Almost 50 comments last time this was for sale!

Same price on the previous offering

I don't care about the batteries that are included, but having ordered this charger (and battery set) last time - I am quite fond of the charger so far. And it's been doing a nice job on my NiMH batteries - much better a job than my old in-pairs-only charger.

So far, I'm enjoying this charger and the batteries. The charger gives you a per-battery charge status.

HOWEVER, if you buy this, do realize that these batteries are "rechargeable alkaline" and not nimh batteries! But the charger charges them AND nimh batteries just fine.

Bought two sets last woot, and I have to say these batteries are working great with all my remotes and players. NIMH batts kept losing charge in all of my helicopter/quadcopter 6ch radios very quickly. I've used these every day for about 2 hours a day in them and the LCD still shows 6.3v! My new NIMH's would have flashed a low voltage alert at 4v way before then.

I also find that this charger works MUCH better at giving my NIMH batteries an actual full charge, whereas my exsisting expensive charger stops charging them prematurely.

Great products here and highly recommend the batteries for low discharge devices, as well as the charger for your NIMH's. I would NOT recommend these for high discharge devices such as digital cameras, as these were not designed for them. Also, do not plan on purchasing these for use in solar rechargeable devices (outdoor solar lights etc) as these batteries MUST be charged using this charger (Alkaline compatible charger) and those solar rechargeable products are designed to be used with NIMH.

So as long as you understand their recommended uses, you will be very happy with them. Will also make a good present for your techie geek!

Enjoy!

@Stevedog1,
Thanks for the detailed basic education. I have several solar lights on a boat dock & the batteries need to be replaced & your info prevented a mistake.

stevedog1 wrote:Bought two sets last woot, and I have to say these batteries are working great with all my remotes and players. NIMH batts kept losing charge in all of my helicopter/quadcopter 6ch radios very quickly. I've used these every day for about 2 hours a day in them and the LCD still shows 6.3v! My new NIMH's would have flashed a low voltage alert at 4v way before then.

I also find that this charger works MUCH better at giving my NIMH batteries an actual full charge, whereas my exsisting expensive charger stops charging them prematurely.

Great products here and highly recommend the batteries for low discharge devices, as well as the charger for your NIMH's. I would NOT recommend these for high discharge devices such as digital cameras, as these were not designed for them. Also, do not plan on purchasing these for use in solar rechargeable devices (outdoor solar lights etc) as these batteries MUST be charged using this charger (Alkaline compatible charger) and those solar rechargeable products are designed to be used with NIMH.

So as long as you understand their recommended uses, you will be very happy with them. Will also make a good present for your techie geek!

Enjoy!

Wouldn't you just be better off swapping out the solar batteries that are cheap and come with the lights with something else that can work in your charger?

Just be aware that, each time they are charged, they PERMANENTLY lose a fair percentage of their capacity (5%??) which mounts up until they are useless.

This stuff was marketed more then ten years ago by the "big brands" and failed in the market.

I would never buy rechargable batteries where the seller lists the dimensions(!) of a standard AA battery in the specs but not the mAHour rating just to satisfy some green guilt that I am supposed to have. Maybe that rating is in there but I don't see it. I've got to admit that it would be more fun slingshotting those batteries into the woods when they were dead if they did have that recycle green symbol on them though.

I was interested in the charger itself but it doesn't sound like it would be as good as the previously mentioned "smart" chargers?

I believe the two most recommended were the Maha and the LaCrosse. I was hoping that one of those would go on sale on Amazon or Woot or somewhere. I have a bunch or recyclable batteries I had previously purchased on Woot.

ddonw wrote:I would never buy rechargable batteries where the seller lists the dimensions(!) of a standard AA battery in the specs but not the mAHour rating just to satisfy some green guilt that I am supposed to have. Maybe that rating is in there but I don't see it. I've got to admit that it would be more fun slingshotting those batteries into the woods when they were dead if they did have that recycle green symbol on them though.

Yeah, the DIMENSIONS of the batteries and even in Metric like AA and AAA don't define them. SO, then What Is the CAPACITY? A miserable 400 mAh or something greak like 2800 mAh? NO MORE secrets, plz.

How are these batteries for running a external camera flash?

Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad! Did I menttion BAD?!?? I like the included charger, although the cover is flimsy and comes off easily. BUT, the batteries are HORRIBLE. I initially thought "Wow, what a savings" Then I put them in my wireless headphones (after charging them overnight). Not only did they barely light the led indicator, they couldnt even supply enough juice to play audio. At first I thought the AAAs weren't charged properly so I swapped the set out. Same thing happened. Next I tried to let my Sennheiser cradle charge them overnight. STILL NO-GO. Not only that, but after a night of charging in the cradle, my cradle and headphones (where the batteries are located) were covered in a WHITE... something (corrosion?). Just to make sure my headphones werent the issue, I put in a pair of normal AAA alkalines (energizer), and the headphones worked fine! Im afraid to put these batteries in anything else for fear that they'll ruin it. A waste of my money.

ddonw wrote:I would never buy rechargable batteries where the seller lists the dimensions(!) of a standard AA battery in the specs but not the mAHour rating just to satisfy some green guilt that I am supposed to have. Maybe that rating is in there but I don't see it. I've got to admit that it would be more fun slingshotting those batteries into the woods when they were dead if they did have that recycle green symbol on them though.

I've received this before. AA is 2000 mA @ 1.5v and AAA is 800 mA @ 1.5v.
Not top of the line, but equivalent of 2500 mA @ 1.2v.

I've said it before, but please note: DO NOT CHARGE IGO BATTERIES IN NON-IGO CHARGERS. It will ruin the batteries. I don't know why.

These batteries have worked really well for me as long as I only charge them in the included charger. I tried charging a pair with another charger, and they barely charged, and then wouldn't ever regain their charge from any charger.

But otherwise they're awesome.

I have bought a bunch of these from Woot but did not need to make much use of them right away (just thought the deals were good). Then came hurricane Sandy, and we lost power for a week. I found these batteries unreliable. Some worked well and powered LED lamps just as well as some disposables I had; others lost their charges too quickly; others seemed to have no juice at all. The charger seemed to charge the good-working batteries fine, but not the others (so I think it was a battery problem and not a charger problem, as other comments on here seem to echo). I also got leakage from a couple. Since I have the chargers now, I will not be buying this deal again. Let's see some NiMH batteries on here!

You can regularly find deals on eneloops at amazon and Costco similar to or better than this. I can't see the value. Maybe someone can educate me. I love my eneloops. Especially in my camera flashes where they half the recycle time.

Can anyone correct or educate me as to why this is a better deal or worth getting compared to the eneloops.?

Cheers

tphili17 wrote:I've received this before. AA is 2000 mA @ 1.5v and AAA is 800 mA @ 1.5v.
Not top of the line, but equivalent of 2500 mA @ 1.2v.

Not really, since the voltage of NiMH batteries stays constant while the voltage of alkaline batteries starts dropping as soon as you start using them.

Just say NO to these batteries.

They come up on woot all the time and they're no good. I have about a dozen of these and they do not produce much power nor do they hold a charge for very long.

Even fully charged about half the things I put them in treat them like they're dead, and the half that can get power from them usually only lasts a few days then the batteries have to be recharged.

I even bought a fancy charger for them, no luck. These batteries just suck, that's all.

Dekortage wrote:I've said it before, but please note: DO NOT CHARGE IGO BATTERIES IN NON-IGO CHARGERS. It will ruin the batteries.

That doesn't leave much hope then, because I used the supplied IGO charger (which is itself a piece of garbage) for months with these and they still didn't have enough charge to run most items, and even when they did run things they only lasted a few days... if I was lucky. I was honestly starting to think something was wrong with the charger so I tried a fancy charger... same results: Cr@ppy power output and they only last a couple of days... if you're lucky.

The charger is irrelevant because the batteries are garbage even when they're brand new, and regardless of how they're charged. I know. I've tried.

Bought about a month ago, and so far so good. Really like the charger, the batteries do their job adequately.

dkeltz wrote:Bought about a month ago, and so far so good. Really like the charger, the batteries do their job adequately.

What are you using them in? Would like some more info, given all the negative reviews and ever-present possibility of shill reviews. Honestly interested, not accusing.

I bought this last month and use four of the AAs when I want to take four pictures on my digital camera before plugging the batteries back in to be recharged.

I bought these several months ago and am using them in some battery-powered motion-sensor lights that I put in a long hallway in my home. Not sure why others are having problems, but the charge lasts a good long time, and the batteries are proving to be a good value already, compared to normal alkaline batteries, particularly at the price offered on woot!. I only use the AAs, and even if I were to say that the $19.95 was for just the 12 AA batteries and the charger, I would only have to use each battery for a few cycles before they became a better value than disposable batteries.

3Crows wrote: I tried to let my Sennheiser cradle charge them overnight. STILL NO-GO. Not only that, but after a night of charging in the cradle, my cradle and headphones (where the batteries are located) were covered in a WHITE... something (corrosion?).

Your sennheiser charger broke the batteries. It blatantly says in the instructions do not use in other chargers.
Other rechargables (NiCD,NiMH ...) operate at 1.2V per cell, these operate at about 1.6V. Putting them into a 1.2V charger will cause problems - you found that out the hard way by ignoring the instructions.
I hope your kit wasn't damaged.

