# Review of / Measurement on Xtar WP2 II charger



## HKJ (Sep 1, 2011)

[size=+3]Charger Xtar WP2 II[/size]







This charger is an update to the WP2 charger, the update includes a switch that can change between two different charge currents and a usb power output. The charger has two channels, i.e. it can do two cells independently of each other.









It comes in a cardboard box with a view to the charger and specifications on the back.













The charger is powered from a single 12 volt DC connector, this connector can be powered from either the supplied AC adapter or supplied car adapter. The AC adapter I got is a universal voltage adapter (100 - 240 VAC 50/60 Hz) with a plug for European use.






The switch select between usb power (position: 0), 0.5 ampere charge current (position: 1) or 1 ampere charge current (position: 2). This is not the best marking, something with USB, 0.5A and 1A would have been much better. I would have preferred that the switch was somewhere on top of the charger, to make it more visible. The usb connector is a usb power output, that can be used to power or charge small usb devices. it can supply up to about 500 mA.






There is a charge led for each channel, this led will be red when the charger is charging and green at all other times when the charger is powered and charge selected. If the usb power function is selected, when power is connected, the led on the left channel (the channel used for usb power) will flash red.
The centre led is red and will be on when usb power is selected, no power is connected and a charged battery is in the left channel, i.e. when there is power on the usb connector.




















The charger can handle 69.5 mm long batteries, including flat top cells. (See my 18650 LiIon comparison for length of different brands).



[size=+2]Measurements charger[/size]

Below 2 volt the charger charges with about 0.5 mA, this is enough to reset a protection pcb (Note: The led is green).
Between 2 volt and 3 volt the charger charges with about 80 mA.
Between 3 and 4.15 volt the charger is applying regular charge current (See curve below).
When the charge stops the current is between 60 and 75 mA in my test, when the charger is finishes the current goes down below 100uA (This is a insignificant current). 
The charger will restart charging when the cell drops to 4.0 volt or after a power loss.
When charger is disconnected from power, but with a battery in, it will draw about 550 uA from the battery.
Two batteries will not change the charge current.
Because each channel is independent, the different voltages vary between the channels with a small amount.






The charge curve shows a good approximation to a CC/CV charger, but the charger stops to early, the voltage has not reached 4.2 volt. This means that the battery is not fully charged, but will have a longer lifetime. 






Same battery on the other channel, there is not much different in terminating current and voltage compared to the first channel. 






My old 16340 IMR cell. 






The first curves was done with old cells, but this one is a new cell with low resistance. The voltage rises slower and the charger uses full charge current for some time, before switching to constant voltage (CV) charging.






In the above curve I am charging a cell in both slots, there is very little difference in performance between this and the above with a single cell. I.e. the charger can run both channels at full charge current simultaneous. 






A closer look on all the noise in the current shows that the charger stops charging each time it want to measure voltage. This has the advantage that all connection resistance can be ignored and noise from the charger is eliminated. 






The first curve did not show much noise in the charge current, but that was because I used a filter. Without a filter it can be seen that it contains a lot of noise.






In this chart I have zoomed in on the noise.



[size=+2]Measurements on usb power[/size]

To use the usb power output a charged battery must be placed in the left slot, the switch must be in the usb power position (0) and the 12 volt input must *not* be supplied with power.

USB specification says the voltage must be between 4.75 and 5.25 volt. 

All curves are made with Xtar 18650 2400mAh cells.






The first curve is with a 20 ohm load, this gives a load current of 250 mA, the usb output stays exactly at 5 volt, until the battery is empty. It keeps a good efficiency at about 80%.
When the battery is empty the charger does not turn fully off, but continues to drain the battery for some time, to keep the battery voltage at 2.8 volt. It does not drain the battery below 2.8 volt.






Reducing the resistor and increasing the current to 417 mA also shows a good 5 volt output for more than 2½ hours. With the higher current the efficiency goes down, especially when the battery is nearly empty.






With 455 mA current it can keep the voltage within usb specifications for two hours. 






With 500 mA in current the voltage is only within specifications for one hour.



