I'm stopping using Alkaline AA and AAA batteries: LI-ION is here...

[@MCsCreations]

Awesome review, Lee! 😃 I won a little charger and 4 AAA batteries from that brand from Gal Kremer. They are in the pressure measuring thingy my father uses... They're in use for about 2 or 3 weeks. He removed them yesterday to check and they're still full! 😂 "Normal" AAA batteries never last that long! Anyway, stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

[@Painless360]

Thanks for posting that. Great to hear from another user about 'real world' use. Happy flying!

[@bubo9366]

The batteries are regulated, so they will display as full until they are down to the last 5%. A better measurement would be to put them in a charger and measure how long it takes to recharge them.

[@joecaraco7503]

Are these batteries good in devices that are rarely used, such as a flash light (torch), i.e., storage battery or for use in smoke detectors?

[@crazysquirrel9425]

@@joecaraco7503 For a smoke/CO detector, it is best to use the lithium non rechargeable batteries. Your life is worth more than the risk of using rechargeable batteries. Even those devices say to use Alkaline (as a minimum) batteries.

[@taumelscheibe5948]

​@@joecaraco7503Unfortunately no. LiIon degrades if kept at full charge for a prolonged time. They will lose about 20% Capacity per year at room temperature.

[@salipander6570]

Never had any problem with Eneloop NiMh batteries. They don't self discharge in years, which is a giant advantage.

[@stakkerhmnd]

I've had so many duff ones. Panasonic originals. They don't like being charged in a Nitecore designed to charge NiMH.

[@mr.makeit4037]

I have and use many nmhd aa, aaa, c, d and 9v tenergy rechargeables. Around my homestead. They are great. My goal is to use mostly motion detection lighting in closets, hallways, etc to lessen my dependence on grid power. All are charged indirectly thru my 3 solar setups. I will probably use these lithium batteries for flashlights and other applications going forward. I also plan to use the new sodium battery cells coming soon. The future as I see it will not be a one size fits all. Those days are long gone.

[@TT-dp8qh]

How did you get them not to be self discharged? I had many of them for electronics at home and they always were self discharged some percentage in a certain time. If you left them on the selves for a year, they may have the voltage drops below 1 volt. NiMh chemistry has always been that way since the 70's.

[@박메롱-k9z]

It's nonsense that the battery doesn't self-discharge.

[@DTrizzy]

@@TT-dp8qh if you order LSD=Low Self-Discharge batteries like Eneloop then they last a long time, If you actually get real ones from Made in Japan. The higher capacity of any brand I would say 2450 and up tend to Self-Discharge regardless of the LSD separator invented by Sanyo Eneloops. If you want long lasting cells just get normal white/blue Eneloops. Just make sure its from known store/source. Hi reputation items always get bootlegged with fakes.

[@jimhudson2108]

I also use the XTAR 1.5V cells. I have a couple of battery powered wall clocks which need a higher voltage than NiMH LSD cells (Eneloop, etc) can deliver. So, I've been burning throiugh alkaline cells until now. Very happy. One application where the Xtar cells fails is in my old Sony portable radio. The switching regulator inside each cell makes enough electromagnetic noise to interfere with the radio - particularly on AM bands (LW, MW, SW). I also use the Xtar's in my rear bike lights but I'm conscious that they will fail without warning when they're out of juice. On the whole, I'm very pleased.

[@RodgerMudd]

I have had some for a few months. One thing I have found is that standard AA ones last longer in fact many times longer. There are good for the finicky devices that want full voltage. I have a device that runs on 4 AA's will not use NIMH. But I can also take 2 lithium batteries in series and operate it. A bit over voltage but it does not seem to mind. How ever at 25 bucks for 4 of them they are pricy. As always any change of state of power has a loss. The circuit that reduces the voltage has loss. Loss equals less run time. Alkaline batteries still have a place with good shelf life. Also if power is out you can always throw a fresh set in. Energizer batteries are best for not leaking. And they say will replace device if they do leak.

[@wtfmimshag]

Interesting, it must have some sort of DC to DC regulator built in to the cell to step down to 1.5v?

[@Painless360]

I think that you're spot on. That also explains the discharge curve... Happy flying

[@tobikellner8708]

... which of course technically speaking makes this quite an inefficient solution when you use them in series (which most AA devices do). For their 3xAAA head torches, Petzl sells a lithium battery that has the same shape as 3 AAA batteries, and the relevant contacts so it can be dropped in instead of 3 AAAs, and you can charge it directly via USB. In that case, you only have/need one DC-DC converter rather than 3.

[@ts757arse]

The ones I've used start at 1.7V. This makes them unsuited to some applications just like NiMH. The problem is you find the 1.7V isn't suitable the expensive way after you put several cells in and that extra 0.2V mounts up. Always pays to check the outputs with any of these cells, I've found.

[@DaveEtchells]

@@tobikellner8708Interesting about the 3xAAA form factor, definitely more efficient than 3 separate converters. They can be pretty efficient though, with almost-zero quiescent drain and close to 90% efficiency. (I wonder though if the hypothetical 10% loss would really be additive? If it were just a straight 10% of the energy passing through it, 10% of the energy from each of three cells should be ~~ same as 10% of three cells in series. In any cases these are very interesting looking batteries!