Anyway, these batteries work well in most places - but not in any kit that charges itself!

I have about 30 of them.

Also, the losing 5% capacity per charge comment someone made is bogus. That is how much residual charge they lose per year (maybe a month, I forget) when left on the shelf.

The charger door coming off. The first thing I did was pull it off an throw it away anyway, beats me why it is there in the first place..

This is a good buy people!

clevelandquahog wrote:I bought this last month and use four of the AAs when I want to take four pictures on my digital camera before plugging the batteries back in to be recharged.

Sounds familiar :-) I like to use mine in my Wii remotes so that I can't play for more than 30 minutes at a time without taking a break to remove the batteries and recharge them.

Seriously people, even if every review here is correct it just means that these batteries are horrifically inconsistent in quality, with some people getting ones that work and others not. I am on the NOT end obviously.

clevelandquahog wrote:I bought this last month and use four of the AAs when I want to take four pictures on my digital camera before plugging the batteries back in to be recharged.

Quality post!

I bought the earlier deal of four batteries and a four-position charger and have enjoyed both the batteries and the charger.

My experience with rechargeable AA batteries has taught me that there are good and bad batteries and no way to tell them apart short of using them. I've bought several brands and have not been able to find any consistency. I am still using some of the first batteries I bought, and I have thrown several away. Most of the bad ones do fine for a few charges, then quickly degrade. Others start leaking voltage on the shelf quickly, requiring them to be recharged after only a week or so. The good ones are solid.

The four that I have of the iGo brand have held up well so far and the charger does a good job of charging the other brands I've tried in it (Energizer and Duracell).

I mostly use the batteries in electronics that eat through batteries quickly, including wireless keyboards, game controllers, and to a lesser extent, wireless mice, but as I find the good batteries, I use them in low-drain devices as well, like flashlights and my electric toothbrush.

Since I bought another Woot, I'll bite on this set this time, even though I don't need the AAAs.

radi0j0hn wrote:Just be aware that, each time they are charged, they PERMANENTLY lose a fair percentage of their capacity (5%??) which mounts up until they are useless.

This stuff was marketed more then ten years ago by the "big brands" and failed in the market.

I'd be interested in seeing where you heard about the 5% statement. I've not had the same experience consistently.

You are right that a similar technology was tried a while ago, but the tech didn't fail, the consumers did. Rechargeable alkalines were phased off the market when the battery companies saw a huge rate of "defect" returns coming from users recharging them in the then-common NiCd rechargers, which charge completely differently (with very little regulation) than rechargeable alkalines or NiMH.

At the time, I used both kinds of rechargeables for different uses and their different characteristics. I did mix up the chargers once. Only once.

olamoree wrote:Yeah, the DIMENSIONS of the batteries and even in Metric like AA and AAA don't define them. SO, then What Is the CAPACITY? A miserable 400 mAh or something greak like 2800 mAh? NO MORE secrets, plz.

Please read my earlier post about the decreasing capacity after each charge cycle.

Wookee wrote:I'd be interested in seeing where you heard about the 5% statement. I've not had the same experience consistently.

You are right that a similar technology was tried a while ago, but the tech didn't fail, the consumers did. Rechargeable alkalines were phased off the market when the battery companies saw a huge rate of "defect" returns coming from users recharging them in the then-common NiCd rechargers, which charge completely differently (with very little regulation) than rechargeable alkalines or NiMH.

At the time, I used both kinds of rechargeables for different uses and their different characteristics. I did mix up the chargers once. Only once.

That (user stupidity) could certainly be one reason for the marketing failure. But my figures are from memory and based on the info from the PR company that sent me a set for review. It was years ago, and the exact amount of capacity loss may be wrong. But the fact is that NiMh came on strong and this tech was relegated to the dustbin. Why it is back now is a mystery to me.

thesilverring wrote:Your sennheiser charger broke the batteries. It blatantly says in the instructions do not use in other chargers.
Other rechargables (NiCD,NiMH ...) operate at 1.2V per cell, these operate at about 1.6V. Putting them into a 1.2V charger will cause problems - you found that out the hard way by ignoring the instructions.
I hope your kit wasn't damaged.

Anyway, these batteries work well in most places - but not in any kit that charges itself!

I have about 30 of them.

Also, the losing 5% capacity per charge comment someone made is bogus. That is how much residual charge they lose per year (maybe a month, I forget) when left on the shelf.

The charger door coming off. The first thing I did was pull it off an throw it away anyway, beats me why it is there in the first place..

