# Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & NiMH



## selfbuilt (Jan 6, 2013)

*Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & NiMH*

Since Jetbeam and Nitecore/Sysmax have gone their separate ways, Jetbeam has apparently come out with its own branded version of the popular Sysmax/Nitecore Intellicharger i4 battery charger. It is called the Intellicharger i4 PRO in Jetbeam's hands. 







As an aside, I'm sorry to say Jetbeam has apparently misspelled the unit's name as "Interllicharger" on both the packaging and unit itself.  

As before, the i4 PRO continues to "intelligently" handle both Li-ions and standard NiMH/NiCd rechargeable batteries. Has anything changed from the previous i4 V2, other than the color of the unit and its packaging? Scroll down to find out … 

Please see my previous Sysmax Intellicharger i4 V2 review for more background info on this model.

Note that I am not as well versed in electronics or circuitry as some of the other members here, so I suggest you consult with the experts if you want to know more than just the basic current/voltage runtime relationships presented here (which are all that I can produce). If you are looking for more information on how to perform similar measurement/testing on chargers, please see HKJ's excellent Measurement on flashlight page. 





















*Jetbeam i4 PRO Reported Specifications *
_Note: as always, these are only what the manufacturer report. And further note that these specs are identical to the earlier i4 V2._ 


Li-ion: 26650, 22650, 18650, 17670, 18490, 17500, 17335, 16340 (RCR), 14500, 10440
NiMH / NiCd: AA, AAA, C
Input Voltage: AC 100-240V 50/60Hz or DC 12V
Input power: 10W
Output Voltage: 4.2V +/- 1% / 1.48V +/- 1%
Output Current: 375mA x 4 / 750 mA x 2 
Capable of charging 4 batteries simultaneously
Each of the four battery slots monitors and charges independently
Automatically identifies Li-ion, Ni-MH and Ni-Cd rechargeable batteries
Features three charging modes (CC, CV and Trickle Charge)
Automatically detects battery status and selects the appropriate voltage and charge mode
3 Color LED displays charging progress for each battery
Automatically stops charging when complete
Features reverse polarity protection
Certified by both RoHS and CE
Dimensions: 139mm x 96mm x36mm
Weight: 156g (without batteries)
MSRP: ~$26
















As with my Nitecore i4 V2, the Jetbeam i4 RPO comes with just a standard 110 AC power adapter (North American-style plug, in my case). The unit supports 100 – 240V AC, 50/60Hz, so those outside of North America can use it fine (with the appropriate terminal plug). A 12V DC car adapter is available separately, as before. 
















Stylistically, the unit is now white instead of black, with more rounded edges. But there are two obvious physical changes that are significant – and welcomed, in my view.

The first is the battery channel springs now seem to sit in a metal rail. Spring action is definitely improved on the i4 PRO compared to the earlier i4 V2s I've handled – nice and smooth now, with no need to add extra lubricant any more. :thumbsup:

The second change may seem minor – the cut-outs on the sides of the charging bay are now deeper near the top of the unit. 











This means that you can now fit oversized cells (like the green NiMH C-cell shown above) comfortably in slots 1 and 4. Previously, on the i4 V2, I found these could only fit well in slots 2 & 3, which meant you could only charge one at a time. By allowing the greater space at the edges, you can easily charge two such cells at once.

There are some label changes, but these are unfortunaltely not for the better. Much like the "interllicharger" labeling issue, there has also been some sort of mangling of the charge and current specs on the back of the unit. As was clearly labelled on the original Nitecore i4 V2, the current levels (350mA x4 and the 750mA x2) are independent of the voltage support for 1.4V and 4.2V cells. For the i4 PRO, it looks like someone confused these as being linked in some way by "criss-crossing" the entries without clear dividers. And in any case, the currents are both listed wrong now on the i4 PRO - it is still 375mA x4 (not 500mA), and 750mA x2 (not x4), as you will see in my testing results below.

Here is a quick video overview of the physical build of the new i4 PRO charger, and how it compares to the original:



Video was recorded in 720p, but YouTube typically defaults to 360p. Once the video is running, you can click on the configuration settings icon and select the higher 480p to 720p options. You can also run full-screen. 

There are a couple of very minor changes in how the circuit operates, but these do not significantly affect performance (as long as you are aware of them). 

As before, there are three yellow lights located over each charging bay, and a blue power indicator at the top right hand side of the unit (lights up when AC/DC power is supplied). Previously, on the i4 V2, one flashing yellow LED indicator on the bottom meant the unit was charging, and the battery was less than 1/3 full. One solid on the bottom and one flashing LED in the middle meant the unit was charging and the battery was more than 1/3rd full, but less than 2/3rd full. Two solid and one flashing LED meant the unit was charging, and the battery was more than 2/3rd full. Three solid LEDs meant the battery was fully charged and the unit had stopped charging.

On the new i4 PRO, the bottom LED is always lit, and the unit cycles through the second and third LEDs to indicate the battery is charging (i.e., they flash on/off, in sequence). Once the battery is 2/3rds full, the bottom two LEDs remain constantly on, and only the third LED flashes. When fully charged, all three LEDs remain solidly on. :shrug:

The other change is in regards of the paired charging bays. As before, there remain only two independent charging channels. This means that you can charge two cells at full current (i.e. 750mA x 2), or four cells at reduced effective current (i.e., 375mA x 4). _But what has changed is the relative positioning of the paired bays._

Before, on the i4 V2, the paired bays were #1 & #3, and #2 & #4 (i.e., if you put cells in those two paired bays simultaneously, the charging current was split between the cells). Now, on the i4 PRO the paired bays are side-by-side (i.e., #1 & #2 are paired, as are #3 & #4). Truth be told, I find this new pairing more intuitive (i.e., cells side-by-side are paired, not spaced apart). But ultimately, any such arrangement is arbitrary. What really matters is to have this pairing clearly spelt out somewhere, either in the manual - or preferably - on the unit itself. Unfortunately, there are still no markings as to how the bays are paired. :sigh: I found out by directly measuring it, but most would only be able to figure it out by noticing that some pairings took longer to charge than others.

But to clarify – like before, the unit does not just cut the charging in half in paired bays (i.e., 375mA per bay). Rather, the current remains at 750mA for each bay – but it alternates charging by cycling off/on once every second for each battery. This effectively results in the same thing, but the cell is actually being charged at 750mA for a 1sec on, 1sec off, cycle. 

Now, let's see how it performs compared to the i4 V2. 