[size=+2]Conclusion[/size]

The charger is very close to a CC/CV charging profile. The charger does charge to a little below 4.2 volt, this might put slightly less energy in the battery, but will increase the lifetime of the battery a little. Because the charger does supply a small current at 0 volt, it can reset any kind of protection. The possibility to select two charge currents makes it much better for both 18650 and smaller cells, the 18650 can be charge faster and the smaller cells can be charged safer.
The usb power is a nice addition, but would have been even better if it always worked when 12 volt was connected to the charger. 
All in all a good charger and a nice upgrade to the old WF2 charger. 



[size=+3]Notes[/size]

Here is an explanation on how I did the above charge curves: How do I test a charger

The charger was supplied by XTAR for a review.


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## gopajti (Sep 1, 2011)

Thanks HKJ! I love this charger.


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## LEDAdd1ct (Sep 1, 2011)

Thanks for the review!


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## jasonck08 (Sep 1, 2011)

*Sigh* I observed similar "noise" when I was testing the LTC-4054-4.2 when that IC was overheating. I suspect that this IC is constantly overheating and that is why the current and voltage is constantly pulsing up and down.

VIN - cell voltage x current = watts dissipated by the IC. I wonder if someone can open it up and install some resistors prior to the IC's VIN pin. This would cause the resistors to dissipate some heat, rather than the IC doing all of it. I don't know what IC they are using, but in my experience little SOT-23-5 IC's can only take about 0.5 watts until they kick into thermal limiting mode and reduce the current (due to reaching 120C).


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## HKJ (Sep 2, 2011)

jasonck08 said:


> *Sigh* I observed similar "noise" when I was testing the LTC-4054-4.2 when that IC was overheating. I suspect that this IC is constantly overheating and that is why the current and voltage is constantly pulsing up and down.



No, overheating would not look like this "noise". Overheating would not be present the same second the unit starts charging and work on a regular 1 second schedule.
The charger is not using a LTC-4054 or any other linear regulator, it is using some sort of switching regulator, this can be seen from my oscilloscope traces.


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## 45/70 (Sep 2, 2011)

I originally posted this in the wrong thread, but......Nice job HKJ. You know how I feel about chargers that _almost_ charge correctly, why can't they simply make one that works properly? So I'll just say, it's an improvement, anyway.

Dave


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## HKJ (Sep 2, 2011)

45/70 said:


> I originally posted this in the wrong thread, but......Nice job HKJ. You know how I feel about chargers that _almost_ charge correctly, why can't they simply make one that works properly? So I'll just say, it's an improvement, anyway.



I do not really believe that the manufacturer recommended way to charge is the only way to charge a battery, but any charger has to stay within the limits specified by the manufacturer.
These limits are:


 Maximum charge current, the charger must not charge with more than this, but almost anything lower is ok.
 Minimum charge current or termination current, the charger must not continue charging at near maximum voltage with a lower current than this.
 Maximum voltage, the charger must not charge the battery above this voltage, but I do not know if it is ok to measure it with zero charge current.
The WP2 II charger stays within these limits, it never goes above 4.2 volt, even measured with charge current on. The minimum current is a good compromise between large and small batteries and the maximum current is selectable, I believe it is to high for 10440 cells and I did not put them in my list of supported batteries, even though Xtar specifies them on the charger.


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## Girryn (Sep 2, 2011)

Why is it unable to charge 14500?


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## HKJ (Sep 2, 2011)

Girryn said:


> Why is it unable to charge 14500?


 
? I did put 14500 in the table of supported sizes and wrote "no" to "Requires spacer".


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## hazna (Sep 3, 2011)

I'm interested in picking up one of these as a travel charger for my li-ion batteries. The USB output is major selling point for me. Sorry if this is a n00b question, but if I am charging my phone with the USB output function, will the USB output stop when my phone is fully charged? Or will it continue to charge and potentially overcharge the battery?


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## HKJ (Sep 3, 2011)

hazna said:


> I'm interested in picking up one of these as a travel charger for my li-ion batteries. The USB output is major selling point for me. Sorry if this is a n00b question, but if I am charging my phone with the USB output function, will the USB output stop when my phone is fully charged? Or will it continue to charge and potentially overcharge the battery?



