# Review of / Measurement on Fenix ARE-C1 Charger



## HKJ (Dec 17, 2012)

[size=+3]Charger Fenix ARE-C1[/size] 






Fenix made flashlight for a couple of years, lately they have also started on LiIon batteries and now a charger.









The charger comes in a blister pack.






The box contained the charger, a car adapter, a power cable and a instruction manual.






The charger list its specifications on the front of the charger.









The plus connection is slightly raised, this means that the charger can be used with flat top batteries. The minus connection is a spring, this means spacers for anything but 18650 length batteries.






The charger has a polarity marking in each slot.









Power can be supplied from the supplied mains adaptor or from a car adapter.

















The charger can handle 69 mm long batteries including flat top cells.



[size=+2]Measurements[/size]

Without power connected, the charger draws up to 2mA from a battery.
With power connected the charger draws 1mA from a fully charged battery.
The charger is slow at detecting detecting voltage changes when charging, up to 50 seconds.
The measuring pulses will first occur when the battery voltage is above 3.8 volt.
Below 0.55 volt the charger will not supply any current, i.e. it cannot reset a protection.
Above 0.55 volt the charger will charge with full current.
The charger will restart charging if the battery drops below 4.0 volt, after power loss or when a battery is put into the charger.
Two batteries in the charger will not change the charge current, i.e. the channels are truly independent.
Because each channel is independent, the different voltages and currents vary between the channels with a small amount.






The first test is with a 18650 battery, the charger uses constant current at two different settings. It starts with 1A charging and when the battery reach 4.2 volt it will drop to 0.5A charging. The small spikes are the charger pausing the current to measure voltage.






My old 16340 cell does not look nice on the charger, one reason is because the charger is designed for batteries with 1000mAh or more, not less than 300mAh as this cell has left. The electronic is not fast enough to handle the voltage rise.






The second channel works like the first, but uses a slightly lower current.






Using both channels at the same time does not change the charging in any significant way.






Using the oscilloscope I can see the pulses, there is about 50 seconds between them, i.e. the it can take up to 50 seconds before the charger sees a voltage change (That is the reason for the problem with the 300mAh cell).
These pulses are only present when the battery voltage is above 3.8 volt.






A closer look at a single pulse, it is 0.25 second long.






Here I did catch the measuring pulse, just after the voltage reached 4.2 volt and the charger will immediately after the measuring pulse reduce the current to 0.5A.






Here I am having some fun with the slow measuring, I change the voltage and the charger adjust the current at the next measuring pulse. When the charger is off, the delay is much shorter, before it turns on again.
Doing the above traces I use a "fake" battery, i.e. a lab. power supply paralleled with a power resistor.



[size=+2]Conclusion[/size]

This charger does not follow the recommended charge procedure for LiIon batteries, but it does charge them to 4.2 volt and then turns off.
With only a constant current charge I will rate this charger as acceptable.



[size=+3]Notes[/size]

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


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## THE_dAY (Dec 17, 2012)

Many thanks for this review.

I'm surprised that this is not CC/CV.
With such great batteries you'd think they'd have a great charger to go with it.

Has your review gotten back to Fenix HQ?
I'm wondering if this is something that can/will be fixed in the future?


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## HKJ (Dec 18, 2012)

THE_dAY said:


> I'm surprised that this is not CC/CV.



Me too.



THE_dAY said:


> Has your review gotten back to Fenix HQ?



I have not notified Fenix about it, the charger was not a review copy, but one I bought myself.



THE_dAY said:


> I'm wondering if this is something that can/will be fixed in the future?



That will be interesting to see, but I doubt it is something they can do a fast fix on.


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## Labrador72 (Dec 20, 2012)

Thanks for the review HKJ!

The lack of CC/CV charging means over time it will reduce the batteries performance because it uses only CC, right? Or does it have safety implications as well?