*Voltage/Current Measurements*

To examine the performance of the charger, I have directly monitored charging current and voltage with a data-logging DMM (on separate runs). For these tests, I have used my standard AW protected 18650 (2200mAh) and RCR (750mAh) cells, and Sanyo Eneloop AA NiMH. The cells used here have all had a good number of cycles on them, but are still in reasonable condition. To deplete the cells, I used my regular test bed of a fully-regulated JetBeam Jet-III ST, Jet-II or Jet-I Pro (all IBS models) on Max output – and wait until the cell’s protection circuit gets tripped. The cell is then immediately loaded into the charger for testing and recording (depleted resting voltage typically <3.4V).

Let's start with something simple: 1x18650 and 1xRCR:











The i4 PRO charging algorithm looks pretty much the same on 1x18650 as the i4 V2 (keeping in mind this is a different cell being tested). While not a completely proper CC/CV (i.e., it doesn't keep the CV phase voltage entirely constant), it at least approximates it well. The initial charging current remains at 750mA, as before.











Again, we see a similar pattern on the i4 PRO as the i4 V2 for 1xRCR. The unit does not keep the initial full 750mA CC phase for long, and drops in current fairly soon. Although it seems to stay at a higher current longer on my i4 PRO, that may have more to do with the batteries used than the circuit (i.e., this is a different RCR from the earlier i4 V2 review, but of comparable age and usage). 

The low ~40 mA termination level on Li-ion is very respectable, and means that lower capacity Li-ions can probably be safely charged in the light (e.g. RCR, 14500, 10440, etc.). 

In both the 18650 and RCR tests, my cells show a resting voltage of ~4.19-4.20V, which is good. Note that my testing cells were well used, so it's possible newer cells might terminate slightly higher. 

Note also that although my DMM drops to zero, i4 PRO does not completely terminate when the three yellow LEDs go solid. Although my DMM dropped to zero on my 10A port, when I switched over and re-ran the termination charge on my DMM’s mA/uA port, I measured a low 114 uA current. But this is low enough to be irrelevant. Note that this is also the same as my i4 V2 (which was measured at ~110uA).

As a side note, I wish the manual would stop referring to this as a "trickle charge." A true "trickle charge" usually involves a regular pulse of mA current, to maintain the fully charged state. This is not a good thing for Li-ions – most "trickle chargers" are set too high, and over the long-term, will slowly cook your batteries (i.e. it gradually over-charges the cell, as long as it sits in the charger). The constant low uA current here is negligible, and will not lead to "trickle-charger" style over-charging. For all intents and purposes, the i4 is close enough to full termination. 

As an aside, the frequent "dips" in the i4 PRO and i4 V2 graphs above have to do with how the chargers operate – they actually stop charging once every two seconds to check to see if anything has been inserted into the paired charging bay. I don't have an oscilloscope to show you the exact pattern, but I can estimate from my sampling measures that it takes just under a third of a second to check. This is enough to drop the current/voltage reading in the traces above. My sampling rate is once every 30 secs, hence the why you don't see a continuous "wall of noise", but just sporadic dips (i.e. there is a ~15% chance my DMM will be taking a reading during a charging pause).

For comparing what happens in paired bays, I had to load things a little differently – for the i4 PRO, the cells are in bays #1 and #2, for the i4 V2 they are in #2 and #4.











Overall, there is not a big difference - except it again seems like my i4 PRO holds the CC phase longer when two RCR cells are being charged (compared to either the i4 V2, or the 1xRCR charging situation). Again, this may simly have to do with the fact that different cells were tested on the i4 V2 review (of equivalent age and use pattern to ones tested here though). I don't consider this very significant - effectively, the two chargers perform pretty much equivalently. You just need to remember that the specific bay pairings have changed. :shrug:

Because the chargers alternate the current between the paired bays (i.e. only charges for one second out of every two seconds, with a ~1/3 sec pause to check the bay status), it takes longer to charge the cells. This means I would continue to expect 10+ hours to charge two 18650 cells in paired bays. 

_*UPDATE JANUARY 8, 2013*: FYI, I've justed tested the i4 PRO and i4 V2 with the same RCR cells, and it doesn't look like there's any real difference between the chargers. Here's a chart showing the same RCR cell (with a matched pair) in both chargers, in direct overlay (i4 V2 in green, i4 PRO in blue). I've increase the sample frequency to 1sec for each run, to allow you to better compare.






The i4 V2 kept the charge level slightly more stable for longer, and the i4 PRO ran a little longer at the end. But for all intents and purposes, you could consider these charging algorithms as identical - what you are looking is probably just natural variation from sample unit to another. :wave:_

So how does NiMH look?











And once again, nothing really seems to have changed. As before, the i4 PRO charger ran at a CC cycle of just over ~700mA in my testing. 

Note that unlike Li-ion, NiMH chargers don't work by a CC/CV method. Instead, they typically terminate when the battery reaches a particular voltage level, based on a characteristic increase in the positive slope of voltage versus time (i.e., dV/dT). As you can see in my runtime traces, there is a very pronounced uptick in voltage just before the run terminates. I haven't tested other NiMH chargers, so I don't know what to expect for proper dV/dT termination, but the commentary on my i4 V2 review suggests this isn't it. But like the Li-ion algorithm, it seems a reasonable facsimile.

Oh, and as before, you can charge both NiMH and Li-ions at the same time, even in paired bays. There was some issues in doing this on the original i4 V1 (which was recalled), but there's no problem in doing it here or on the i4 V2. 

*Preliminary Discussion*

Ok, I will get right to the point – nothing really significant has changed in how the i4 PRO's circuit charges batteries, compared to the i4 V2. :wave:

The charging currents and algorithms seem to be pretty much the same, for all cells tested (as near as I can). Also, as before, you still have paired bays where the current alternates between the two cells – the difference now is that the paired bays are side-by-side on the i4 PRO (i.e. #1 & #2, and #3 & #4), as opposed to alternating (i.e., #1 & #3 and #2 & #4) on the i4 V2.

There are some build changes that are appreciated, though. There is a metal rail within each charging bay on the Jetbeam i4 PRO, with better tension on the springs than the early i4s I tested. Spring action is now smooth, with no additional lubrication needed.

They have also cut-out some of the plastic around the side edges of the unit, where the charging bays are located. This means that you can now fit wider cells – NiMH C-cells – in the outer-most bays. As a result, you can now charge two over-sized cells at the same time, independently (e.g., in bays #1 and #4). Previously, they only fit in bays #2 and #3, and you could only physically fit one at a time).