[@BrianG61UK]

@@ts757arse Energizer Ultimate Lithium (non-rechargeable) start at 1.8V !!! But they are effective and long-lasting in some devices.

[@EgonSorensen]

I would love to know how they do long-term. Will they expand like the 'regular' Li-Ion packs, will they leak like Alkaline, how do they do temp wise and - can they catch fire/explode... Until then, I'll continue using the regular Lithium AA/AAA batteries. Yes, they're not rechargeable, but I need them for their long-time stability in low power devices (I use NiMH which also extremely rarely leaks, a 'deep' cycle once in a while them keeps them 'fresh')

[@KrotowX]

I have two dozens of them for a year already. Some coworkers have them too. Used pretty rough some times. No accidents so far. No leakages too (Li-Ion doesn't leak FTW).

[@EgonSorensen]

@@KrotowX Thanks, great to know. Li-Ion batteries can/will expand, it's just a matter of time/use - I have seen too many to count, it is a 'safety' feature (but it will ruin most devices they're inside - try take a look at old phones, especially older iPhone 4, 4S - the back glass is pooping out) What I'm concerned about is: Will these batteries also expand and since they're encased in a steel tube - hopefully they'll not explode/pop but likely they'll blow a seal gasket as the chemistry goes bad (and will they then will also leak, like alkaline - Lithium is an alkaline metal btw and the electrolyte is corrosive + the fumes 'not health enhancing' - often it smells like rotten pineapple, yuck) I guess time will tell - hopefully all users will be well ;ø)

[@BrianG61UK]

This kind of "cell" is a Li-ion cell and a DC-DC converter together in an AA or AAA size package. One small problem is a small amount of radio interference emitted by the DC-DC converter. This means I can't use them in my portable short wave radios without getting poor reception. Also they often don't hold charge quite as long as one might hope (still better than most Ni-MH or Ni-Cd though).

[@ddegn]

After reading some reviews, it seems noise isn't the only concern with these batteries. Apparently these batteries have trouble with extremely high current loads and extremely low current loads.

[@1kzrider]

Interesting info good info I mean. If I was using would be in flashlights or HT’s

[@nine7295]

low Self Discharge from Eneloop or equivalent cells do not self discharge much if at all.

[@BrianG61UK]

@@1kzrider They might be fine in a VHF/UHF HT. They're not bad in an FM broadcast receiver..

[@BrianG61UK]

@@nine7295 Yes. LSD Ni-MH are my usually my first choice unless the device doesn't work well with only 1.2V per cell.

[@Kirmo13]

You hit the key point explaining why NiMH are not the perfect replacement for Alkaline: they have different voltages! Nominal voltage is 1.2V and 1.5V respectively, and sure, that's only the nominal voltage and during the discharge cycle, the alkaline loses voltage faster than the NiMH so the voltage spread between the two diminishes as they discharge. But what if the appliance I'm using requires higher voltage? Then, as you pointed it out, it just won't work. I just think that the international standard for batteries is a little outdated and something needs to be done to modernize

[@BrianG61UK]

One can argue that if something that uses AAs stops working when the voltage drops below 1.2V that it's badly designed because it's making you throw away alkaline batteries before they are empty. However, they keep right on making things that way :-(

[@Kirmo13]

@@BrianG61UK I agree, for msot appliances tat makes sense. If the infrared light of my TV remove is 30% lower because the battery inside is lower than 1.2v, then I don't care and it should still continue to work. But for high demanding apliances, especially ones with integrated circuits, you just can't go below a certain voltage or the circuitry won't work as expected. (for example an external mic) I think the solution would be to have a custom-built battery for that specific appliance, but then you would have tons of different non-interchangable batteries, which his even worse

[@ronb6182]

I have remotes that have batteries that are at least three years old if not five you just a have to make sure the batteries don't leak. LI ON batteries are not for remotes. T the cost is not effective for such applications. 73

[@stinkycheese804]

These make sense for devices sensitive to voltage, because they were poorly engineered to use the wrong battery or # of cells such that they can't keep working until the full capacity of the cells is consumed. Outside of those cases, it is a very expensive way to power things that don't need them, and their voltage droops on high drain devices so you again run into the issue of whether that voltage droop causes the device to cease operating prematurely. Personally I like to just avoid devices that can't get the full charge out of the batteries they were designed for, and will return products due to this design flaw. Since I do that, I am fine continuing to use LSD NiMH AA and AAA, but it puzzles me how the video seems to pretend that they take longer to charge because they don't if you simply pick a suitable charger, if your priority is fast charging. However if you have LSD cells, and want to throw money at your problem anyway, then I just have spare sets of cells so I can grab an already charged set to swap into a device and then let the discharged cells charge slower, which promotes longer life as well. Don't expect these Li-Ion cells to live up to their recharge cycle rating. It is very unlikely that they will if adhering to industry standards of % capacity remaining by the time the cells reach their recharge cycle rating. At the same time this is not necessarily as important to someone as the runtime using a specific device, if they can't or don't want to replace it with something designed to use Li-Ion out of the box.