A usb charger is just a power supply, the phone has a internal circuit to handle the charging. I.e. the phone is controlling its own charging and you can use any usb charger/power supply without any risk of overcharging. There is just one restriction, the usb charger must follow the usb standard (WP2 II does), some usb power supplies are specified to give 5.5 volt, that is not safe.

The WP2 does not present itself as a high speed usb charger, i.e. equipment will not charge faster than when connected to a computer.


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## Girryn (Sep 4, 2011)

HKJ said:


> ? I did put 14500 in the table of supported sizes and wrote "no" to "Requires spacer".


 
I am dumb.


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## too9s (Oct 12, 2011)

I got one.....
Everything seems nice, but there's problem on flat head battery.
It would got poor contact on the anode.
By add a cd-rom screw would solve the problem, but that way 18700 battery might be not support on the same time.


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## RI Chevy (Oct 13, 2011)

Try the little magnets. They act as the "head" to the battery and give you a better contact.


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## finn (Jan 25, 2012)

Panasonic 3100s consistently come off my wp2 at between 4.19v and 4.21v. The paint is also slightly different -- the current/usb switch is labeled slightly better. Maybe there is a revision 2. The WP2 II 2?


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## HKJ (Jan 25, 2012)

finn said:


> Panasonic 3100s consistently come off my wp2 at between 4.19v and 4.21v. The paint is also slightly different -- the current/usb switch is labeled slightly better. Maybe there is a revision 2. The WP2 II 2?



There was some rumors about a upgraded version, it was probably in November.


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## koocuz (Mar 14, 2012)

Would you guys say this is one of the best chargers out there for the price?

I am new to Lithium but I have some good condition (I hope) 18650 unprotected Sanyo's that would like to safely charge and use.

I read an entire thread on the Shekor charger but it appears they are no longer made.. This looks like a great $20-$25 charger.

Also do you know if the USB mode can use both battery banks? I noticed in your review you mentioned only the left side.

Thanks


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## HKJ (Mar 14, 2012)

koocuz said:


> Also do you know if the USB mode can use both battery banks? I noticed in your review you mentioned only the left side.



Yes, the USB output does only work with the left slot.


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## ChrisGarrett (Mar 14, 2012)

HKJ said:


> Yes, the USB output does only work with the left slot.



Thanks for your review. I bought this charger based off of your test results and while it has some minor quibbles, I like it so far with the EagleTac 3100s I bought.

The first battery #1, I charged in the first slot and right off the charger, it was 4.19v. The second ET was marked #2 and placed in the second slot and charged at the same time. It read 4.16v. On the next charge, I switched bays and battery #2 measured 4.14v and the battery #1 charged again to 4.19v in bay #2. 

I thought well...maybe one battery was 'iffy', but on the third charge, going back to the original slots, battery #2, charged to 4.19v in bay #2 and battery #1 charged to 4.19v in bay #1, so things seem pretty kosher to me.

I'm using these items for a Fenix PD32 and a Zebralight SC-600, for the record.

Can't complain for $18 delivered for the XTAR and $20.39 delivered for the two ET 18650s.

Thanks again HKJ!

Chris


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## koocuz (Mar 14, 2012)

Thanks for the reply's, I am new to the lithium world so I just want to be sure I get a safe charge. The cutoff is important to me in case I forget about a charging cell. And of course no one wants to overcharge them. Seems like this XTAR is a good pick.

I need to pick one up soon, anyone else have any comments on chargers? I noticed someone reccomended the Accucell 6 charger but they are also hard to find now...


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## aimxplode (Mar 15, 2012)

koocuz said:


> Thanks for the reply's, I am new to the lithium world so I just want to be sure I get a safe charge. The cutoff is important to me in case I forget about a charging cell. And of course no one wants to overcharge them. Seems like this XTAR is a good pick.
> 
> I need to pick one up soon, anyone else have any comments on chargers? I noticed someone reccomended the Accucell 6 charger but they are also hard to find now...



My WP2 II has been performing great. It has been discharging from 4.17-4.20 consistently.


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## koocuz (Mar 15, 2012)

I was also wondering if there was any risk by using an un protected 18650 in a cree 3 or 5w light? It seems if your charger is good and will not over charge the only risk would be over draining the battery. No risk of fire though right?


