12 pack of 1000mAh (the highest that's real) AAA rechargeable batteries for a tenner INSTORE in Maplin

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=46414

The highest that's real? What does that mean?

If you look on Ebay you will see AAA batteries claiming to be 1300 or higher.

LED Shoppe I think was selling some "1600 mAh AAA" - and others you see that could actually be typos for AA rather than AAA batteries.

Ones in mainstream UK shops tend to actually be what is claimed (although Maplin have a big yellow car battery booster that is nowhere near the Ah it claims).

Anyway - that aside - these will save you a fortune over normal non rechargeables - and also save about a bag of sugar size of little AAA chemical bullets from entering landfills.

Yeah, I don't get that either. So my 2400 etc, are just faking it, even though they last longer - mind you, I'm talking AA here, not AAA, which I don't use.

Shame it's not other battery sizes, I'd have great use for them.

Yes - even car batteries are restricted to 1000mAh

I can think of something else you dont use!

2800mAh is about highest that seems real for AA

I only tend to use cheap C and D cells - but more expensive Cs can reach about 7Ah and D cells can go over 10Ah.

My car battery is a Bosch 1AN - which I think is 100Ah.

Again, regardless of the price, the Eneloop/Hybrio/Instant type are the way to go, I don't buy the standard type any more as invariably they are flat when you want them, or when you have left gear unused for a week or two - in a short time they will be less charged than the nominally lower rated "new technology" type.

For £2.76 more than this I can get 12 AAA from Vapextech, ( http://www.vapextech.co.uk/acatalog/...Batteries.html the green ones! ) rated at only 800mah, but in practice for all but the rarest situations will be FAR more use than these.

Yep.. i echo that.
The regular Nimh batteries i use are always flat thorugh self-discharging rather than through being used. It is especially relevant for AAA batteries as these are generally used in low drain devices that should last a while between battery changes.

Most kids toys will run flat in a day never mind a week.

Most bike lights will run flat in about a week at most if used to commute or used often (even using flashing ones during the day is a good bet).

So if you run these on the "ready charged" type - then the traditional ones with 25% more capacity will last 25% longer. Additionally, as the traditional ones normally take 1000 charges - and the "ready charged" ones normally take 500 charges - then you WONT get FAR MORE USE.

Used in the above applications - you would get 40% the life span of traditional rechargables.

Also - if your batteries are "invariably flat" when you want them - have you thought about charging them a few days prior to using them rather than the couple of months it would take for there to actually be a problem?



Complete tosh!

Are you saying bike lights, PMRs, battery extenders, and kids toys don't run on AAA (most of which would last between a few hours and a week of use).

How far in advance are you charging batteries for them to be flat when it comes to using them?

Fair enough - hybrios are good for clocks, calculators, wireless keyboards, scales, remote controls, door bells etc - but used in faster draining applications - you will use 2.5 hybrios for every tradtional rechargeable - and they will only last 80% as long on each charge.

You look at it any way you want, I can dream up a million more theoretical situations where they are better too, but life is not a theory. In practice, and in day to day use by most ordinary people, "New Technology" NiMH batteries simply mean you charge them when you change them when they go flat, and when you come back to them, they are still perfectly useable.

Standard type, as you mention, you need to charge BEFORE you use them. Handy when the lights go out and you are looking for a working torch at 11pm, NOT!

I am definitely not in a minority as most people get fed up with that sort of thing very quick, and like them, it means I always DID have to keep disposables hanging around despite having a drawer full of rechargeable batteries - now I don't!

For someone that say, uses a set or more a day and recharges them every night to use the following day, then you wouldn't notice the difference, and you will find you do get a bit more out of the higher rating. That applies to a tiny proportion of users. Fine, buy the standard type if that's you..

Now, which is just like using disposables, and which is a pain in the backside to the run-of-the-mill battery user? When you climb up and fit one in a wall clock which one will last only a few weeks, and which will last many months? Which are people going to find handy and which are people going to forget about and leave in a drawer, just like they do now even though they DO own rechargeables and end up regularly buying disposables when they are at the supermarket so end up wasting a fortune?