[@poneill65]

That's a pretty clever little thing actually,.... Litium Ion chemistry produces 3.7-4.2v,.. it CANNOT generate 1.5v. Therefore, this litle device MUST have 4v to 1.5v DC conversion circuitry inside it, in addition to all the "battery" stuff, and in addition to various charging, and safety electronics for short circuit and current limiting protection (Li-Ion goes boom!) Impressive that they can get those mAh capcities in such a small form factor, shared with a bunch of conversion and saftey electronics.(not surprised they're like $5 each!) Of course, If you're powering a device that uses multiple 1.5v cells, it's probably better to use a custom Li-Ion pack with one single DC-DC conversion rather than one in every 1.5v cell as each conversion has inefficiencies. (e.g 2 x AA => 1Li-Ion + 1 x 4.2v-3v BMS, 4 x AA =>2 x Li-Ion + 1 x 8.4v-6V BMS)

[@kaasmeester5903]

The multiple battery trick works nicely in several devices I own; I replaced 2x C cells with a single 18650 Li-Ion cell in a 3D printed adapter. I tried single Li-Ion C cells with a 1.5v down-converter in those devices, but that didn't work everywhere, for instance in automatic cat feeders: the conversion circuits caused too much interference and the RFID reader in the feeder wouldn't read the cats' chips anymore. Not all Li-Ion battery replacements are created equal. Some cause RF interference. I tried a few that can be charged via a USB port, and while some performed very well, other brands would slowly drain over time, probably due to the conversion circuit in them. My experience with these XTAR cells has been very good so far, even if they do require a separate special charger.

[@aminy23]

What's really impressive is multiple companies have been able to incorporate the charger inside a AAA and AA battery. They have batteries with USB ports so you can stick a USB cable in to charge them. No need for that giant proprietary charger.

[@simontillson482]

Er, not entirely true. It depends on the cathode type. 1.5V cells can be made with a titanium disulphide cathode. No voltage converter required. Not saying these use that - from the discharge curve, a converter seems very likely. No chemistry can achieve that flat of a discharge voltage.

[@KrotowX]

They have internal charger and BMS circuit, yes.

[@ronb6182]

I just bought 2 6 volt lion lantern batteries and they came with a USB charging cable. The batteries are very light. I got tired of lead acid type quit working. As for double A types I think it would be better to make a 6 volt type because most AA are in series. A three volt regulator circuit would work for two AA setups. 73

[@helidrones]

I am using those AA sized Li-Ion cells for my wireless microphones and wireless in-ear monitoring. It has been a game changer. No need to mark matching NiMH pairs, no need to fully discharge before recharging, no unreliable delta-peak detection.

[@petersplat6164]

Just the type of info video I like; straight up, and not stories to tell. I'd like to add that I had a lot of problems with alkaline batteries, especially Duracell, leaking out inside my infrequently used test equipment. I grew to hate alkaline batteries. Now I use one time use lithium batteries, and I can sleep knowing I don't have to remove batteries every time I put up my test equipment.

[@nine7295]

He said NiMH cells didn't have the right capacity. That's contrary to many reviews I have seen.

[@connecticutaggie]

Thanks for sharing. These XTAR batteries look to be a game changer. The reason you could not get AA and AAA LI-ION is not because they could not make them small. The issue was the voltage. The chemistry that original AA and AAA were based on creates 1.5V. The problem is that LI-ION chemistry produces about 3.6V - which would blow out your 1.5V based devices. So, what changed? The 1.5V LI-ION batteries have a built-in converter that can drop the voltage. There are several batteries out there that can do that but the challenge is how do you charge them? For most brands, there is a special charging connector but this adds to the cost of the battery. What XTAR has done is make a battery that can be charged using the standard power pins. They do that by charging with a higher voltage (3.5-5V) which the circuit inside the battery detects and shifts is into charging mode. Very clever.

[@Funkteon]

And XTAR are a Chinese company... It's pretty clear that the Chinese are leading the way in consumer-grade battery research...

[@etmax1]

Thanks for a clear and concise review. Obviously these need to have a buck converter built in, which means they have a much higher static discharge than a regular battery. I mostly use AA & AAA cells in multimeter and similar portable instruments as well as remote controls which means that becomes an issue. If it's not too much to ask, could you put a single cell on a long term test and see how long a cell lasts with no load?

[@TheWebstaff]

Lee these have been out for years. Really surprised this is the first time you've seen them. I hope the quality has improved as they used to have a high failure rate. Also as you mention you can tell on a normal device when they are going flat as the device battery meter can't see the true cell voltage. They do make some that drop the voltage as the lithium cells drops btw but they are even more expensive.

[@Painless360]

They passed me by :D Quality seems good, so coming to them after the tricky 'early customer testing' phase may have paid off!

[@TheWebstaff]

@@Painless360 haha maybe, you'll have to pop a note in your calendar to review them at 6 months and a year.

[@k.o.0]

Since we are all RC enthusiasts, I simply use my hobby grade charger and a 2 or 4 cell blank tray and charge that way. These li-ion batteries have overcharge protection, so instead of using Balance charging I simply set to charge to bypass the balance cable requirement. Works just fine. Been using these type batteries for 3 years now, no issues.