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## aimxplode (Mar 15, 2012)

koocuz said:


> I was also wondering if there was any risk by using an un protected 18650 in a cree 3 or 5w light? It seems if your charger is good and will not over charge the only risk would be over draining the battery. No risk of fire though right?



Go with a protected just incase you forget and run your battery too far down.


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## koocuz (Mar 15, 2012)

In this case I have 4 Sanyo UR18650FM's that are in good shape "I think" (all read 4.1V).. They were a laptop battery pull. Once I get the Xtar charger on the way I can do a full test.


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## unknowing (Mar 21, 2012)

After reading this review. I bought one to give it a try since it seemed like a good upgrade from my Ultrafire WF-188. But, the problem I'm running into is that it's charging my batteries to 4.22V when I checked it. Has anyone else experienced this with theirs? Should I return it?


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## hazna (Mar 22, 2012)

unknowing said:


> After reading this review. I bought one to give it a try since it seemed like a good upgrade from my Ultrafire WF-188. But, the problem I'm running into is that it's charging my batteries to 4.22V when I checked it. Has anyone else experienced this with theirs? Should I return it?



How accurate is your DMM? Most cheap DMM have a margin of error. Even if it truely does charge to 4.22V, not a big deal; its within acceptable limits


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## aimxplode (Mar 22, 2012)

unknowing said:


> After reading this review. I bought one to give it a try since it seemed like a good upgrade from my Ultrafire WF-188. But, the problem I'm running into is that it's charging my batteries to 4.22V when I checked it. Has anyone else experienced this with theirs? Should I return it?



My Habor Freight ("Centech" brand) DMM has a .02v difference compared to my cottenpicker mini voltemeter. I thought mine was overcharging at first too. I guess it really depends on your DMM and how accurate it is.


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## jonnyfgroove (Mar 22, 2012)

unknowing said:


> After reading this review. I bought one to give it a try since it seemed like a good upgrade from my Ultrafire WF-188. But, the problem I'm running into is that it's charging my batteries to 4.22V when I checked it. Has anyone else experienced this with theirs? Should I return it?



:welcome:

Mine does the same thing. My older AW cells come off at 4.22 and a brand new ET 3100 comes off at 4.20. I'm wondering if I should just go back to the ultrafire too. :shrug:


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## unknowing (Mar 23, 2012)

hazna said:


> How accurate is your DMM? Most cheap DMM have a margin of error. Even if it truely does charge to 4.22V, not a big deal; its within acceptable limits



Thanks so much for the quick reply. I appreciate it. I'm using a cheap MM right now. It's a Hongda DT-95B. Honestly don't know how accurate it is since this is the first and only DMM that I own. 

Only concerned since I read that it's better for it to not be fully charged. Since that can extend the battery life. But, I honestly don't have a clue on how significant that is in general. 



aimxplode said:


> My Habor Freight ("Centech" brand) DMM has a .02v difference compared to my cottenpicker mini voltemeter. I thought mine was overcharging at first too. I guess it really depends on your DMM and how accurate it is.



You probably have a point and hoping that there is a difference. Since 4.22V is pretty high from what I've read. 



jonnyfgroove said:


> :welcome:
> 
> Mine does the same thing. My older AW cells come off at 4.22 and a brand new ET 3100 comes off at 4.20. I'm wondering if I should just go back to the ultrafire too. :shrug:



Thanks for the welcome!! Good to know that I'm not the only one. Thought that myself since my WF-188 didn't charge my batts all the way to this voltage. Although, I've read that it doesn't follow the recommended charging process for li-ion batts. 

Also, I emailed the vendor that I bought it from. According to him, 4.25V and above is considered overcharging. Not even sure how correct he is with the information that he's giving me. Thinking that he just said that so that I won't return or exchange the charger. What do you think?


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## hazna (Mar 23, 2012)

I would consider 4.20V +/- 0.5V to be acceptable. It's a better if it's closer to 4.20V, though. Don't stress about it charging to 4.22V, most people would consider this acceptable.


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## HKJ (Mar 23, 2012)

hazna said:


> I would consider 4.20V +/- 0.5V to be acceptable. It's a better if it's closer to 4.20V, though. Don't stress about it charging to 4.22V, most people would consider this acceptable.