This is a good buy people!

My comment was not bogus. It was based on the press release from the PR company at the time I reviewed them nationally on radio. I could be wrong on the 5%, it might be 3%, but it still remains that after about 25 charges, they hold so little power they are useless. That is ONE reason why they were dropped by major name brands; they are just not that good. Ever see any in stores? No. There is a reason.

radi0j0hn wrote:My comment was not bogus. It was based on the press release from the PR company at the time I reviewed them nationally on radio. I could be wrong on the 5%, it might be 3%, but it still remains that after about 25 charges, they hold so little power they are useless. That is ONE reason why they were dropped by major name brands; they are just not that good. Ever see any in stores? No. There is a reason.

If they only work twice, they're cheaper than regular batteries.

I got the AA package a while back and was quite pleased with the quality of the charger and batteries, and the ease of use. I put 4 of them in a blood pressure cuff, and it kept it powered up quite a while on one charge.

casey00001 wrote:Wouldn't you just be better off swapping out the solar batteries that are cheap and come with the lights with something else that can work in your charger?

You can use any rechargeable NIMH in the solar lights, but that was not my point, I was just making it clear NOT to try and use these rechargeable Alkaline's in the solar lights because they will leak when the solar lights try and charge the Alkaline's during the day. The whole point of the solar lights is that they charge the batteries during the day by sunlight so that the lights work at night (free solar electricity), so it would defeat the purpose of being solar if your taking them out and charging them inside thhalo use to charge on your charger, as your suggesting.

ddonw wrote:I would never buy rechargable batteries where the seller lists the dimensions(!) of a standard AA battery in the specs but not the mAHour rating just to satisfy some green guilt that I am supposed to have. Maybe that rating is in there but I don't see it. I've got to admit that it would be more fun slingshotting those batteries into the woods when they were dead if they did have that recycle green symbol on them though.

They are 2000mah. Pretty standard for AA and 800mah for the AAA, also standard for Alkaline.

3Crows wrote:Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad! Did I menttion BAD?!?? I like the included charger, although the cover is flimsy and comes off easily. BUT, the batteries are HORRIBLE. I initially thought "Wow, what a savings" Then I put them in my wireless headphones (after charging them overnight). Not only did they barely light the led indicator, they couldnt even supply enough juice to play audio. At first I thought the AAAs weren't charged properly so I swapped the set out. Same thing happened. Next I tried to let my Sennheiser cradle charge them overnight. STILL NO-GO. Not only that, but after a night of charging in the cradle, my cradle and headphones (where the batteries are located) were covered in a WHITE... something (corrosion?). Just to make sure my headphones werent the issue, I put in a pair of normal AAA alkalines (energizer), and the headphones worked fine! Im afraid to put these batteries in anything else for fear that they'll ruin it. A waste of my money.

Wow, Did you care read the instructions at all? Rechargeable Alkaline's come PRECHARGED and it specifically states not to charge them as it will damage them since they are already fully charged.

It also states that you MUST charge the batteries (after their first use) in the included charger ONLY. The white stuff is battery damage because your cradle is NOT capable of charging Alkaline batteries. Your lucky that stupid stunt didn't cause the batteries to explode and hurt someone or set your house on fire. And you shouldn't leave stupid reviews when you clearly don't know what your doing to begin with.

Your review should be called, "What NOT to do with rechargeable Alkaline batteries!"......smh

h00ligan wrote:You can regularly find deals on eneloops at amazon and Costco similar to or better than this. I can't see the value. Maybe someone can educate me. I love my eneloops. Especially in my camera flashes where they half the recycle time.

Can anyone correct or educate me as to why this is a better deal or worth getting compared to the eneloops.?

Cheers

Please let us know where you can buy 12 Eneloops with an 8-cell charger for $20??

molex wrote:Sounds familiar :-) I like to use mine in my Wii remotes so that I can't play for more than 30 minutes at a time without taking a break to remove the batteries and recharge them.

Seriously people, even if every review here is correct it just means that these batteries are horrifically inconsistent in quality, with some people getting ones that work and others not. I am on the NOT end obviously.

No, it means that people cannot read instructions AND are using Alkalines in high drain devices. Any high drain device (like digital cameras, wii remotes with built in vibrating motors) will not work very long with Alkalines.

Buyers that use them correctly are happy, everyone else isn't. You can't charge them in another charger and expect them to charge, and remain un-damaged. You can't charge them for the first time without first draining them because they already come pre charged (even if you didn't read the manual, it states it right on the package).

It all comes down to improper use, and users assuming they know everything and that it should just work despite damaging them, charging them in a different charger, or using them in solar lights....etc.

God help us all...