[@louisvillaescusa]

Where I used to work, they decided that they were spending too much for alkaline AA batteries for the theatrical headset beltpacks. So they started using nickel metal hydride and suddenly I start getting calls that the headset beltpacks aren't working correctly. Each headset takes six AA batteries, so you can see the voltage drop problem.

[@nimnool2435]

1,2v in nikel metal (lower voltage than original Aa & AAA batteries) vs 1,5v in lion xtar batteries, no memory effect, faster charging ap.2h vs 5h!

[@M0DiFiEDZ]

Been using Li-ion AA & AAA for several years, they are fabulous, they have outlasted all my NiMH cells which eventually stop holding a good charge or start leaking. The best thing you can do to make them last at least a decade and possibly a lifetime is to not let them drain all the way down, the worst thing you can do which is sometimes an immediate killer is to forget about the cell in a device that you rarely use which has a parasitic drain so even if you aren’t using it the battery drains and several months later you try to revive the cell but have severed much of its useful life which is why I’d only recommend to use them in higher drain and daily used devices that you don’t leave in your hot car either since they aren’t exactly cheap, and are a slight fire hazard when careless but when taken care of you can far exceed the usual 1,000-1,500 charges. If you like Li-Ion technology the next question you will ask yourself why you didn’t hear of these sooner is your car battery, yep, they exist, and are even cheaper than a lead acid battery at your local store, at a very small fraction of the size and weight with much more amperage and way more charge cycles.

[@paulstubbs7678]

Interesting, I'll have to try and track one down. I'm a bit disappointed with the charger though, as it's only half done, you need an existing USB charger to make it all work as opposed to just plugging it into a power outlet. Also there is the questing of how many amps the cells can deliver, can they handle high demand use like camera flash guns and toy racing cars that normally drain a cell very quickly. Then there is the other extreme, things like clocks, it'll be interesting to find out. Now to find out where to get them - not seen at my regular shopping haunts.

[@3dFirefly]

I got fed up with leaking alkaline batteries, caused hundreds of dollars of damage/lost equipment. I been using EBL Li-Ion AA & AAA for almost two years with no issues. Even had brand new Duracell batteries still in package leaked and they are not expired.

[@frankenfoamy]

Good review. I have tested several brands. All did not have the 1.1 volt warning. All did not come close to the promised capacity. I just replace them on a schedule. Will take a look at these

[@DevRonBey]

My insulin pump EATS alkaline batteries. Unfortunately, the low voltage protection circuit in a lithium battery and the discharge nature of the cell will not provide ample warning or time when the cell " turns off." This video did bring this to light, but I just wanted to post a practical example. Bravo, great video !

[@MortenVindingSvendse]

look at the picture at 5:16 Low Voltage Detection The Voltage drops to 1.1v to give you (or rather your pump) a low-battery warning.

[@trafficsau.]

i really like the idea of putting nimh to rest. sadly, all those alternatives supply a constant voltage and drop suddenly when empty. that really messes with basic battery level indicators in all kind of electronics like microphones etc. i wish they made them a bit more intelligent and simulate the discharge curve of a normal battery to make them more compatible

[@coolstuff4008]

I was using AA size protected Li-on 3.7v batteries years ago in custom e-cig mods. My first 2 megapixel digital camera from way back would eat alkaline batteries like crazy, also the Ni-cd's would not work due to the 1.25 volts. I eventually solved the problem with rechargeable AA Ni-Zn 1.5 volt batteries. They worked great in my camera. I was able to buy AAA, AA, and 9 volt sizes at the time.

[@blooskyy7]

This will be excellent for photography flashes. Always wondered why Lion wasn't available in AA/AAA sizes.

[@iwalker3809]

Its also available in 3.7 volts nominal in AA size, known as 14500 cells. Each of these Xtar's (and similar) has a built in buck converter to reduce the 3.7 volts down to 1.5 volts.

[@stinkycheese804]

Li-Ion is availabe in AA/AA sizes, called 10440 and 14500 cells. They just aren't available at typical B&M stores because they don't trust consumers to use, charge, or care for them properly.

[@iwalker3809]

@@stinkycheese804 Yes, thanks for that. I'd completely forgotten about the 10440's.

[@jamesr.9239]

Bought a dozen of these ..diffrent brand.. and I'm sold for use in devices that I use a lot. However , I find they don't last quite as long as alkaline batts and devices won't register the charge state like they do with alkaline. Much better by far than NIMH batts.

[@-MrDontCare-]

Started using Melasta 9v, and 1,5v AA Li-Ion a few years ago. The best thing about these is that they give you full power until they are drained.

[@KrotowX]

I have a bunch of these already, both AA, AAA and 9V varieties. Chargeable over USB (USB-C or MicroUSB). They are life savers because in absence of shop nearby (or at night) you can get device powered with them back on track in less than a hour if you have working phone charger, computer or power bank and USB cable with you. These cells have noticeable difference with sibling alkaline cells though. They are always full ... until they doesn't 🙂 Because of that they are not recommended for RC transmitters because you may only guess when you radio will go dark together with your quad or plane.