Whatever you may think of the charging algorithms, they continue to do the job well. As before, you are not necessarily getting a pure CC/CV for Li-ions, or a proper dV/dT termination for NiMH. But the i4 models have quite reasonable approximations in my testing, with decent performance (e.g., low termination current for Li-ions, etc.). This is better than most of the inexpensive Li-ion-only "budget" chargers I've looked at. :thumbsup:

Despite the "PRO" label on the Jetbeam-branded version of the i4, not much has really changed. The circuit performs the same, although you are getting some build improvements. That said, I don't know what the spring action is like on the currently shipping Sysmax i4s (i.e., it may also have improved from my early models). You should do fine with either one, but may find better spring action on the i4 PRO.

----

i4 PRO charger supplied by J2LEDFlashlight.com for review.


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## välineurheilija (Jan 6, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Thanks for the review!i like when they put "multi-functional charger" on the package and thought hey lets put an arrow and write professional that makes it better! But jokes aside it seems to be a good charger.


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## cigarbufff (Jan 6, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Your reviews are amazing...I subbed to your channel Cigarbufff is the username on youtube as well..Come check out my channel..Im a fellow Canadian!


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## SoundWorx (Jan 6, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Thanks for the review selfbuilt, I'm actually about to buy my first charger along with some 16340s. BTW, do you recommend yezl or AW? It's currently going to be for my s10.


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## blackFFM (Jan 6, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Their website says "colors: black/ white". So i guess it will be available in black as well.


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## zehnmm (Jan 6, 2013)

Thanks for your usual great review.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2


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## selfbuilt (Jan 6, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Thanks, glad you are enjoying the review. :wave:



SoundWorx said:


> Thanks for the review selfbuilt, I'm actually about to buy my first charger along with some 16340s. BTW, do you recommend yezl or AW? It's currently going to be for my s10.


I haven't test Yezl cells ... HKJ is really the Li-ion testing guru around here, you should check out his battery round-up threads.

Oh, and :welcome:


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## shelm (Jan 7, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

thanks for the review, this time i read it all.
but i am not going to buy a charger which says "Interllicharger".
that's too annoying ymmv.


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## Changchung (Jan 7, 2013)

*Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & NiMH*

Thanks for the review and the compare charts...


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


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## oKtosiTe (Jan 7, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Amazing how this made it to market without anyone going "Interllicharger, what?". Apart from that I'm quite happy with my i4 v2 (non-PRO). 
Thanks for the review!


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## VidPro (Jan 7, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



oKtosiTe said:


> Amazing how this made it to market without anyone going "Interllicharger, what?". Apart from that I'm quite happy with my i4 v2 (non-PRO).
> Thanks for the review!



Inspiring great confidence that they cant spell thier own product , any better than I could 
and . . . does this mean that the clone of it could be recognised by it being spelled correctaly ?


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## selfbuilt (Jan 8, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

FYI, I've justed tested the i4 PRO and i4 V2 with the same RCR cells, and it doesn't look like there's any real difference between the chargers.

Here's a chart showing the same RCR cell (with a matched pair) in both chargers, in direct overlay (i4 V2 in green, i4 PRO in blue). I've increase the sample frequence to 1sec for each run, to allow you to better compare.






The i4 V2 kept the charge level slightly more stable for longer, and the i4 PRO ran a little longer at the end. But for all intents and purposes, you could consider these charging algorithms as identical - what you are looking is probably just natural variation from sample unit to another. :wave:


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## RI Chevy (Jan 8, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Excellent review! Thank you for doing this for us. :thumbsup:


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## candle lamp (Jan 9, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Another excellent test review. Selfbuilt! :thumbsup:

Thanks a lot for your time & effort for doing this work. I appreciate it.


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## mattheww50 (Jan 9, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Anyone else notice the discrepancy between the name plate and the testing? The name plate suggest a charge rate of 1amp/500ma for Li-ion batteries, however the testing suggests that it is really 750ma/375ma. The instructions with the Sysmax version of the charger also says 1amp/500ma, even though it is apparently really 750ma/375ma....


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## selfbuilt (Jan 9, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



mattheww50 said:


> Anyone else notice the discrepancy between the name plate and the testing? The name plate suggest a charge rate of 1amp/500ma for Li-ion batteries, however the testing suggests that it is really 750ma/375ma. The instructions with the Sysmax version of the charger also says 1amp/500ma, even though it is apparently really 750ma/375ma....


Thanks for reminding me - yes, I had noticed that as well, and meant to comment on it.

It looks to me like some sort of "mangling" of the text from the original charger label occurred (just like the "interllicharger" issue). The current levels (350mA x4 and the 750mA x2) are independent of the voltage support for 1.4V and 4.2V cells. This was clear in how things were organized on the i4 V2 label (i.e., voltages supported on one line, currents on another). For the i4 PRO, it looks like someone confused these as being linked in some way by "criss-crossing" the entries without clear dividers. And in any case, the currents are both listed wrong now - it is still 375mA x4 (not 500mA), and 750mA x2 (not x4).

As the testing results make clear, it is still the same algorithm and current levels being used in the i4 PRO - it is just the case design and label markings that have changed (for the better for the design, for the worse for the labels).


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## selfbuilt (Jan 9, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

And thanks for the support everyone - appreciate the positive comments. :grouphug:

Electronics and batteries aren't really my thing (I am more into comparing flashlight beam characteristics and runtimes . But the given the popularity of the i4 series, I figured people would want to know how the new i4 PRO compared to the i4 V2. As always, I'll leave the more detailed interpretations of these results to the experts here, but am glad to provide the comparative testing on the simple measures that I can perform.


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## TweakMDS (Jan 9, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Thanks for this review. Do you think that lacking 18350's are an intentional omission (as in NOT supported), or are they not common enough to be listed? I'm thinking 18650, 16340 and 14500 (in that order) are by far the 3 most popular ones, but I'm reading about 18350 support more and more and wouldn't like to rule them out in a charger.
Since I don't currently have a charger and this one (well, the Nitecore) was on the top of my list, I'm hoping they're "silently supported".


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## selfbuilt (Jan 9, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



TweakMDS said:


> Do you think that lacking 18350's are an intentional omission (as in NOT supported), or are they not common enough to be listed? ... I'm hoping they're "silently supported".


I don't see any reason why they wouldn't be supported, it's likely just an oversight. 

I note that they refer to "18490" batteries as supported, which are likely what most would call 18500. These used be more popular (i.e., in 2x arrangement, to replace 3xCR123A in lights of that length). It's likely they just haven't caught up with the increasing popularity of 18350 as a higher capacity 16340 replacement.

One comment to make here though - as in the case of 10440, it is rare to come across protected cells in the 18350 space.  You have to be particularly careful in using unprotected cells in this charger. As the charger supports both lower voltage NiMH/NiCd as well as higher voltage Li-ion, it figures out what type of cell was inserted based on its voltage. So if you massively over-discharge and damage an unprotected Li-ion to <1.5V, and put it into an i4 charger, AFAIK it would presumably think it was a NiMH/NiCd and hit it with the full 750mA charging algorithm for those cells. 