A small correction: 4.20V +/- 0.05V


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## hazna (Mar 23, 2012)

HKJ said:


> A small correction: 4.20V +/- 0.05V



Whoops! Forgot a zero in there  I stand corrected


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## speedsix (Mar 24, 2012)

Can this charge 10440 cells? If not, why not? Could some small coin batteries by used as spacers to make it work if it is just a size issue? 

I am looking for a do it all budget Li-On charger. I don't have any lions yet but would buy 18650, 14500 and 10440 for existing lights that I own. I have a 18650 flashlight on order so I need a charger for that anyway.


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## HKJ (Mar 24, 2012)

speedsix said:


> Can this charge 10440 cells? If not, why not? Could some small coin batteries by used as spacers to make it work if it is just a size issue?
> 
> I am looking for a do it all budget Li-On charger. I don't have any lions yet but would buy 18650, 14500 and 10440 for existing lights that I own. I have a 18650 flashlight on order so I need a charger for that anyway.



Yes it can, but it would not be good for the batteries, because the charge current is to high.
Using coin cells as spacers would be a very bad idea, because they add their own voltage. Coins can be used or you might get a spacer with the charger.


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## unknowing (Mar 29, 2012)

hazna said:


> I would consider 4.20V +/- 0.5V to be acceptable. It's a better if it's closer to 4.20V, though. Don't stress about it charging to 4.22V, most people would consider this acceptable.



Have to thank you again for the quick response and help. Apologize for the late reply since I'm not online all that often. 

This puts me at ease a bit since I really was kind of stressing out about it. Don't really know much about battery safety and so, overcharging will always be one of my main concerns.


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## betweenrides (Mar 30, 2012)

Thanks for the great review as always, HKJ. I have been using the WP2 II for several months and it seems to be a great charger, even handles 26650 size one at a time. All my cells finish at <= 4.20 consistently with one exception: I recently bought 2 Solarforce 2400mAh batteries. Of the two, one finishes charging at 4.18 but the other finishes at 4.25 each time (3 charge cycles so far). Is this anything to be concerned about? Any idea what is causing this?


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## HKJ (Mar 30, 2012)

betweenrides said:


> Thanks for the great review as always, HKJ. I have been using the WP2 II for several months and it seems to be a great charger, even handles 26650 size one at a time. All my cells finish at <= 4.20 consistently with one exception: I recently bought 2 Solarforce 2400mAh batteries. Of the two, one finishes charging at 4.18 but the other finishes at 4.25 each time (3 charge cycles so far). Is this anything to be concerned about? Any idea what is causing this?



4.25 is at the limit, I do not believe that that battery will explode, but it might reduce the lifetime of the battery. I do not have any idea why it does that.


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## betweenrides (Mar 30, 2012)

Thanks. I've taken to removing both batteries when one bay turns green and checking the voltage on both at that point.


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## dbare (Mar 30, 2012)

ChrisGarrett said:


> Can't complain for $18 delivered for the XTAR and $20.39 delivered for the two ET 18650s.
> 
> Thanks again HKJ!
> 
> Chris



HI: could you tell us where got those prices?


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## ChrisGarrett (Mar 31, 2012)

dbare said:


> HI: could you tell us where got those prices?



Prices and references to ebay removed.


Chris


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## Colonel Sanders (Jun 15, 2012)

*HKJ*, you should do a review on Xtar's new SP2 charger. It is my new favorite charger with it's a ability to charge at .5a, 1a, and 2a which is selectable with the push of a button rather than using some cheap slider switch. I did some testing of my own and it seems to follow a pretty good CC/CV algorithm. It accepts anything from a 50mm length on up _without_ spacers and can even handle 32650s. I tested current output and it does what it says it does. 2a pretty much stays dead on 2a during the CC stage, for example. More importantly, it does not overcharge even IMR batteries like some other chargers. It always terminates properly. 

Also, the quality is very obviously way better than the Ultrafire chargers.

Very nice! :thumbsup:


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## HKJ (Jun 16, 2012)

Colonel Sanders said:


> *HKJ*, you should do a review on Xtar's new SP2 charger.



I believe there is on in the mail, but I do not know when it will arrive.