[@physxme]

I tried lithium AA before, one fatal fault of it is the voltage won't decrease until it's dead. So most devices can't figure out how much juice is left in it. Like an xbox controller will always show full battery until it's dead.

[@ProbeGT2]

2 amps max discharge is not what i call "high drain device compliant" I've been using EBL li-ion AA for 2 years and i love them.

[@contessa.adella]

I would have said brilliant because of the great versatility and battery protections..UNTIL I checked the price! If you want this WITH the 8 pack of batteries, you are looking at £55 quid. There are much cheaper rechargeable solutions available, not as clever, but plenty adequate..unless you don’t care about cost I suppose!

[@ralphparker]

My biggest complaint about regular batteries is their leaking when you leave them in a device and don't get back to them in a while. Are Li-ION batteries prone to leaking? Especially when you've left them unattended for long periods of time?

[@justinfielding]

Nice idea but I can't see them gaining in popularity at the current price - £50 for a pack of 8 AA's is a lot to ask.

[@piefpv3233]

These have more capacity compared to the ones I've been using. USB chargeable AA and AAA batteries. the AA have a USB-A and the AAA have a USB-C. give up a little bit of space for the charger/port. As said Lithium batteries run from 3.5-4.2v so there is a 1.5v regulator in each battery. great for flashlights, no dimming you get 1.5v until the Lithium cell is empty. Great for my remotes. Also I have a 9v version for my smoke alarm.

[@wam7484]

I've always been confused that some people think of "Lithium Ion" as a specific chemistry and others consider it a category which includes multiple chemistries such as LiPo and others. Battery University says LiPo is a subset of Lithium Ion for example. Comments?

[@Painless360]

See my videos on LI-ION. Happy flying!

[@simonbeasley989]

Interesting product! You mention NiMH shortcomings but if anyone wants good ones Ikea 1900mAh Japanese made AAs are £5 for 4 and testing side by side in two identical DAB radios they lasted slightly longer than basic Duracells that cost £2.50 and can be uses once.

[@Ni5ei]

LiIon in those sizes has been around for years. I was already using 14500 batteries 15 years ago. The difference is there's a buck converter inside these that lowers the voltage.

[@summerWTFE]

What’s the difference between XTAR L8 and XTAR LC8?

[@wanherman]

Duracell AA capacity is around 3000mah@$1ea. At this price point the breakeven point is if you get around 20 recharge cycles out of it. It sounds good so far. But on my Samsung door lock (4AA), I need to recharge every 6 months, so it will take me 10 years to breakeven... The good thing about these cells is they won't leak fluid like the Duracell does and the weight is very light. I also think that they are more susceptible to dropping due to the voltage regulator built inside.

[@kkarllwt]

I bought some thunderbolt edge aa batteries at harbor freight. $6 fot 18 bat. ( on sale ) I use them in my digital camera that eats batteries. 40 cents a battery.

[@kkarllwt]

And after the camera, they go into the flashlights and last a long time.

[@John_Ridley]

How is the shelf life? Can you charge up a set and expect them to be fully charged a year later?

[@Eratas1]

It would be awesome if voltage drops like alkaline cells. Then we can see in device how many bars left.

[@stinkycheese804]

If the voltage dropped that would remove their primary feature which is keeping voltage up near 1.5V to let sensitive devices run longer. Instead, they could still build in a charge monitor that reads direct from the cell rather than after the boost circuit, but this takes up more volume, reducing the capacity the cell can be while still fitting within the AA, let alone AAA form factor.

[@jimmybrad156]

Surprised this load doesn't just use straight lithium cells, maybe it's pretty old?

[@KGBot]

How much does the voltage ripple?

[@mobilemcsmarty1466]

woohoo! I've been waiting for 1.5V rechargeable batteries for years. put a charged 1.2V into something and half the time it doesn't work 😕 I'm looking forward to 1.5V being maintained right up to being drained. I'll believe it when I see it. I'm ordering right now 😀

[@1raceskier]

How about doing a teardown of these cells? Using the unregulated cell of this size is very intriguing for other RC applications.

[@stinkycheese804]

No it isn't, you can buy many different form factors of pouch or cylindrical Li-Ion cells already without having to buy a questionable brand and tear off the boost circuit. Did you not even realize that 10440 Li-Ion cells exist? 14500 too, but if you are going to integrate them into an RC product not set up for cylindrical cells but rather a pack wherever you can stuff it, then I would recommend getting the pouch packs instead in dimensions matching the max available space and/or the max tolerable weight. They also have higher energy density to reduce the model weight and in many cases, high current capacity for similar dimensional limitations (usually either length or width but not as often both) of cell size.

[@werner134897]

I’ve been waiting for years for this to enter the marketplace. Hasn’t trickled down yet into the mainstream suppliers/shops in my country though.

[@artesanrc]

Very interesting. At aproximately 7.50 per battery and 20 plus for the charger it's quite expensive as an initial investment. However, I imagine these will work out as more economical long term.