That would be really bad. Over-discharged Li-ions can develop shunts that may short the battery during charging. This is why most quality Li-ion-only chargers won't charge over-discharged batteries, as a safety feature (not possible here, because of the NiMH/NiCd support). Even if the damaged Li-ion didn't short out, I don't know what would happen if you subjected it to the NiMH/NiCd charging algorithm (and I personally wouldn't want to find out).

This is all part of the reason why I don't recommend unprotected cells - you have to make sure you never over-discharge them (and if you do - even once - the cell should be discarded immediately). To be on the extra safe side, I recommend using a quality Li-ion-only charger for any unprotected cells (as a good one will hopefully have a safety feature prevent a charge cycle from occurring).


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## TweakMDS (Jan 9, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Thanks for that clarification. I'm not too keen on using unprotected cells, but I'd like to keep my options open... At the very least I'd only use these in lights that don't overdischarge anyway; good tip.


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## vēer (Jan 13, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

I wonder whether spelling "Interllicharger" was unintentional or whether it was intentional due to Sysmax/Nitecore owning rights on Intellicharger name?
Jetbeam in their announcements regarding separation with Sysmax/Nitecore said that Nitecore, without Jetbeams permission, had registered Jetbeams intellectual property under Nitecore trademark.
So, perhaps they didnt want to lose potential customers with giving their charger completely new name, so they picked up the same name but to avoid legal problems they went for misspelled name !


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## RI Chevy (Jan 13, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Good point.


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## jay_rush (Feb 6, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

can this charger fit 3400mah protected 18650s? 2900mah protected 18650s were hard enough in the old i4. and how come on ebay everyone listing this charger says its 110v - 220v and here you say its 240v


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## selfbuilt (Feb 7, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



jay_rush said:


> can this charger fit 3400mah protected 18650s? 2900mah protected 18650s were hard enough in the old i4. and how come on ebay everyone listing this charger says its 110v - 220v and here you say its 240v


I don't have any 3400mA cells to test. But the cell bay hiehgt tolerances of my i4 PRO are slightly greater than my i4 V2 (maybe up to ~1mm extra for height).

As for the voltage range, "100-240V" is what the manufacturer website specifies, as well as the dealer site who provided the unit for review. In manufacturer specs section of my reviews, I always list what the manufacturer actually reports. In this case, I note the back of the unit specifies "110-220V" input, which may explain why eBay vendors are using that. Note that the output specs on the back of the unit are wrong on my sample. 

Either way, the point to the above is that the unit is indeed meant to operate on 110V or 220V systems - they have just expanded the official range on the specs. I suspect this is because there are places in the world that are actually more like ~230V.


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## fletcher969 (Feb 15, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



blackFFM said:


> Their website says "colors: black/ white". So i guess it will be available in black as well.



They are available in black. I purchased one last week, but they're not yet easy to find.


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## UrbanLegend (Feb 17, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



jay_rush said:


> can this charger fit 3400mah protected 18650s? 2900mah protected 18650s were hard enough in the old i4. and how come on ebay everyone listing this charger says its 110v - 220v and here you say its 240v



Yes, I charged several Orbtronics 3400 mAh protected 18650 batteries with no problems at all. Actually, the longest 18650 battery I have is a BriteStrike 2400 mAh 18650 battery that came with a BriteStrike flashlight/charger combo. That battery barely fits in some of my chargers and almost had to be forced into one of them. Even that batterry fits nicely in the Jetbeam Intellicharger i4 Pro. :thumbsup:


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## UrbanLegend (Feb 17, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



fletcher969 said:


> They are available in black. I purchased one last week, but they're not yet easy to find.



They are selling the black units on Amazon under the product heading: JETBeam IntelliCharger i4 Charger - 2nd Generation - for charging 18650, 16340(RCR123), 14500, etc. 

Mine came with the metal spring slides and works great. It is identical to the detailed review at the top of this thread in every way except the color, including the spelling of the word "Interllicharger".


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## jirik_cz (Mar 9, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

It seems like my white Interllicharger i2 Pro is TRICKLE CHARGING LI-ION batteries. I've intentionally left some cells in the charger for couple of days and after that, they had 4.26V. When I take the cells out immediately after the end of charge is indicated, then they have only 4.19-4.20V.


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## selfbuilt (Mar 10, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



jirik_cz said:


> It seems like my white Interllicharger i2 Pro is TRICKLE CHARGING LI-ION batteries. I've intentionally left some cells in the charger for couple of days and after that, they had 4.26V. When I take the cells out immediately after the end of charge is indicated, then they have only 4.19-4.20V.


That's really bizarre. My charger certainly terminated properly on every run I measured. :thinking:


----------



## gradio (Mar 10, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



blackFFM said:


> Their website says "colors: black/ white". So i guess it will be available in black as well.





Yes I got a black one just last month.

I sure do enjoy selfbuilt reviews... a old dummy like me still gains valuable information from them, so I enjoy them while I can.


----------



## jirik_cz (Mar 13, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

I've repeated the test with the same results. My jetbeam i2 is definitely trickle charging li-ion batteries. Selfbuilt could you leave some 18650 li-ion batteries in the charger for four days? I'm wondering what will be their voltage after that.


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## selfbuilt (Mar 14, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



jirik_cz said:


> I've repeated the test with the same results. My jetbeam i2 is definitely trickle charging li-ion batteries. Selfbuilt could you leave some 18650 li-ion batteries in the charger for four days? I'm wondering what will be their voltage after that.


Ah, so you are usung the two-cell i2 version? Still, it should perform the same. I will run some cells in my i4 PRO for a couple of days and see what happens.


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## jirik_cz (Mar 14, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Yes, I'm using two cell version i2.


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## selfbuilt (Mar 16, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Just tested three AW 18650 cells in my i4 PRO.

The first cell was pulled as soon as the charger lights went solid - resting voltage was ~4.20V
The second cell was pulled 24 hours later (charger remained plugged in) - resting voltage was ~4.18V
The third cell was pulled 48 hours after the first (charger remained plugged in) - resting voltage was ~4.19V

So it looks like my charger is remaining properly terminated when the light goes solid, as my earlier direct measures indicated. No sign of trickle charging.


----------



## Spazhead (Mar 17, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

great review, thanks


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## dazler (Mar 21, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Hello guys, I spotted this thread from google search and decided to register here on CPF.

Firstly, a very nice review, thank you selfbuilt for it!