THAT is why the "new technology" batteries are a complete revelation, and that's why they are a potential BIG money saver, especitally as the "return" for the small investment comes so soon, maybe after two or three uses!

In practice the hybrios have shorter life spans and take a lesser charge. Its pretty difficult to claim the 2000mAh will need to be charged less often than a 2700mAh (or 800 and 1000 for AAA).

If you are charging batteries every day or week (like most people who use them often will be doing) then they will not be flat when you go to get them.

If you are using them as much as you claim - then why are you leaving them for months without using them?

As I said before - complete tosh!

Yeah, only one thing is certain about this, there is no shortage of utter tosh around here

Who was talking about shorter life spans, and who said they need to be charged less often, although now you mention it, they certainly DO need less often charging if not in constant use? Who, (apart from someone perhaps such as a professional photographer?) charges batteries every day? Who needs to use fresh batteries EVERY DAY, for that matter when did we start talking about ONLY people who use batteries every day? The whole point of the New Technology batteries is for people who use batteries intermittently or erratically, as in almost everyone! Where is this planet you inhabit, where everyone charges their batteries every day?

I surrender to you apparent experience of people.

Here I was, living in my suburban bliss, under the impression that folks did some things just like I USED to do: You know the sort of thing? The remote control on the TV goes duff, or Granny, the Cat or the youngest kid does something cute that warrants a picture which needs to be kept for posterity. So, a quick rush to the drawer to find no disposables as I forgot to buy them, and the rechargeables I have are sitting very nearly dead as they haven't been charged for a few weeks. Will it charge up the flash.... yes, just about..... click, flash & that's it dead

That wasn't much use, but the alternatives are easy - scratch around for a gadget that has 4 live batteries...... no good, I can only find one with two; so I go out in the rain to the 24 hour garage to find they charge about 4 quid for 4 of some Chinese crap brand (marked "Super Ultra Premium Power" of course) that will probably leak all over in a few weeks.

So, I must be so different from everyone else - in reality, it seems that all the families out there come home, line up and dig out their batteries, and queue them up for their daily charge before so much as slipping the shoes off, or having a cup of coffee!

Yeah, sure

So, folks - buy these, just remember to buy a BIG pile of disposables too, remember you are going to need them - often; and probably, within a short time you will do what many people who try out rechargeables do, forget about them altogether and use ultra-expensive disposables all the time

zzzzzzzzzzzz

Kettle, meet Pot...... Pot, meet kettle

New technology hybrids are the way forward for me, very useful for stuff like xBox controllers where it takes a couple of weeks - sometimes a month to get through the ones you are using and when they run out mid game my Eneloops that were charged over a month ago in the drawer are pre-charged ready to go, you can't really have the foresight or planning to have some normal Ni-Mh cells ready when the controller dies.

Another note for folks using rechargeable batteries is to steer clear of fast chargers, or chargers that charge at a higher amp hour rating (ah) than the batteries you are charging. Have a look on the back of the charger and it will tell you what rate it charges at, it will be anything from probably around 600mAh to 2800mAh or 0.6ah or 2.8ah respectively - same ratings just one is milliamp hours and the other amp hours. If you charge a set of batteries that have a capacity of 2000mAh with a 2800mAh charger (typical fast charger output) you will note they get extremely hot and this does the cells no good at all and severely shortens the lifespan of them. You should charge 2000mAh cells at the most the same charge rate as the capacity and preferably lower, the batteries will last much longer and hold more juice.

Again this brings me back to the argument for using hybrid rechargeable batteries, I charge my 2500mah eneloops at 800Mah so they are not overheating and get a good full charge and thus take around 4 hours to charge which is not a problem seen as I know they will be ready 3 months down the line or more! But if you are using standard Ni-Mi's you may need them quick (dead xBox remote) and get out the fast charger because they are near dead after been stored for a few weeks, you still have to wait and hour, they cook and thus have a much shorter usable life than an Eneloop or hybrid Ni-Mh and you only end up having to shell out for new cells every 6 months to a year, its false economy in my eyes.