[@stinkycheese804]

No they don't work out more economical. It is much more economical to use NiMH. Use these when you have a device that needs the cells to hold the voltage up higher, longer. They are great for that use, but not as a cost effective replacement for quality NiMH cells and charger combo, for devices that run well off NiMH cells. It is useful to have both cell types and use each for their virtues.

[@patrickpafarnis5798]

I use for long time the lithium rechargable AA and AAA batteries with usb connection

[@BrainSlugs83]

Why not just get the USB rechargeable Li-On AA/AAA batteries? No need for a special charger, you can plug them into any USB charger, and they usually come with a USB C "squid" cable to charge four at a time from a single USB port, which is super useful.

[@jamesbutler5570]

Did you ever messure the capacity of the batteries? Had bad expirience with xtar😢

[@pennywood118]

Been looking for 1.5v Li-ion but the XTAR ones got rather bad reviews in Amazon and the price is so expensive... rather just stay with 1.2v for now

[@Painless360]

Still using these here every day and they are working great. AAA versions out soon and I am planning a follow up video... Stay tuned

[@hamshackleton]

Trying to locate a store, but the site keeps sending me to Warsaw!

[@FutureSystem738]

Interesting thanks 🙏 Uggh- you were using Duraleak Alkalines! Those damn things are the worst batteries on the planet for leaking- have ruined so much of my gear.

[@antonyelliott9831]

is there KZbin clip for the power supply quoted in this clip

[@patmcbride9853]

I use trail cameras, which typically use 8 AA cells but won't work if the voltage falls under 11.5V. regular rechargeables would not even turn the camera on.

[@jimmybrad156]

Might be able to use 4x 14500 (AA size) lifepo4 cells plus 4x dummy shorted cells (fill-ins) which will be ~13.6v full and have ~10% left when down to 12v. Assuming the trail camera takes 8 AA cells in series (which I guess it does given the 11.5v mentioned). Theoretically they should last a little longer than the lipo 1.5v cells. (4 cells * 3.2v * 0.6ah per lifepo4 cell = 30.72wh) compared to 8 cells * 3.5wh per lipo 1.5v cell = 28wh.

[@jimmybrad156]

regarding volod's comment, has/have the camera/s always been this fussy as to only use ~20% of alkaline cells?

[@patmcbride9853]

@@jimmybrad156 The camera has an external power port, so I extend the life of the AA batteries with a 12V SLA battery.

[@thirtythreeeyes8624]

I use low self discharge ni-mh and charge them in 15minutes on a duracell fast charger that has a fan. I like being able to leave it for months and know it'll work when I go to use. These are intriguing for things I use often.

[@lensherman6242]

Since these have an always-on DC-DC converter inside, the big question is what the drain is when they are sitting in a drawer. Unfortunately this was not specified. LiIon by itself has very low self discharge, but I wonder how fast the DC-DC converter drains the cell with no load.

[@maxtornogood]

I went and ordered this charger along with some batteries as a combo. Look forward to trying this out!

[@cinemaipswich4636]

The secret of rejuvenating a "dud" Li-ion battery, is to slowly raise the Voltage over time, while charging. Nice to see it on this charger.

[@Fogghorn_Legghorn]

I'm totally sold...one somebody tells me how they work with Blink Outdoor cameras

[@jimb032]

I had some of these before....they were junk. They over discharged and did not recover. Maybe I'll try again.

[@Guilefpv]

Since they're Li-ION, do you need to hand carry these batteries instead of checking them in when flying in planes?

[@koensmelt]

What about the self-discharge of these batteries? Anyone with experience? I use aa batteries in plenty in low power smart home sensors

[@Painless360]

I've only had them for 4 weeks so can't comment on the use in low draw applications over many months. LiIon is a very low self discharge technology normally but I don't know how much difference the onboard DC - DC converter to drop the output to 1.5v would affect that... If you try it, I'd be interested to know how you get on.. Best of luck

[@thirtythreeeyes8624]

I like so called LSD ni-mh they hold their charge for years. I bought a couple dozen AA and AAA from hobbyking probably 10+ years ago and they are all still good every time I need them no noticeable decrease in life even. For higher current draw or things you use often these would be good though. I also use a Duracell fast charger that charges in like 15 minutes it has a fan and the batteries still get HOT, so you'd think some would have died after 10 years the Duracell batteries that came with the charger usually only lasted 3-5 years max sometimes less.

[@Painless360]

See the pinned comment from a user who's had them longer than me.... Happy flying

[@NeilStainton]

Thanks for the interesting video. I guess that in addition to having a step down voltage converter, it probably also has a charge circuit built into it. The charger is probably just providing a constant voltage to the cells and monitoring the current. Could you confirm this please? it would allow hobbyists to charge them using simple circuits.

[@poncho6784]

Just don’t try to charge them if they are below freezing. LiON batteries can be damaged if you do that

[@MortenVindingSvendse]

nice video. I have just ordered some of the Soshine types with build in USB-C port and charger. both AA and AAA. one thing: could we please soon kill the proprietary Qualcom QC charging standard!!! just use USB PD please!!🙏

[@rjbishop12]

I've been waiting for these for a long long time! Awesome.

