# AA vs 14500



## blindedbythenight (Aug 28, 2016)

I apologise in advance for my ignorance/laziness as I am sure this topic has been covered numerous times but typing it into search came back with no joy.
But what is the deal with 14500 batteries? I understand they hold more power than a AA but are they the same size? Will they fit in place of a AA? Will the torch (or whatever) handle the extra power? A laymans explanation would be greatly appreciated.


----------



## vadimax (Aug 28, 2016)

They are, of course, differ in size. Especially the protected 14500 ones. The best example would be Thrunite Archer 1A v3. An excellent flashlight that can accept a 14500 Li-Ion. But most (if not all) protected cells just do not fit in size (too long).


----------



## blindedbythenight (Aug 28, 2016)

vadimax said:


> They are, of course, differ in size. Especially the protected 14500 ones. The best example would be Thrunite Archer 1A v3. An excellent flashlight that can accept a 14500 Li-Ion. But most (if not all) protected cells just do not fit in size (too long).


Ah thanks, my mistake Inwas under the impression they were the same size


----------



## ven (Aug 28, 2016)

You would need to check in the flashlight specs if it can take the extra voltage. Where as an AA is around 1.5v, the 14500 Li ion is 3.7v nominal and 4.2v fully charged. So for example in a 2 cell light, the 2x AA would be around 3v, the 2x 14500 would be 8.4v and fry the driver/LED. So not all AA lights will be able to run a 14500 li ion cell. 

As vad states, there is a difference in size of the 14500's, be them IMR or protected will add a few mm to the length along with button tops can make quite a difference.


----------



## blindedbythenight (Aug 28, 2016)

ven said:


> You would need to check in the flashlight specs if it can take the extra voltage. Where as an AA is around 1.5v, the 14500 Li ion is 3.7v nominal and 4.2v fully charged. So for example in a 2 cell light, the 2x AA would be around 3v, the 2x 14500 would be 8.4v and fry the driver/LED. So not all AA lights will be able to run a 14500 li ion cell.
> 
> As vad states, there is a difference in size of the 14500's, be them IMR or protected will add a few mm to the length along with button tops can make quite a difference.


Brilliant stuff, thank you. That answers all my questions.


----------



## oKtosiTe (Aug 30, 2016)

Also, 14500's do not have "more power" per se. 14500's are generally Li-ions with higher voltage and lower mAh ratings. In the end the wattage (V times A) is relatively similar in a high quality NiMH or Li-ion of the same size.


----------



## Chicken Drumstick (Aug 30, 2016)

blindedbythenight said:


> Ah thanks, my mistake Inwas under the impression they were the same size


Generally they are the same size. Or at least close enough that most would say that they are.

It's voltage that is different. 4.2v resting for Li-ion vs 1.5 for an AA (or 1.2v from a rechargeable NiMh AA).

Put a 14500 in an AA device and chances are it'll fry it, unless it's designed to handle the extra voltage. Some flashlights are, but not all.


As for power, most good Li-ion 14500's have about 700mAh, but total power is higher than a regular AA in almost all cases, which is why most 14500 lights are brighter on Max and have longer Low output runtimes.


----------



## Timothybil (Aug 30, 2016)

I have a couple of 2AA lights that I have put one 14500 and one dummy cell into, so the voltage is closer to that of two AAs. I have not used them for any length of time so I can not address longevity with this solution. All I know is that I did not let the Magic Blue Smoke out, so that was a good first step. I would not do that with a more expensive light than the $15 one I was using without being reassured by the manufacturer that that would work. The same applies to AAA cells.


----------



## CelticCross74 (Aug 30, 2016)

14500's are very close to AA size. But if you are looking at a 14500 light be very careful double check if the light can take the length of the 14500 cell you want to put into it. Ive got two Nitecore 14500's 750mah same cell. But with a set of calipers one of them came out 52.5mm long and the other 50.5mm long. That is some bad QC but both cells work in the lights I got them for then I got 4 Keeppower 14500 840mah cells that all came out at an astonishing 55mm each. I had to wait for the spring in the light I wanted to put them in to wear in and develop some play before they would fit.


----------



## Rjfranken (Feb 6, 2019)

I find the lengths visually the same. Coast makes a a nice single cell,HK5 that takes both with a brighter beam on the lithium.


----------



## PCC (Feb 7, 2019)

At my work we have 14500 LI-SOCl2 cells that are 3.6V and pretty much the same size as a standard AA battery.


----------



## AB8XL (Feb 7, 2019)

[h=3][/h] I'd recommend the EagleTac 14500 protected batteries, there usually right at 51mm in length, I have many Olight and Nitecore protected batteries and they are all just a bit to long for my lights...


----------