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## neutralwhite (Dec 20, 2012)

im using this at the moment for my ARB L2 batteries. so far, seems well.
if I changed charger, what would you suggest then?. do I need to change charger, really?. thank you.


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## Shadowww (Dec 20, 2012)

Labrador72 said:


> The lack of CC/CV charging means over time it will reduce the batteries performance because it uses only CC, right? Or does it have safety implications as well?


Judging by charging graph of that 16340 battery, it indeed can cause safety issues.


tnfdy said:


> im using this at the moment for my ARB L2 batteries. so far, seems well.
> if I changed charger, what would you suggest then?


Xtar WP2 II or Xtar SP2, depending if you do or don't need support for 26650 batteries.


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## HKJ (Dec 21, 2012)

Labrador72 said:


> The lack of CC/CV charging means over time it will reduce the batteries performance because it uses only CC, right? Or does it have safety implications as well?



The problem with this kind of charge algorithm is that it will overcharge old batteries, this is not a safety issue, but will accelerate the ageing of the battery.



tnfdy said:


> im using this at the moment for my ARB L2 batteries. so far, seems well.
> if I changed charger, what would you suggest then?. do I need to change charger, really?. thank you.



It does the job, i.e. it is not important to get a better charger.
For a better charger look at something with a fully implemented CC/CV algorithm, that could be the Xtar SP2.



Shadowww said:


> Judging by charging graph of that 16340 battery, it indeed can cause safety issues.
> 
> Xtar WP2 II or Xtar SP2, depending if you do or don't need support for 26650 batteries.



The charger might be have a safety problem if you charge 300mAh batteries on it, but not with 18650 batteries.


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## xlight (Dec 21, 2012)

Thanks for your review.
Fenix 18650 LI-ion battery charger ARE-C1 is specially designed for 18650 li-ion batteries. Charging your 16340 cell with ARE-C1 may affect the life of the battery.
Fenix ARE-C1 features four protections extending the life of the battery, which explains why the charger is not CC/CV. 1. Short-circuit protection. When the charger encounters unexpected short circuit across the output, charging will automatically stop. 2. Reverse polarity protection. When the battery inserted in the charge station is polarity reversed, the charger will disconnect the internal circuit and the battery, the charging will stop to avoid being damaged.3. Overcharge protection. The charger turns off the charge current when the battery is full. 4. overcurrent protection. When the current output is exceeding the operating current, the charger will disconnect the internal circuit and the battery, the charging will stop to avoid being damaged.


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## HKJ (Dec 21, 2012)

xlight said:


> 3. Overcharge protection. When the charging is about to complete, the charger will transition from a constant current source to a constant voltage source to prevent overcharge. The current through the battery begins to decrease while the voltage remains constant. Just like pouring water into a cup, when the cup is about to be full, you will slow down to avoid spilling.



No the charger does not have this feature, switching the charge current from 1A to 0.5A is not a CC/CV charge.. To see how this looks in a charger, try checking the charge curves for the Xtar SP2 or check my battery tests, where I always use a correct CC/CV charge curve.


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## neutralwhite (Dec 21, 2012)

hi now this is interesting because I am sure on the packaging it does state Overcharge Protection.
so what does this mean now if It doesn't have it?. cos it seems that after some 3 hours on charge, the batteries seem cold like its stopped charging.
surely FENIX needs to know about this subject.

thanks.


*See Rule #3 Do not Hot Link images. Please host on an image site, Imageshack or similar and repost – Thanks Norm*




HKJ said:


> No the charger does not have this feature, switching the charge current from 1A to 0.5A is not a CC/CV charge.. To see how this looks in a charger, try checking the charge curves for the Xtar SP2 or check my battery tests, where I always use a correct CC/CV charge curve.


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## HKJ (Dec 21, 2012)

tnfdy said:


> hi now this is interesting because I am sure on the packaging it does state Overcharge Protection.
> so what does this mean now if It doesn't have it?. cos it seems that after some 3 hours on charge, the batteries seem cold like its stopped charging.
> surely FENIX needs to know about this subject.
> 
> thanks.