Secondly, I just bought this "interllicharger" from ebay to be a safer option to recharge my unprotected cells (salvaged from a new laptop battery which had bad electronics and therefore didn't charge) than my trustworthy Trustfire TR-001 charger, and maybe to get few more charge cycles out of the cells too. Unfortunately I'm not so sure about that anymore because I'm having a slight but still nerving overcharging problem with this i4 PRO.

With the Trustfire charger (and my nameless dealextreme backup charger) the charging light turns green when my batteries/cells are at 4.17 to 4.2 volts, depending on the age of the cells. Measured & averaged with two DMM's, although cheapo ones. If I then put the cells to the i4 PRO, it continues the charging process until they are at 4.24 to 4.27 volts! I'm talking about resting voltages measured couple of hours after I have removed them from the charger. After resting some 16 hours the worst battery I have, had gone down from 4.25 to 4.17 volts. It's nearing the end of its life. But the healthier ones were still at 4.24-4.26V range. 

The cells never got hot during the charging which gives me little peace of mind, but I'm still wondering if this charger will impact negatively to the lifespan of the cells...getting close to 4.3V can't be very healty for them?


----------



## jirik_cz (Mar 21, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

If the cells are more then 4,20V when you pull them out of the charger, it will definitely shorten their lifespan. Seems like I'm not the only one who has overcharging Interllicharger...


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## dazler (Mar 21, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



jirik_cz said:


> If the cells are more then 4,20V when you pull them out of the charger, it will definitely shorten their lifespan. Seems like I'm not the only one who has overcharging Interllicharger...



Yes it seems so. Although my i4 isn't trickle charging in any way. Are you sure yours is? I left one cell in the charger for 24 hours and after that it was at 4.24V. I'm quite sure it would have been around 4.26-4.27 volts if I had removed it straight after the charging was completed.




selfbuilt said:


> On the new i4 PRO, the bottom LED is always lit, and the unit cycles through the second and third LEDs to indicate the battery is charging (i.e., they flash on/off, in sequence).


By the way the bottom led isn't always lit, the voltage treshold for it to become solid is just very low. I had one cell at 2.8V when I started to recharge it and all of the three leds were climbing up then and after around half an hour the bottom led became solidly lit. I'm assuming the voltage treshold for the first led to become solid is somewhere just north of 3 volts. Compared to that I took one cell out of the charger just after I noticed the second led being solid and measured the voltage of the cell. It was already at 4.18 volts by then and it couldn't have been more than 5 minutes on that third stage yet... So the leds are pretty useless at least on my unit: If the voltage is under 1st solid led it means the cell is quite deeply discharged. 2nd solid led it means the battery is already full by any cell life prolonging standards. 3rd solid led means it's quite noticeably overcharged. :shrug:


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## Rexlion (Mar 21, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

If a unit were overcharging, I'd try to return it for an exchange or refund. Overcharging cells is not acceptable IMO.


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## dazler (Mar 22, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



Rexlion said:


> If a unit were overcharging, I'd try to return it for an exchange or refund. Overcharging cells is not acceptable IMO.



Agreed. But on the other hand I don't have 100% confidence regarding my cheapo DMM. Only thing I'm sure of is that my Trustfire TR-001 and the other nameless charger is charging the cells to some .05 - .10 lower voltage treshold. Though while doing it the cells are getting noticeably warmer than with the interlllicharger i4 PRO. It seems those cells aren't the source of the heat itself, but the charging circuit which then conducts the heat to the cells via + -terminal. Win some, lose some, I guess.

If I decided to return it, shipping costs would be somewhere near 50% of the price of the whole unit. Oh well. I still have 2 protected 18650 batteries that are working fine and 24 unprotected 18650 cells that are nearly new. Maybe I can afford to fry some life out of them.


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## selfbuilt (Mar 22, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

I think the above discussion underscores the need to invest in a decent DMM when working with Li-ion cells. Personally, I wouldn't trust ANY charger to terminate at a reasonble level without testing resting voltages myself. While a few millivolts above 4.20V won't make a huge difference, values nearing ~4.25V should be strenously avoided.

I don't mean to suggest everyone should run out and get a Fluke, but you should be willing to spend at least as much (and preferably a little more) on a decent DMM than you would on any given charger.


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## Rexlion (Mar 22, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

I'll suggest it, though. Everyone should run out and get a Fluke!  It's fun having a good meter, just like it's fun having a good light.


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## HKJ (Mar 22, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



Rexlion said:


> I'll suggest it, though. Everyone should run out and get a Fluke!  It's fun having a good meter, just like it's fun having a good light.



You can get other good meters, try a Agilent. They are just as good as Fluke (Ok, I will admit that I only have one Agilent and 7 Fluke, but I tried to get a 2/6 score, except I could not find anywhere to buy the Agilent I wanted).


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## Russel (Mar 22, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Gossen Metrawatt also makes some excellent quality multi-meters, although very pricey even compared to Fluke.


----------



## HKJ (Mar 22, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



Russel said:


> Gossen Metrawatt also makes some excellent quality multi-meters, although very pricey even compared to Fluke.



I love their Energy meter and Fluke has nothing that can compare to that.
My usual test DMM's:


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## dazler (Apr 3, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Okay, my i4 is definitely overcharging. Still don't have a fluke, but one of my protected batteries got fried for good just after 2 charging cycles. Resting voltage dropped from 4.27V to 3.5V overnight, so it doesn't hold it's charge anymore. 

After that I noticed one other protected battery made i4's charging channel go offline when the charging was nearly completed according to i4. All the charging leds went off. Removed and after a while reseated to other channel. Charged for a few minutes and same thing happened. So the batterys own protecting circuit cut off the charging process twice before i4 did. Now I'm worried. This charger is lethal to the batteries.


----------



## selfbuilt (Apr 4, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



dazler said:


> Okay, my i4 is definitely overcharging. Still don't have a fluke, but one of my protected batteries got fried for good just after 2 charging cycles. Resting voltage dropped from 4.27V to 3.5V overnight, so it doesn't hold it's charge anymore.
> 
> After that I noticed one other protected battery made i4's charging channel go offline when the charging was nearly completed according to i4. All the charging leds went off. Removed and after a while reseated to other channel. Charged for a few minutes and same thing happened. So the batterys own protecting circuit cut off the charging process twice before i4 did. Now I'm worried. This charger is lethal to the batteries.


That's exactly what it sounds like is happening - your charger is over-charging the cells until the built-in protection circuits are tripped (usually by ~4.28V). 

Do not use that charger again - it should be returned.


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## Tryptos (Apr 13, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

I'm a bit wary of substandard chargers or even fakes.
Can anyone please recommend an ebay seller to buy an i4 pro from?
I'm in the UK but not in a rush so a HK seller is fine.


