Which rechargeable AA batteries for Speedlights?

Mar 25, 2011
16,848
1,835
CSD said:
Most of my batteries are now Eneloop Pro's over Eneloop, not much different but the Pro's get less hot from high demand usage and also feature a bit more power over the standard batteries from memory.

I haven't tried the more powerful ones because they are enought larger that they literally will not fit in many electronic items that were designed for a standard battery dimension. I have plenty of the standard eneloops, I love them. I have so many that I purchased a expensive charger which measures capacity so I could toss any which were losing capacity. Surprisingly, even 6 or 7 year old ones still take a full charge. Other rechargables I had took half a charge or less after a year or two.

I'm glad to hear they fit in the Canon flash.
 
Upvote 0

Maximilian

The dark side - I've been there
CR Pro
Nov 7, 2013
5,665
8,492
Germany
Mt Spokane Photography said:
...
Surprisingly, even 6 or 7 year old ones still take a full charge. Other rechargables I had took half a charge or less after a year or two.
Yes! I can confirm that, too.

The (standard) Eneloops in the beginning had the exactly same charging current and the same capacity, meaning their internal chemistry is so close to each other (having low tolerances) that internal resistance and therefore the charging current are so similar.
Even after two or more years the currents are differing by just a few milli Amps. That's fascinating.
I've never seen that before with any other brand.
 
Upvote 0
I have a LaCrosse BC-700 charger. It makes me happy every time I use it. I might possibly be a geek, though. I guess it's expensive for a charger, but it's less expensive than a nice UV filter and negligible compared to most other camera gear.

I use Eneloop batteries, sometimes Pro and sometimes regular. I can only agree with what others have already said about them.

Steve
 
Upvote 0
I have the Technoline BC1000 charger and about 30 Eneloop Pro rechargeable batteries and was wondering what setting would be best to charge at?

I'm never usually in a rush to charge them so would be looking for the best setting for optimum power retention and battery longevity.

I see choices for 200mA, 500mA, 700mA and 1000mA when charging 4 batteries and also for 1500mA and 1800mA if charging only two batteries.

I think I know the answer to this even before I asked as the lowest rating will probably be optimum when time is not a priority but thought I'd ask the question and see what you Eneloop experts recommend.

There are four modes of operation according to the manual, Charge, Charge/Test, Discharge & Discharge/Refresh

As the batteries are brand new & unused which mode should I use the first time around?

And when they are in use which mode then or should I alternate the process?

The intended use will be in Canons Speedlite system including 600EX-RT, ST-E3-RT, MR14-EX II along with some battery operated candles and a couple of soap dispensers that chew through batteries like they are going out of fashion! :)

Thanks & kind regards,
-=Glyn=-
 
Upvote 0
Charger Technoline (LaCross in USA)

Batteries Eneloop & Eneloop Pro. The plain vanilla Eneloops have many more recharge cycles, the Pros hold about 20% more capacity.

There are some alternative to Eneloops though. On the following link, someone tested a boat load and posted the results, BUT recharge cycles are another thing entirely.

http://lygte-info.dk/review/batteries2012/CommonAAcomparator.php

Regarding Eneloops.. there are fakes around, DO check up on your source, some are cheap for a reason.

I power my Yongnuo 600s from eneloops and they just work for ever on them.
 
Upvote 0
GlynH said:
I'm never usually in a rush to charge them so would be looking for the best setting for optimum power retention and battery longevity.

I see choices for 200mA, 500mA, 700mA and 1000mA when charging 4 batteries and also for 1500mA and 1800mA if charging only two batteries.

I think I know the answer to this even before I asked as the lowest rating will probably be optimum when time is not a priority but thought I'd ask the question and see what you Eneloop experts recommend.

Always aim for a 4hour recharge time. Faster = bad for the battery, slower = charger can miss the "end-of-charge rate-of-change of charge-voltage" and end up overcharging them (bad for the battery)
 
Upvote 0
eli452 said:
I'm using the La Crosse Technology BC1000 and the only fault I find in it is that if the battery (eneloops...) is drained the charger will not recognize it. I need to charge it in a simpler charger for 10 min, or so, and then move to the BC1000. Anyone else sees this?

yes

or you can briefly short a good battery across the terminals of the "dead" battery (+ to +, - to -) which will give the cell a small charge and get it recognised.. the good battery will have about 1.3V on it, the chargers put between 1.3 & 1.5 volts onto the battery, so it's at the safe end.. you won't start a fire or kill the battery or anything.

The charger just wants to see a bit more than some low voltage to "prove" there's a battery present.
 
Upvote 0
Nov 1, 2012
1,549
269
rfdesigner said:
eli452 said:
I'm using the La Crosse Technology BC1000 and the only fault I find in it is that if the battery (eneloops...) is drained the charger will not recognize it. I need to charge it in a simpler charger for 10 min, or so, and then move to the BC1000. Anyone else sees this?

yes

or you can briefly short a good battery across the terminals of the "dead" battery (+ to +, - to -) which will give the cell a small charge and get it recognised.. the good battery will have about 1.3V on it, the chargers put between 1.3 & 1.5 volts onto the battery, so it's at the safe end.. you won't start a fire or kill the battery or anything.

The charger just wants to see a bit more than some low voltage to "prove" there's a battery present.

Exactly same for me too, just jump it with another battery for ~5-10 seconds.
 
Upvote 0

pwp

Oct 25, 2010
2,530
24
A clone of this thread seems to pop up once or twice a year. But it remains a valuable question. Which AA's?

Over time I've had equally strong performance from Eneloop Pro's and MAHA Powerex. They all get charged in a smart MAHA MH-C801D 8 cell charger. By strong performance I mean decent life from full charge while on a job and also longevity which is measured in years. Honestly I can't split the two. When I get new AA's, I write the month and year on the cell with a Sharpie.

For extended projects or ones where very rapid recycling is a priority, I hook up to an external power source as well. I used to run with expensive, utterly reliable Quantum Turbo T3 batteries but have switched to the remarkably good Godox Propac PB-960's that came with my pair of Godox Witstro AB360 flashes. A $10 cable connects the pack to your Canon Speedlight. It's light, has a belt clip, two power outlets and probably exceeds the performance of the Quantum Turbo T3.

-pw
 
Upvote 0