[@paulbuswell6566]

I've been using these AA's for a while. Really pleased with then. But the drop off is brutal....Like instant

[@absoloodle37]

How does the XTAR L8 charger compare to the BC8?

[@StevePotter]

How much current can they source? And is there a dip in current near the end that could be used to give a warning if monitoring current?

[@michaelshrader5139]

Click the manufacturers link in the video description. I found all your answers there already.

[@StevePotter]

For the 3300 mAh AA, it is 2A max continuous discharge, according to spec table. So, not for airborne motors!

[@myvidedits]

Thanks for the info Lee. I wonder would they degrade much if left at full charge for a long period of time?

[@Painless360]

Liion is very tolerant of being left with a high state of charge compared to Lipo. Maybe the onboard dc to dc converter will pull a tiny amount of current that may affect it, but I haven't seen that here. Cells charged for 4 weeks but not used are still charged...

[@myvidedits]

Just realised you can buy direct from them. Went for the 4 AA and 4 AAA. Thanks for the heads up.

[@johncarold]

Hi Lee, that's a great idea, I'm constantly buying AA batteries and throw them away when they are empty. If I can recharge them it would save me a lot of money. Thanks for the video and information about this charger and batteries.

[@jimmybrad156]

These definitely have their place, but ikea nimh's are great value and do the trick for a lot of things.

[@flashted]

2500 mah.. Not bad mah for a smaller cell. Do thev make 21700 cell size? For long range builds, nothing beats Molicel 21700 P42A 4200mAh 45A Batteries 10 for 4.65 US Ea 18650batterystore

[@FATSNAIL-FPV]

So do you just use them instead of normal AA batteries? Or do you build things to power up a FC to power up a GPS pre-flight for example? I use a vifly gps mate for my 1st wing build, but could see this as a way to build a small powerpack for numerous things?

[@Painless360]

I'm using them in my recording gear that uses AA. I'll also use them in the BNF radio kit I get from now on too... Happy flying

[@alexislechevalier1022]

How did you guessed that this video will be on purpose for me ? 😅 My NiMH cells are getting old and unreliable. It may be a good move to change them and you come with these ones. Thank you a lot. Cheers.

[@Painless360]

I was in exactly the same boat until I spotted these things. Surprised I hadn't seen more people talking about them.

[@alexislechevalier1022]

@@Painless360 I agree. Maybe a lack of communication from Xtar... 🤔

[@jlarson42]

Very good value. Great review video. I have a 4 pack of the xstar 3300mah batteries. So far the batteries and charger are working very well. I also plan on getting some more. 👍😎

[@Painless360]

Thanks for the comment, great to hear from someone else who had then and uses them. Too often expressed opinions are not based on experience. Thanks again!

[@kenspaceman3938]

Funny… AliExpress will sell a xtar l8 charger to me here in Finland. They will, however, NOT ship those small AAA nor AA li-ion cells to me. Disappointing.

[@WindjumbieFPV]

I've ditched AA/AAA a long long time ago, all my remotes and game controllers etc have rechargeable Liions.

[@jimmybrad156]

What sort do you use? Eg. 3.7v lipo or 3.2v lifepo4 or 1.5v bucked (as shown in this video)?

[@jimmybrad156]

Do you mean ditched alkaline?

[@yannisgk]

are the same as energizer lithium's???

[@codebluefpv]

Hi Lee, would these cells be ok for powered dead bolts on smart locks? I know nimh don’t really keep up very well on the current draw and I’ve had to use single use alkaline batteries.

[@Painless360]

Not sure but see the pinned comment that makes it sound promising... Best of luck

[@michaelshrader5139]

If you click the Manufacturer's link in the video description and then go to these batteries on their website, it indicates that they last 5-6 months in a powered smart deadbolt lock in their usage chart.

[@simontillson482]

You should try Eneloop LSD NiMh batteries. I have some that have been going for 15 years. No self-discharge, high current when needed, thousands of charge cycles.

[@berthogendoorn2133]

Are they dimensionaly the same as brand name alkaline, I bought some off brand AA and AAA LITHIUM rechargeable batteries and they do not fit in some of my equipment as they the diameter is to large.

[@Umski]

I like this idea a lot, BUT am very wary of those unwary of the potential differences in charging etc using them unwittingly 😬

[@murraymadness4674]

Maybe you should modify whatever you are powering with 4 AA's to use a single lithium cell? r/c transmitters are easily changed. Fully "topping off" lithium batteries reduces their lifetime compared to running them empty and recharge them once.

[@Painless360]

Everything 'Hobby' here is LI-ION or LIPO already, these are fab for things like mics and 'RTF' devices that can't be swapped easily... Happy flying!

[@LSCModels]

Are these batteries better then Eneloop's ? Are they safe to use in Transmitter ?

[@BrianG61UK]

I've not used XTAR but other similar brands (Hixon etc.) have maximum output current limits that are a little low, like 2A or 3A.

[@olafschermann1592]

Do they only work on this charger? Or will they harm in a regular smart NiMh charger?

