and 16340 batteries, the trays works better and it does not reduce the current when it is filled with batteries." Makes my decision easier.
Thanks for all the time and efforts in your awesome reviews HKJ!
Thanks for all the time and efforts in your awesome reviews HKJ!
tripplec
Enlightened
Ok, I recently got a Nitecore I4 and was advertised as a V2. I don't see any marking to lead me to see that it is in fact a Version 2 charger.
HKJ
Flashaholic
It is probably a version 2, version 1 was discontinued long time ago.
You can see my comparison here: http://lygte-info.dk/review/Difference between Sysmax charger V1 and V2 UK.html
markr6
Flashaholic
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- Jul 16, 2012
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- 9,258
Thoughts on using this as a travel charger?
By "travel", I don't necessarily mean compact and light but rather a do-it-all charger that I can keep in my Jeep and always have access to charging my Eneloops and 18650 while away from home (forget main charger or extra batteries). The price also fits my needs since it may just sit in a bag and rarely get used.
By "travel", I don't necessarily mean compact and light but rather a do-it-all charger that I can keep in my Jeep and always have access to charging my Eneloops and 18650 while away from home (forget main charger or extra batteries). The price also fits my needs since it may just sit in a bag and rarely get used.
Assuming you've tested it on both 12v and 110v and it works as it should, I think it would be a great travel charger. I love that I can have one charger for both lithium ions and eneloops.
Nitecore Intellicharge: Pros and cons?
Hi all - I'm after my first charger for 18650 battery units and the Nitecore Intellicharger caught my eye. As well as primary 18650 recharging duty, can this unit cope with my Sanyo Eneloop AA and AAA batteries?
As a stand alone jack of all trades charger, can it be recommended as being reliable?
Plus which 18650 batteries do you prefer - 2600mAh or the 3600mAh? Will be used in a Fenix PD35 btw.
Any thoughts and advice welcome
Hi all - I'm after my first charger for 18650 battery units and the Nitecore Intellicharger caught my eye. As well as primary 18650 recharging duty, can this unit cope with my Sanyo Eneloop AA and AAA batteries?
As a stand alone jack of all trades charger, can it be recommended as being reliable?
Plus which 18650 batteries do you prefer - 2600mAh or the 3600mAh? Will be used in a Fenix PD35 btw.
Any thoughts and advice welcome
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Labrador72
Flashlight Enthusiast
Re: Nitecore Intellicharge: Pros and cons?
I think you can find the answer to both your questions here:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...rger-Review-(V2)-current-voltage-comparisons/
And here:
http://lygte-info.dk/review/Review Charger SysMax i4 V2 UK.html
I think you can find the answer to both your questions here:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...rger-Review-(V2)-current-voltage-comparisons/
And here:
http://lygte-info.dk/review/Review Charger SysMax i4 V2 UK.html
Wiggle
Flashlight Enthusiast
Re: Nitecore Intellicharge: Pros and cons?
I have one. It's not a bad charger but watch it carefully, mine has a tendency to overcharge slightly (sometimes I pull off my Panasonic 3400s) at 4.23V if I let it go til it terminates. This isn't exactly dangerous but will wear down your cells a bit faster especially if you run them through alot of cycles. My Zebralight and cheap cells (Trustfire) seem to terminate at 4.20V almost exactly though. Like any li-ion charger, use a multi meter and watch it closely, especially near termination. On mine, I'll usually pull the cells off once I get 2 solid bars on the indicator as this indicates a voltage between 4.10 and 4.20 on my unit which is effectively full and less hard on the cells than hitting the full 4.20 (or a little above).
I have one. It's not a bad charger but watch it carefully, mine has a tendency to overcharge slightly (sometimes I pull off my Panasonic 3400s) at 4.23V if I let it go til it terminates. This isn't exactly dangerous but will wear down your cells a bit faster especially if you run them through alot of cycles. My Zebralight and cheap cells (Trustfire) seem to terminate at 4.20V almost exactly though. Like any li-ion charger, use a multi meter and watch it closely, especially near termination. On mine, I'll usually pull the cells off once I get 2 solid bars on the indicator as this indicates a voltage between 4.10 and 4.20 on my unit which is effectively full and less hard on the cells than hitting the full 4.20 (or a little above).