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## LEDAdd1ct (Jun 16, 2012)

I very much look forward to your review!


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## HKJ (Jun 18, 2012)

LEDAdd1ct said:


> I very much look forward to your review!



I picked it up at the post office today, it will probably be around a week before I am ready with a review.


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## infinus (Jun 18, 2012)

I have one of these. My first one definitely was over charging (I hit 4.27 volts hot off the charger with a redilast and 4.25 with an AW cell). After giving the cells some rest time my AW's would settle to 4.23-4.24 and the redilast would sit above 4.25. I'm pretty sure the AW was hitting it's over charge protection. The Redilast overcharge is set higher. Yes, I used a professionally calibrated DMM for measurements.

I exchanged it (Went through Illumination Gear, Todd was great). My new one performs much better. My AW and Redilast cells both come off spot on 4.2 volts and after some rest settle to 4.18-4.19. I don't have the equipment to fully profile the charger but with the selectable currents, if you get a good copy it seems like a good charger. I'd love to see some curves from HKJ.


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## Shadowww (Jun 30, 2012)

Hm, I just noticed weird thing about my WP2 II - when I charge anything Panasonic NCR18650A based, batteries get a bit warm (nowhere near "hot", just barely warm), but it charges at just 1A! With hobby charger (iC 106B+) batteries don't heat up at all even at 2.5A charging current.
So is the charger warming batteries up, by having charging circuitry physically very close to batteries, or are the cells source of heat, due to pulsing charging algorithm or for some other reasons? If it's for the first reason (circuitry itself gets warm, and warms batteries up) then why I only observe this with NCR18650A based batteries, and not any others (e.g. Xtar 2600mAh, AW 2200mAh etc)?


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## 45/70 (Jun 30, 2012)

Hi Shadowww. I don't have a WPII 2, or any NCR18650A cells, for that matter, but I would imagine it's the charger electronics heating the cell(s). It's odd though that you don't notice this with other cells.

Perhaps it is the charge rate. The recommended charge rate for the 3100mAh cells is 885mA. I would think you could get away with 1A, close enough. I don't think I would charge these cells at 2.5A though. Most conventional LiCo 18650 cells have a recommended maximum charge rate of 0.5-0.8C. Maybe the Panasonic LiNiCo cells get too hot at these higher charge rates.

Dave


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## Shadowww (Jun 30, 2012)

45/70 said:


> Perhaps it is the charge rate. The recommended charge rate for the 3100mAh cells is 885mA. I would think you could get away with 1A, close enough. I don't think I would charge these cells at 2.5A though. Most conventional LiCo 18650 cells have a recommended maximum charge rate of 0.5-0.8C. Maybe the Panasonic LiNiCo cells get too hot at these higher charge rates.


Yeah I know that going over 0.7C adds wear to battery, but when I need a fully-charged light and I need it fast, I have to make some compromises. I'd rather add some wear to my cells, than get left without any light due to not having enough time to charge cells fully at their recommended rate.
And, as I said, charging them at 2.5A (5A for pair, I charge them in parallel) on hobby charger does NOT gets them even warm. So I'm not worrying very much about it.


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## 45/70 (Jun 30, 2012)

Shadowww said:


> And, as I said, charging them at 2.5A (5A for pair, I charge them in parallel) on hobby charger does NOT gets them even warm. So I'm not worrying very much about it.



Well, that doesn't sound too bad. As long as you understand that your cells probably won't last as long. It sounds like you know that so......

I'm still betting that the cells are warming up from the charger electronics, rather than the heat coming from the cells. Otherwise they'd be warming up when charged with your hobby charger. You already surmised that, anyway I agree. If it were me, I wouldn't go over 1A, but I understand your predicament. 

Dave


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## HooNz (Oct 21, 2012)

I purchased one of these a few months back and i'm very appy with it....

Yesterday i was charging 2 18650's on the 1amp setting and whilst i was waiting i was listening to some overseas broadcasts on Short Wave using the Drake SW2 , and i noticed i could hear the charger in the next room doing it's business faintly .

It was a slight buzz , a ON for around 2 seconds and then a quick OFF for about 1 millisecond or so , it went like this>


zzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz 

Funny , cheers , Paul ........