[@Painless360]

I'm only using them with the dedicated charger here.. Best of luck

[@lloydprunier4415]

I'm thinking they might be better also because they shouldn't leak acid and destroy devices like the alkaline. Thanks for posting I will give them a try.

[@jimmybrad156]

nimh's also don't really leak, as they've got a very small amount of liquid in them compared to alkalines/carbon zincs.

[@jimmybrad156]

so much for a 'dry cell' 🙄

[@HermitHippy]

How about testing the new Sodium-ion batteries for us?

[@nosmokingnl]

Nice review. I have been using these for a year now, specialy like the small charger. I do have the feeling they don't last as long compared to NiMH when using them in a game controller. Also, what I read from other brands, if battery breaks, the voltage is suddenly 3.7v, scary. And what I also find a bit scary. Li-ion have stricter rules compared to nimh, its yet an extra fire hazard. This is holding me back replacing all my nimh eneloops with these. BTW you can only charge these in this special charger, not in a regular nimh charger, at least that's the case with mine.

[@iwalker3809]

You're right, these cells are very charger specific.

[@Sonic_Ox]

Thanks for sharing this video. I've used Li-Ion 21700 packs and 18650 cells in the drone hobby but I've never used AA or AAA Li-Ion cells. Embarrassingly, I didn't even know they exist😅. I regularly use NiMh rechargeable AA and AAA cells because I hate purchasing alkaline one use cells in remotes, flashlights etc etc. I plan to pick some of these up and give them a go. I wonder if D cells, C cells, and 9v Li-Ion cells are on the horizon. Thanks again for creating interesting, informative, and entertaining content. Happy flying amigo 🫡 🍻.

[@JustBadMeAndI]

These have one mayor drawback, self draining, that’s why you should not use them in low powered devices, for instance in a remote, this battery drains faster than the remote itself does. Typically I change remote batteries once in a year or much longer, these will drain much…Much faster. Reason is the conversion from 3.7 volts to 1.5, it uses a buck converter which always uses power, and there’s also the protection electronics, also drain the battery overtime. These are low draining currents but it will drain the battery overtime.

[@uavr1286]

Tempting, but just a bit too pricey. LSD NiMH are great for most things, I don't have many things that complain about the lower voltage. You will need to be careful not to put these li-ion cells into a normal charger I think (and that no family members do so!)

[@CrocoDylianVT]

Ni-MH batteries seem to be the most reliable ones

[@n1vca]

Great idea that really helps poluting our planet way less ... I am always feeling bad when restocking these one way batteries for a few devices that have sadly never been designed to operate on 1.2 V cells or are supposed to but just practically don't. That is a great concept, even if these cells may have less real life endurance compared to the traditionell one way cells, is so worth it👍

[@stinkycheese804]

Of all the things you could like, please don't associate Li-Ion with our planet or pollution. Li-Ion is a dirty tech that even puts children's lives in danger while mining the components.

[@Aranimda]

Are there any 1.5v rechargable Li-ion batteries that can be charged with regular NiMH battery chargers?

[@BrianG61UK]

Probably not. I haven't seen any.

[@andrewhofmann5453]

Wish we had these back in the Gameboy days......

[@jimmybrad156]

Used to use a 6v lantern battery, lasted for aaaaages ;)

[@smertrusne3156]

I did this 20+ years ago and recommend this to everyone.

[@Gosuminer]

Thank you very much for bringing this to my attention. Good thing I subscribed to the channel 🙂

[@ChrisBalmforth]

Very interesting Lee! I'll look at getting some of these.

[@ptamog]

The battery operated device designer assumes that the battery is a low noise source. This kind of batteries include a buck converter. Ripple and emissions are unavoidable. Using them with noise sensitive devices is a gamble. They can degrade the specifications in ways difficult to predict.

[@jimmybrad156]

can use 3.2v lifepo4 cell 10440 AAA / 14500 AA and a blank (shorted) AA dummy cell.

[@Bill-NM]

Neat. But I sure wish battery charger manufacturers would get away from the red/green lighting schemes - that's the most common type of color-blindness, and makes chargers that use the red/green color scheme somewhat problematic.

[@jimmybrad156]

there's prob a phone app these days to rectify that. "Colour blind interpreter app" maybe?

[@Bill-NM]

@@jimmybrad156 Thanks Jimmy. Yeah just wish that wasn't necessary - manufacturers could also use blink / non-blink to signify charging/done. I can usually find chargers that work for me, but if I want a specific charger I'm stuck.

[@jonmeyers523]

Would a cell phone charge block be ok to use ? I am not familiar with the power supply mentioned.

[@Painless360]

That is what I am using in the video - all good :D

[@jonmeyers523]

@@Painless360 thanks for the clarification 👍

[@shadeshiest22]

Do they make a 9volt?? My paintball gun eats a 9v after a long weekend of play

[@Painless360]

Link to the website is in the video description... Happy flying

[@CydFSA]

I didnt see any there but did find "Kratax USB Rechargeable 9v Lithium Batteries"

[@jimmybrad156]

You might be able to use a 7 cell (8.4v) nimh 9v battery. You can get 9v lithium batteries; question is how much current your paintball gun needs and how much the supply module inside the lithium 9v battery can provide.