The charger does turn of the charge current when the battery is full, like most other LiIon chargers.

When quoting the point I was thinking about deleting the first two words, but decided to keep the point intact.


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## neutralwhite (Dec 21, 2012)

thanks. so I am still safe right charging my 4 FENIX ARB L2's once twice weekly right?.
thanks dearest HKJ


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## HKJ (Dec 21, 2012)

tnfdy said:


> thanks. so I am still safe right charging my 4 FENIX ARB L2's once twice weekly right?.
> thanks dearest HKJ



I will say yes, as long as you do not try to charger over discharged batteries, but it will probably wear down you batteries slightly faster than a CC/CV charger.


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## Mr Happy (Dec 21, 2012)

Interesting review, and nice to see (more) charger options appearing for lithium ion chemistry. Even though it doesn't use a full CC/CV algorithm it appears to work quite effectively for the 18650 cells it was designed for.

Since there are problems with unintended smaller cells like the 16340 I wonder if there would also be problems with old and poorly performing 18650 cells? It could be that such older cells get pushed to higher voltages during charging, which would only accelerate their aging?


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## HKJ (Dec 21, 2012)

Mr Happy said:


> Since there are problems with unintended smaller cells like the 16340 I wonder if there would also be problems with old and poorly performing 18650 cells? It could be that such older cells get pushed to higher voltages during charging, which would only accelerate their aging?



The "problem" with the low capacity 16340 cell would not affect a 18650, because it has higher capacity, the voltage will not raise as fast and the charger has time to detect it.

*BUT*, due to the way the charger measures voltage, I expect it to charger old cells with a higher voltage: It will charge until the cell measures 4.2 volt with current off.


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## neutralwhite (Dec 21, 2012)

back again. - but my several week old new fenix arb l2's are safe right?.
why would fenix make these batteries with a charger like this though?.
did they know it could age the batteries faster than usual or are the ARB L2's safe ? 

not so knowledgeable on chargers and all this stuff, just concerned a little.
sorry - and thanks.


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## HKJ (Dec 21, 2012)

tnfdy said:


> back again. - but my several week old new fenix arb l2's are safe right?.
> why would fenix make these batteries with a charger like this though?.
> did they know it could age the batteries faster than usual or are the ARB L2's safe ?
> 
> ...



I wonder why Fenix made the charger this way, they probably got some bad advice.

The faster "wear down" of the batteries is not something that happens in weeks, but maybe the battery will only last 2½ years instead of 3 years. This does also depend on your usage pattern, usual a LiIon battery can be fully cycled 300-500 times, but even without cycling it, it will anyway wear down on a couple of years.
I.e. if you need to charge you batteries daily, I would suggest that you get the best charger you can get, but if you only need to charge once a month, the ageing from the charger will probably be insignificant.


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## Mr Happy (Dec 21, 2012)

The charger is perfectly safe and fine for the batteries it was designed for. No need to worry.

Sometimes, some of us get into these technical "what if?" discussions just for the fun of it.


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## neutralwhite (Dec 21, 2012)

but HKJ seems to of spotted something FENIX has missed,...maybeee. would like to see what FENIX say on this though too.

not sure if this helps, but also , when my PD32UE gets into medium mode, I usually charge the battery again, so no chance of hitting fully discharged if that helps, and stops my battery ageing with this charger. 





Mr Happy said:


> The charger is perfectly safe and fine for the batteries it was designed for. No need to worry.
> 
> Sometimes, some of us get into these technical "what if?" discussions just for the fun of it.


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## Changchung (Dec 21, 2012)

Mr Happy said:


> The charger is perfectly safe and fine for the batteries it was designed for. No need to worry.
> 
> Sometimes, some of us get into these technical "what if?" discussions just for the fun of it.