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## Shadowww (Oct 21, 2012)

Coil whine, most likely. Quite common in such type of electronics.


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## Norm (Oct 21, 2012)

HooNz said:


> It was a slight buzz , a ON for around 2 seconds and then a quick OFF for about 1 millisecond or so , it went like this>
> 
> 
> zzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
> ...


Quite a lot of electronic devices generate EMI that can be heard on the AM broadcast bands right up into the HF spectrum.

Norm


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## gopajti (Nov 1, 2012)

click images for higher res


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## StandardBattery (Jan 8, 2013)

I needed another charger like I need another flashlight _(or something like that)_. I bought this one because it seemed reasonable for the price; *BUT REALLY just because it provided a USB output* that I could power with my 18650 cells; this is really handy. I've long liked the 18650 for the size/power ratio and that there are several good suppliers so I have quite a few of them. This charger allows me to make use of them more in emergency situations as USB power is really the new standard for low-voltage DC power connections; so much is USB powered now. Mine has the new labeling for the switch like the image in the previous post, but the documentation still refers to the switch as a 'gear' with positions '0', '1', and '2'. Mine (from HG ebay vendor) didn't have the 12V cable, but I was fine with that as any standard one should work.

Mine came with the two spacers also shown in the previous post, and these two spacers can be joined into a single long spacer. The manual says this can be used to charge 10440 and 16340 cells, but the bottom of the charger does not list these cells. Of course it would charge the cell at 500ma, which would be a 1C charge-rate if the cell had a true 500ma capacity.


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## DavidAD (Jan 11, 2013)

I have haad this charger for a while. I just received some Panasonic 3400's and tried to charge them. the red leds began flashing when the battery is installed. Has anyone else have this happen?


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## StandardBattery (Jan 15, 2013)

DavidAD said:


> I have haad this charger for a while. I just received some Panasonic 3400's and tried to charge them. the red leds began flashing when the battery is installed. Has anyone else have this happen?



See confusing manual. if selector is on 0 (usb output) and power is connected to charger. May be other conditions that generate this flashing. what is current voltage on battery?


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## HistoryChannel (Mar 10, 2013)

Is it safe to leave 18650 batteries in the charger after it turns green? At that point it shouldn't be charging anymore right?


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## HKJ (Mar 10, 2013)

HistoryChannel said:


> Is it safe to leave 18650 batteries in the charger after it turns green? At that point it shouldn't be charging anymore right?



It has stopped charging, but there will be a small current (Enough to charge a battery in 3 years) or without power connected it will drain the battery in 8 months.
It is never recommended to leave batteries in a charger.


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## HistoryChannel (Mar 10, 2013)

That's HKJ, I trust what you say so I won't keep the batteries in there anymore. Oops. Lol. 

I've been reading up on all your reviews last couple day after I discovered your website. Is fascinating. Thanks for your effort and energy to give us all the information!!


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## HistoryChannel (Mar 10, 2013)

One more question, is it safe to charge an 18650 3100 or 3400 mAH battery with 2 amp setting with the Xtar SP2? Which setting is best? 500 mAH, 1a or 2 a? Thanks again! I'm thinking of getting the Orbtronic kit with Xtar SP2 and 2 x 18650 3400.


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## HKJ (Mar 11, 2013)

HistoryChannel said:


> One more question, is it safe to charge an 18650 3100 or 3400 mAH battery with 2 amp setting with the Xtar SP2? Which setting is best? 500 mAH, 1a or 2 a? Thanks again! I'm thinking of getting the Orbtronic kit with Xtar SP2 and 2 x 18650 3400.



It is probably safe enough, but you will wear the battery down, especially the 3100mAh battery. For most 18650 batteries the 1A settings is the safest bet.


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## Proteckt3d (Mar 22, 2013)

Hello everyone, just a small question that's been on my mind. I have the reviewed charger, and while charging on 1 amp setting my CGR18650CH is becoming warm, but not hot, and I want to know if this may shorten the life of the battery. I don't have a lot of experience with rechargeable batteries, I started vaping at the begging of this year. 
Thank's. 
proteckt3d


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## HistoryChannel (Mar 23, 2013)

My charger gets warm but not the batteries on 500 mAh and 1a. Batteries stay room temp unless I use 2a and then it gets a little warm.