----------



## appliancejunk (Apr 13, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Nice review, thanks!


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## vespagt200 (Apr 18, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Hello, I am a new flashaholic, just got the bite after acquiring a Fenix TK41U then added a LD22 G2, PD32 UE and my fav TK75. I ordered the JetBeam Pro i4 from Amazon and it is listed as the ver 3 2013 enhanced model. Being new to 18650's and learning as much as I can about safety and chargers is this one any different than the pro model being discussed here?

Thank you for any help and love my new hobby!

Sean


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## RI Chevy (Apr 19, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

:welcome: 

I have not heard of any newer charger other than the one listed in this thread.


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## TEEJ (Apr 19, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



RI Chevy said:


> :welcome:
> 
> I have not heard of any newer charger other than the one listed in this thread.



Check these out:

http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/sh...and-R30-lights-BACK-IN-Stock-and-shipping-now!!!!!


----------



## RI Chevy (Apr 19, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



vespagt200 said:


> Hello, I am a new flashaholic, just got the bite after acquiring a Fenix TK41U then added a LD22 G2, PD32 UE and my fav TK75. I ordered the JetBeam Pro i4 from Amazon and it is listed as the ver 3 2013 enhanced model. Being new to 18650's and learning as much as I can about safety and chargers is this one any different than the pro model being discussed here?
> 
> Thank you for any help and love my new hobby!
> 
> Sean





TEEJ said:


> Check these out:
> 
> http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/sh...and-R30-lights-BACK-IN-Stock-and-shipping-now!!!!!



I thought we were talking about the Jetbeam Pro I4 charger? 

Although I am very familiar with the Xtar VP1.


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## srmd22 (May 1, 2013)

*Great review: Hope I don't fry my new batteries.*

Great review, as you always do, Selfbuilt.

I just picked one up from Amazon, and I have a batch of 4 brand new Orbtronics 3400mAh on there. Maybe I should have tested with just one, now that I see some of the units may overcharge. I may just pull a few off before I go to sleep, and just let one finish the cycle. Does stopping and restarting the charge cycle damage the battery at all, with LiCo?

PS: I have a Pila charger as well, but I grabbed this so I could charge 4 at once, for my new incoming 3 and 4 * 18650 torches.


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## RI Chevy (May 2, 2013)

*Re: Great review: Hope I don't fry my new batteries.*

You can pull Li-Ion batteries off the charger prior to receiving a full charge without doing any damage to the cell. I personally would use the Pila charger over the other charger. AND you shouldn't leave the batteries on the charger overnight while you go to sleep. Not very safe in my opinion. Always monitor the charge cycles.


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## selfbuilt (May 2, 2013)

*Re: Great review: Hope I don't fry my new batteries.*



srmd22 said:


> GMaybe I should have tested with just one, now that I see some of the units may overcharge. I may just pull a few off before I go to sleep, and just let one finish the cycle. Does stopping and restarting the charge cycle damage the battery at all, with LiCo?





RI Chevy said:


> You can pull Li-Ion batteries off the charger prior to receiving a full charge without doing any damage to the cell. I personally would use the Pila charger over the other charger. AND you shouldn't leave the batteries on the charger overnight while you go to sleep. Not very safe in my opinion. Always monitor the charge cycles.


Yes, there is no problem with pulling Li-ions off the charger early. I also agree about not leaving cells on a charger over night. As a general rule, the greatest risk of an incident with Li-ions is during the charging phase (as opposed to primary cells, where it is in the discharging).

Given the over-charging report by a member in this thread, I would strongly recommend you confirm the resting voltage of your cells at termination with a DMM. Of course, that is useful advice for any charger.


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## srmd22 (May 2, 2013)

*Re: Great review: Hope I don't fry my new batteries.*

I tested 4 new 3400mAh and one older 2200 mAh 18650 cells at termination:
Pila: 1 cells at 4.20
i4: ranged from 4.09, 4.13, 4.17, 4.21 

I put the 2 with lower volts on the Pila, and they topped off at 4.17 and 4.18.

I am thinking the 4.21 from one of the i4 bays is probably ok, given the probable standard deviation of accuracy in most electrical testing equipment. I still will use the i4 when I need to charge more then 2 batts at once, just way ore efficient then hanging around for multiple cycles.

I'm hoping the termination circuits in these things are reliable, because I don't have time to hang around babysitting the charger everytime I charge up a batch. If not, I would go to another chemistry. (I do use a lot of eneloops in my AA and AAA lights and gadgets).


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## Vortus (May 14, 2013)

*Re: Great review: Hope I don't fry my new batteries.*

So far ran three sets of 4 through it. Each measured from 4.24 to 4.26 so will grab another meter tomorrow to double check. If its what I think, its going back.


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## KILLER_K (May 17, 2013)

*Re: Great review: Hope I don't fry my new batteries.*

Great job as always selfbuilt. Did you happen to try unplugging the charger after all the batteries reached the full charge. Then just plug the power back in and see how the charger acted after that? It seems to act like it is resetting and starting over after you do that. Even though the batteries are fully charged.


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## selfbuilt (May 17, 2013)

*Re: Great review: Hope I don't fry my new batteries.*



Vortus said:


> So far ran three sets of 4 through it. Each measured from 4.24 to 4.26 so will grab another meter tomorrow to double check. If its what I think, its going back.


That's not good. If you consistently get that with a quality DMM, I would definitely send the unit back. Let us know more ...



KILLER_K said:


> Great job as always selfbuilt. Did you happen to try unplugging the charger after all the batteries reached the full charge. Then just plug the power back in and see how the charger acted after that? It seems to act like it is resetting and starting over after you do that. Even though the batteries are fully charged.


Yes, it is indeed likely to do that - but you should find it terminates again with a matter of seconds to minutes. Given the very low current at termination, this won't affect the overall charge status.


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## Vortus (May 18, 2013)

*Re: Great review: Hope I don't fry my new batteries.*

Ran one more set through it so far, this time measured with a fluke, got 4.22 on all 4, all were ET 3100 red and white types. Going to run a few more sets through to see if holds true for other brands of batteries. Also noticed that on two batteries, it barely gets warm. On four, this little sucker gets hot, hot enough to make that hot plastic smell we all know. Played with different ways of letting it set, seemed to stay cooler if standing on end. Wife joked could use as a heating pad for sore muscles while charging batteries.


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## KILLER_K (May 18, 2013)

*Re: Great review: Hope I don't fry my new batteries.*

Here is what I'm seeing on my charger. Let them charge and all bars are full. Let them trickle charge for a good while. Remove the 4 batteries and place them back in and it then shows 2 bars and starts charging again. They are 4.2v - 4.2v - 4.19v - 4.2v. They shouldn't need charging after that, let alone be showing only 2 bars.