I dont think so, do you read all the thread? HKJ know what he do and what he say...




Sent from my phone with camera with flash and internet on it...


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## Mr Happy (Dec 21, 2012)

Changchung said:


> I dont think so, do you read all the thread? HKJ know what he do and what he say...



HKJ doesn't say it's bad, he just says it could be better.

It charges an 18650 without excess charging current, it doesn't go above 4.2 V, and it stops when the battery is fully charged. Objectively, the only thing it does wrong is to push small cells to a higher voltage--but it's not claimed to be suitable for small cells so it's hard to hold that against it. Don't treat expert scrutiny from the likes of HKJ as a dismissal of the product. HKJ says it is acceptable for the purpose intended, and it is.


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## neutralwhite (Dec 21, 2012)

is that correct dear HKJ?. 

it wont wear down my FENIX ARB L2's as its made for these batteries.... especially FENIX ones.

I will be writing to FENIX if this is the case, cos this is not right of course. what's the point.


....so I don't need to invest in a new charger right?. 


thank you Mr Happy, thats made me...Happy.




Mr Happy said:


> HKJ doesn't say it's bad, he just says it could be better.
> 
> It charges an 18650 without excess charging current, it doesn't go above 4.2 V, and it stops when the battery is fully charged. Objectively, the only thing it does wrong is to push small cells to a higher voltage--but it's not claimed to be suitable for small cells so it's hard to hold that against it. Don't treat expert scrutiny from the likes of HKJ as a dismissal of the product. HKJ says it is acceptable for the purpose intended, and it is.


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## Changchung (Dec 21, 2012)

Because a charger cut charging at 4.20volts al the time dont make it perfect or god, some batteries had high internal resistence... For my point of view and what I have learned in the forum and other place and seeing the graphs and statistics and comparing it with others is obvious that it is not what it should be.

Personally, I would not put my 15$ each batteries or plus in this charger.


Sent from my phone with camera with flash and internet on it...


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## neutralwhite (Dec 21, 2012)

that's the dilemma here....i bought this charger trusting FENIX. 
will see what happens, but might just switch to the new XTAR when its out..soon.

need to see what FENIX tells me on this.
thanks.


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## HKJ (Dec 22, 2012)

neutralwhite said:


> is that correct dear HKJ?.



The charger is acceptable, it can be used and will do the job.



neutralwhite said:


> it wont wear down my FENIX ARB L2's as its made for these batteries.... especially FENIX ones.



Due to the way it works it will go slightly above 4.2 volt on old batteries, this will increase the wear on the batteries. I do not see this as a huge problem, there are many other chargers on the market that does the same.


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## neutralwhite (Dec 22, 2012)

Old as In my FENIX ARB L2's?.
when can these be classed as old?. these are some 2 months only old. 

if I charge one battery say twice a week, could that be still safe without real loss ?. so in a month one would be charged like 8/10 times.
something like that. wondering how much I would lose out on in say over a year, if anything.


thanks HKJ for everything!. im very grateful to read your expert review, and expert answers.


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## Mr Happy (Dec 22, 2012)

All rechargeable batteries wear out with use. It might be expected that after 2-3 years of regular use they need replacing. This is true of other batteries and other chargers too. Rechargeable batteries don't last forever.


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## neutralwhite (Dec 22, 2012)

true. is his evaluation of that FENIX charger correct according to you?. what would you do ?.

thanks Mr Happy.



Mr Happy said:


> All rechargeable batteries wear out with use. It might be expected that after 2-3 years of regular use they need replacing. This is true of other batteries and other chargers too. Rechargeable batteries don't last forever.


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## Mr Happy (Dec 22, 2012)

neutralwhite said:


> true. is his evaluation of that FENIX charger correct according to you?. what would you do ?.



The charger appears to be acceptable. For $20, which is the price of a decent lunch (i.e. pocket change), you get a charger with two independent channels and the ability to charge 18650 cells within spec.