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## Proteckt3d (Apr 8, 2013)

Ok, so today I used both battery bays with the charger set at .5A, one 18350 and one 18650 battery and they both got a little warm but they started to cool down towards the finish, I assume after 4.0 V. Is that bad? Is it just my charger that does that?


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## thomast77 (Feb 2, 2014)

Will an 18490 battery work in this charger??
Tom


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## HKJ (Feb 2, 2014)

thomast77 said:


> Will an 18490 battery work in this charger??
> Tom



18490 is the same as 18500 and will work fine.


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## thomast77 (Feb 2, 2014)

HKJ said:


> 18490 is the same as 18500 and will work fine.



I thought it would. I know there some size differences. I just wanted to be sure before I try it. Thanks for your input.


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## trx430ex (Nov 23, 2014)

thomast77 said:


> I thought it would. I know there some size differences. I just wanted to be sure before I try it. Thanks for your input.



I just had one of these drop dead on me, can anyone tell me what the warranty is?

Purchase date is 7/28/12

Thanks


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## filip a (Mar 25, 2015)

*can 10180 battery be used- Xtar WP2 II charger*

can 10180 battery be used in Xtar WP2 II charger with spacers. Charge current: 50/200 mA. thanks


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## ChrisGarrett (Mar 25, 2015)

*Re: can 10180 battery be used- Xtar WP2 II charger*



filip a said:


> can 10180 battery be used in Xtar WP2 II charger with spacers. Charge current: 50/200 mA. thanks



Physically, yes. You can buy an extra pair of spacers and double the four up and get the 10180 to fit and make contact, I presume, but at the 500mA and 1A charging rates, you wouldn't want to do this.

I bought an Xtar VP2, in part, because of its 250mA rate being better for my 16340 cells.

10440s and 10180s are most probably a 'no go', since the 500mA charging rate is well over 1C for those particular cells.

Chris


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## HKJ (Mar 25, 2015)

*Re: can 10180 battery be used- Xtar WP2 II charger*



filip a said:


> can 10180 battery be used in Xtar WP2 II charger with spacers. Charge current: 50/200 mA. thanks



You need something with much lower charge current.


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## markr6 (Jun 4, 2015)

*Re: can 10180 battery be used- Xtar WP2 II charger*

I was charging an 18650 on my WP2 II for about an hour. I took it out and used it in the light a bit. When I put it back into the charger, the two indicator lights dimmed and went out in about 2 seconds. Now it's dead. Very strange! I will try the car adapter cord to see if it's the power supply or something with the charger.

I wiggled the cord to see if maybe it had a short but doesn't seem to be the case. This hasn't seen much use over the past 2 years so I'm surprised it died.

Edit: I didn't have the car charger cord with me, so I used the supply powering my external harddrive. It worked! I'm sure I have a spare adapter at home so I should be good to go.


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## ChrisGarrett (Jun 4, 2015)

*Re: can 10180 battery be used- Xtar WP2 II charger*



markr6 said:


> Edit: I didn't have the car charger cord with me, so I used the supply powering my external harddrive. It worked! I'm sure I have a spare adapter at home so I should be good to go.



M.E. has the 1A wall warts for $1.25. XtarDirect has a them as well, IIRC.

The Xtar WP2 II adapter actually fits an 02 Cool 12v fan that I break out and use on the patio during the humid summer hurricane months, I should probably pick up a couple of extra ones, just to have for the VP2 and the WP2 II, or whatever else can use a 3.5mm 12vdc input.

Let's face it, these electronic gizmos are made to a very low price point and having a 1 cent resistor blow out, or a 2 cent capacitor die, isn't all that surprising.

Chris


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## markr6 (Jun 4, 2015)

*Re: can 10180 battery be used- Xtar WP2 II charger*



ChrisGarrett said:


> Let's face it, these electronic gizmos are made to a very low price point and having a 1 cent resistor blow out, or a 2 cent capacitor die, isn't all that surprising.



Yeah I won't hold this against Xtar. I trust them the most for chargers so I'm glad to see it wasn't something with the actual charging unit.


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