Perhaps the charger could possibly going on a type of sleep state after a long amount of time? As the batteries are fully charged and maybe the charger senses it and stops? But it still shouldn't see only 2 bars after resetting the batteries.



selfbuilt said:


> Yes, it is indeed likely to do that - but you should find it terminates again with a matter of seconds to minutes. Given the very low current at termination, this won't affect the overall charge status.


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## selfbuilt (May 18, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion &*

Don't worry about the number of bars -how long does it take for the charger to terminate, ands what it's the voltage? You should find the difference to be negligible.


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## KILLER_K (May 18, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion &*

From what I'm seeing is like 5 - 10 minutes after placing them back in. I do notice rolling the batteries sometimes fixes the issue. Again just passing the info along. The voltage was 4.2v - 4.2v - 4.19v - 4.2v.



selfbuilt said:


> Don't worry about the number of bars -how long does it take for the charger to terminate, ands what it's the voltage? You should find the difference to be negligible.


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## py702 (May 18, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion &*

What type of DMM are you all using? Any recommendations for an accurate one at a decent price? I've read 4.24v both on an Eagletac 3400 and an old AW 2200. Both were right off the charger (Jetbeam i4 pro) and felt cool to the touch so I wasn't really worried.

I'm currently using a cheap radio shack DMM #22-820, so I figured it may be inaccurate.


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## Vortus (May 18, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion &*

Can find someone with a good meter and test yours against it, then if it shows 4.24 and yours the same, yours is good enough. If it shows 4.22 and yours shows 4.24, yours it .02 off. etc etc Can buy a fluke for around a hundred dollars, used ones less. Its an old model, but I picked up a Fluke 23 series 2 for fifty. See 113's going close to 100 or so.


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## Vortus (May 19, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion &*

Well, two sets of ET and three sets of NCR-A's later and its going back. Odd that the ET lights come out at 4.22, while the NCR-A's came out at 4.23. Either way, still to high so its going back. Will try another, if it doesn't work ill move to another brand.


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## jred23 (May 26, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Just got my jetbeam i4 pro. My only problem is I bought it overseas and the wall plug is different from ours in the US. So I got this universal ac adapter that is rated 1500mah 1.2a max and I charge using the 12v dc setting. It is for fenix arb l2 batteries for now and later I will get some good aa rechargables for my nitecore ea4. I hope this is ok to use the universal adapter with this charger. Anybodys opinion on this?


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## oKtosiTe (May 27, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



jred23 said:


> Just got my jetbeam i4 pro. My only problem is I bought it overseas and the wall plug is different from ours in the US. So I got this universal ac adapter that is rated 1500mah 1.2a max and I charge using the 12v dc setting. It is for fenix arb l2 batteries for now and later I will get some good aa rechargables for my nitecore ea4. I hope this is ok to use the universal adapter with this charger. Anybodys opinion on this?


I'd say it's unnecessary. I can't say anything about your convertor, but since the regular plug's socket (the one shaped like an infinity sign) on the charger is rated for both 110 and 220/230V outlets, just get a cable with this plug. You can almost certainly get one for under five dollars. 
They are commonly known as "figure eight" or "shotgun" connectors, but they're also referred to as euro-connectors or C7/C8 plugs/sockets respectively. (Disclaimer: I just learnt about this from Wikipedia)







I ordered my i4 (non-pro) from the UK. The box included a UK cable, so I just went to a local electronics shop and bought a 0.5m cable to replace it.


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## selfbuilt (May 27, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



jred23 said:


> Just got my jetbeam i4 pro. My only problem is I bought it overseas and the wall plug is different from ours in the US. So I got this universal ac adapter that is rated 1500mah 1.2a max and I charge using the 12v dc setting. It is for fenix arb l2 batteries for now and later I will get some good aa rechargables for my nitecore ea4. I hope this is ok to use the universal adapter with this charger. Anybodys opinion on this?


Actually, that sounds more like a transformer/converter than just a power adapter. It would be unnecessary, as the i4 pro runs on either 110V or 220/230V. So all you need is replacement cable (as oKtosiTe points out), or a simple travel plug adapter. The latter should also not cost you more than a few dollars.


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## jred23 (May 30, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Thanks for your reply. I forgot to mention that I tried a US "figure 8" plug at the local electronics store and it didn't work! I also tried a US plug adaptor and it didn't work either... luckily the other power port worked!! I'm not sure what its called but the other one on back of the jetbeam i4 pro. The back of the adaptor I bought for the charger says: 
Universal AC/DC Adaptor
Model ST-15M
Input :100-240v~ 50/60Hz
Output :3/4.5/6/7.5/9/12V
1200mA max

Since my "figure 8" port isnt working is this ok to use as long as I'm on 12v mode? Sorry I don't have a pic but its nice and compact and only about 9 dollars. I think the brand is Rhino - model PST-15M
Thanks guys!!!


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## jred23 (May 30, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Thank you oKtosiTe for your help. I failed to mention my "firgure 8" port doesn't even work with travel adapter or even a plain US figure 8 plug.. You think my adaptor will be ok for my batteries? I know it works. But you think its safe? I would exchange my charger but the seller is way too far for me to send it back. Thanks again oKtosiTe!!!


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## ozzie (Sep 21, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Thank you for an excellent review. I wanted to order the Nitecore I4 and asked the supplier if it would charge LiFePO4 batteries, but they can't tell me. I know it doesn't say it will, and your figures only show voltages higher (or lower) than the 3.2 volts required, but it would be nice if I could use this charger for these cells as well as the others. It seems from your review that the charger measures terminal voltage to determine the type of cell, which implies it may not be able to detect the 3.2 volts of a LiFePO4 cell, or think it's a Li cell and try to charge it to over 4 volts. Still, it's worth asking, in case you've tried these cells, before I buy the charger. I admit I haven't read all the hundreds of posts, so please forgive me if the answer is already buried there somewhere. I've only just joined this forum.


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## wertzius (Sep 22, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

In short: it is not possible, you will overcharge the cells.


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## selfbuilt (Sep 22, 2013)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



wertzius said:


> In short: it is not possible, you will overcharge the cells.


That's my understanding as well. I don't see how this charger would be able to distinguish between different types of Li-ions. You would need to get a proper dedicated charge for those lower voltage cells.