There are ways it could be better, for example it could have a low current ramp up phase for low voltage over-discharged batteries, it could have the ability to reset protection circuits, and it could have a faster responding control system suitable for smaller batteries as well as larger ones. It could even have a genuine CC/CV mode of operation.

So I would not mind owning the charger. I may prefer to pay more and get a better charger, but everything has to be judged relative to its price. You should not expect a BMW for the price of a Fiat.


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## Shadowww (Dec 22, 2012)

Yeah, but Xtar WP2 II that costs same $20 does much better job at charging Li-Ion's..


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## neutralwhite (Dec 22, 2012)

i charge maybe one battery twice a week . i have 4, so use one once twice a week or something. 
should i keep the charger or get that new xtar one out soon.


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## candle lamp (Dec 23, 2012)

Excellent test review as always. HKJ! :thumbsup:

Thanks a lot!


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## ipso (Dec 27, 2012)

This is not CC/CV!!!


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## neutralwhite (Dec 29, 2012)

??....







*Dear Darryl,*

*I am sorry for the late reply. With over current protection and over voltage protection, Fenix ARE-CI 18650 Li-ion battery charger has no problem of over voltage. Considering both the charging time and fully charging, when the voltage of the battery is near 4.2V, the charging current of ARE-C1 is changed to 0.2CmA, which is the optimal charging current.*

*All in all, Fenix ARE-C1 is a safe charger charging 18650 LI-ion batteries safe and fast.*

*Sincerely*
*Linda*
*Fenix Service Center
*


​


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## HKJ (Dec 30, 2012)

When Fenix says "over voltage protection" I thing they are exaggerating.
Here is an example where I simulates an old cell:






Here I zoom in on the measuring pulse:





As can be seen the charge voltage is about 4.5 volt, but due to a high internal resistance in the cell (0.5 ohm) the voltage will drop to 4 volt when measuring and the C1 does assume the cell need more current. A CC/CV algorithm would also continue charging the battery, but with a lower current and lower voltage.

This behaviour does not make the C1 charger unsafe or unusable, but it is not as good as a CC/CV charger


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## neutralwhite (Dec 30, 2012)

thanks. 

ok - so if I say only let my batteries run down to MEDIUM light, then charge up fully, will this be better ?.
would there be that same issue of charging a very discharged cell ?.

i usually let my batteries run down to medium light, then charge anyway.
this then would be OK right?, no CC/CV issues right ?.


i use a PD32UE.
thanks again.


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## Shadowww (Dec 30, 2012)

neutralwhite said:


> thanks.
> 
> ok - so if I say only let my batteries run down to MEDIUM light, then charge up fully, will this be better ?.
> would there be that same issue of charging a very discharged cell ?.
> ...


What do you mean by "CC/CV issues"? CC/CV is the only proper way of charging Li-Ion's, and it does *not* gives any issues. But this charger doesn't supports it.


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## neutralwhite (Dec 30, 2012)

what does that mean?.

so is that a good or bad thing this charger?.
thanks. 



Shadowww said:


> What do you mean by "CC/CV issues"? CC/CV is the only proper way of charging Li-Ion's, and it does *not* gives any issues. But this charger doesn't supports it.


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## Shadowww (Dec 30, 2012)

neutralwhite said:


> what does that mean?.
> 
> so is that a good or bad thing this charger?.
> thanks.


Mediocre at best.
There are much better options available, e.g. Xtar WPII ($20) and Xtar SP2 ($35).


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## Mr Happy (Dec 31, 2012)

Shadowww said:


> CC/CV is the only proper way of charging Li-Ion's



I do think that is a bit of an overly strong statement. CC/CV may be the best and most efficient way of charging the cells, but any charging method that respects the maximum current and maximum voltage limits while charging will be acceptable.