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## danbruski (Jan 22, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

I'm finding quite difficult to get a manual for the JetBeam intelligent charger i4 Pro I just ordered off Amazon. I wanted to know what the flashing lights meant. I found the answer in the OPs great review, but things like banking and such would be nice to find a manual. I went to [email protected] after seeing their manual link gave a 404 web error. They replied, _">
I am sorry, we are not the mfr. Unfortunately, I don't have the answer for you either. Please contact. _http://www.jetbeamlight.com/Contact.asp " While an honest answer, not a very good one since all I asked for was a manual or at least a description of the blinky lights. So I went to the manufacturer site and no manual online there either, so I emailed them and received this automated reply from Fanny,
_ 
"Dear All,__I will be out of office from Jan 15,2014 to Feb 9,2014._
_As new order,please contact my colleague Jessie._
_As after-sales service,i will reply you once coming back._
_Best regards"

_Shouldn't be so darn hard to get a manual or description. 
This is exactly what mine looks like... it says "Intellicharger" not the misspelled version...
http://www.jetbeamlighting.com/images/Jetbeam/JETBeam-i4-PRO.jpg



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


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## lmh0t3p (Mar 18, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

The reviews on this site are very detailed and informational. 

I am planning o buy some AW18650 IMR 2000mAh batteries. 

I will be charging two batteries at a time. Do you recommend using the i2 and charge at ~350mA or the i4 and charge at ~750mA?


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## oKtosiTe (Mar 18, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



lmh0t3p said:


> The reviews on this site are very detailed and informational.
> 
> I am planning o buy some AW18650 IMR 2000mAh batteries.
> 
> I will be charging two batteries at a time. Do you recommend using the i2 and charge at ~350mA or the i4 and charge at ~750mA?


Actually, the i2 charges at 500mA, and the i4 charges at 375mA or 750mA depending on whether paired or unpaired slots are used respectively.
Both should be completely suitable, but the wait is a bit longer with the lower charge rates. If you'll want to charge more than two cells at a time, the i4 is a good choice.
If you want more control, have a look at Xtar's offerings.


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## lmh0t3p (Mar 18, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Thanks for clarifying that. After i posted this, i read about some reliability issues with nitecores and I am getting a little skeptical about them. 

My first pick was the xtar wp2s. I think it is a PILA lookalike for a little cheaper. I haven't heard many complains about that one.
It should be somewhere in the middle of PILA and Nitecores.


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## oKtosiTe (Mar 18, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



lmh0t3p said:


> Thanks for clarifying that. After i posted this, i read about some reliability issues with nitecores and I am getting a little skeptical about them.
> 
> My first pick was the xtar wp2s. I think it is a PILA lookalike for a little cheaper. I haven't heard many complains about that one.
> It should be somewhere in the middle of PILA and Nitecores.


It's been on my wishlist for a while, but I recently set my sights on the VP2 instead (neither charges nickel cells BTW).
That said, my i4 is still serving me well. I regularly top off my four EagleTac 3100s with it without issue.

Oh, and before I forget: :welcome:


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## lmh0t3p (Mar 18, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



oKtosiTe said:


> It's been on my wishlist for a while, but I recently set my sights on the VP2 instead (neither charges nickel cells BTW).
> That said, my i4 is still serving me well. I regularly top off my four EagleTac 3100s with it without issue.
> 
> Oh, and before I forget: :welcome:






Cheers, this is one of my favorite forums already based on the quality of content.

I thought about the VP2 but I prefer the simplicity in wp2s. The components in both should be comparable, but I think the LCD will affect the mileage of the device. WP2S has one less thing that could break, I tend to focus on the weakest links haha. 

On the other hand the LCD could serve as a validator for my DMM.


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## lmh0t3p (Mar 18, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

I ended up getting the i4 Pro from http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IJ0ZM3S/?tag=cpf0b6-20
I'll keep a DMM handy and monitor the charging cycles. Hopefully it will last me worth the $17.


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## lmh0t3p (Mar 21, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

I got my charger in the mail today. It showed up in a blue and yellow box and it says "Intellicharger" (not "Interllicharger"). I guess that is why it said V3 on the seller's listing.

I was wondering how can I figure out which bays are paired?


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## HKJ (Mar 21, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



lmh0t3p said:


> I got my charger in the mail today. It showed up in a blue and yellow box and it says "Intellicharger" (not "Interllicharger"). I guess that is why it said V3 on the seller's listing.
> 
> I was wondering how can I figure out which bays are paired?



It is easy enough. Start with four empty batteries of the same capacity.
Charge two batteries in slot 1 and 2, measure the charge time.
Charge two batteries in slot 1 and 3, measure the charge time again.

The slowest combination is paired.


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## lmh0t3p (Mar 21, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Thanks, I'll give it a shot.


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## lmh0t3p (Mar 21, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Slots 1 & 2, 3 & 4 are paired according to the method suggested by HKJ. So, no change besides the correct spelling on the charger.


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## pcruz (May 28, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Just received my JETbeam I4 PRO from Amazon/Ebay seller EdisonBright. 

Bay 1 charged to 4.26 volts, Bay 2 to 4.25 volts, Bay 3 to 4.23 volts, and Bay 4 charged to 4.2 volts. When I pulled them off the charger, all four bays were still charging according to the indicator light (two lights solid, one blinking). 

All four Sanyo cells were put in the charger at 3.89 volts and were all tested on a Nitecore P12 prior to charging. The cells in bay 1 and 2 no longer function in my Nitecore P12 (my only 18650 light at the moment). 

Needless to say, I'm quite disappointed with the charger and losing two good 18650 cells. Contacted the seller and hopefully I can exchange it for another brand. At this point, would the Nitecore I4 be a better option or should I go with a completely different charger?


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## oKtosiTe (May 28, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*



pcruz said:


> Just received my JETbeam I4 PRO from Amazon/Ebay seller EdisonBright.
> 
> Bay 1 charged to 4.26 volts, Bay 2 to 4.25 volts, Bay 3 to 4.23 volts, and Bay 4 charged to 4.2 volts. When I pulled them off the charger, all four bays were still charging according to the indicator light (two lights solid, one blinking).
> 
> ...


Could the protection on the cells have been tripped? What voltage do all four cells read now?
If you want a good Li-ion charger, Xtar has a pretty broad offering. Can't say that I've had any issues at all with my Nitecore i4(v2) myself.


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## välineurheilija (May 30, 2014)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

I have noticed with my Nitecore I4 v2 if i put the cells in before i plug the charger in sometimes it refuses to start charging but i think the manual tells you to plug in first so it has power to regognize the batteries?


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## theOS (Jun 23, 2015)

*Re: Jetbeam i4 PRO Intellicharger Review: Current/Voltage Comparisons for Li-ion & Ni*

Hi , since i messed up my intellicharger i4pro main (220v) circuit board , i´d like to know how many amps do i need on the 12v power adapter output.
It could be 4*375ma/ 2*750ma = 1.5A 

(I need to charge 4 x 18650 batteries)


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