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## Shadowww (Dec 31, 2012)

Mr Happy said:


> I do think that is a bit of an overly strong statement. CC/CV may be the best and most efficient way of charging the cells, but any charging method that respects the maximum current and maximum voltage limits while charging will be acceptable.


True, but a microcontroller that can respect maximum current and maximum voltage limits (the one in this charger doesn't) would have no problem doing a proper CC/CV charge, if properly configured.


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## neutralwhite (Jan 2, 2013)

*Fenix Light*

09:34 (3 hours ago)



*



*
*



*​
to me











[FONT=宋体]Darryl,​
[FONT=宋体][/FONT] 
[FONT=宋体]Please look carefully those replies you quoted, which are just some guys asking the testers for opinion. I am sure fenix charger are safe and effective, with no issue of affecting the lifespan of the 18650 Li-ion batteries. Since Fenix Are-c1 is specially designed for 18650 Li-ion batteries, the reviewer charging 16340 and a fake battery with our charger is forbidden by Fenix.[/FONT]
[FONT=宋体][/FONT] 
[FONT=宋体]Sincerely[/FONT]
[FONT=宋体][/FONT] 
[FONT=宋体]Fenix Service Center[/FONT]
[FONT=宋体][/FONT]​

[/FONT]


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## TK41 (Jan 20, 2013)

Great response from Fenix, ha.

I was thinking of getting the Fenix charger, but I may just wait to see what this new XTAR with a display is going to be about. I bet it comes out this week.


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## TronPlayer (Mar 12, 2013)

Can I leave batteries in this charger for months at a time? Will they keep a full charge? I only need to change my batteries every month or so, thanks!


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## HKJ (Mar 13, 2013)

TronPlayer said:


> Can I leave batteries in this charger for months at a time? Will they keep a full charge? I only need to change my batteries every month or so, thanks!



It is generally a bad idea to leave batteries in the charger.
With the ARE-C1 there is also a "problem" with the current draw, when leaving the battery in for weeks.


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## neutralwhite (Mar 13, 2013)

this is why I sold mine away. now using the XTAR VP1. much better, and confident.
thanks. 



HKJ said:


> It is generally a bad idea to leave batteries in the charger.
> With the ARE-C1 there is also a "problem" with the current draw, when leaving the battery in for weeks.


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## jaylang (May 17, 2013)

question, i have the fenix charger and i noticed it charges my arbl2's to 4.17 volts, is this normal?(am i just being picky?) also, when i have 2 batteries in the charger and one battery is done charging it seems to turn off the charging status light on the other battery.. not red or green.. just off.. they are both around the same voltage but seems to be a odd timing for them to finish charging about 1 second apart. normal? THANKS!! - the first time i noticed this, the battery in the bay with the status light off was 4.09 volts. i put it back in and it charged for about 5 more minutes before turning off. when i tested the battery it was 4.18 volts. (ever since i had a cheep ultrafire 18650 in a single bay charger years ago start smoking, im a bit paranoid about them)


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## HKJ (May 17, 2013)

jaylang said:


> question, i have the fenix charger and i noticed it charges my arbl2's to 4.17 volts, is this normal?(am i just being picky?) also,



4.17 volt is a very good value (4.20 volt would be to high).



jaylang said:


> when i have 2 batteries in the charger and one battery is done charging it seems to turn off the charging status light on the other battery.. not red or green.. just off.. they are both around the same voltage but seems to be a odd timing for them to finish charging about 1 second apart. normal? THANKS!!



This is not correct, but hopefully it only happens when both batteries are very close to fully charged.


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## KILLER_K (May 17, 2013)

Great review as always from you HKJ. It is very nice to have someone spend their own money and do a review for people to see. Your findings was how I felt that the charger would turn out to be. Currently messing with a I4 V3 charger to see what happens..


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## jaylang (May 17, 2013)

lol thanks for the help. i like your website BTW. good reviews and info, thanks!


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