Customer Reviews
Buy these locally and save on shipping November 28, 2008
Ray F. Mihulka III (Omaha, Ne.)
These are supposed to be great batteries but shipping is ridiculous.
I can't justify the crazy rates.
Not a very good value February 27, 2007
NLee the Engineer (Nashua, NH)
13 out of 13 found this review helpful
This package includes two new Rayovac "Hybrid" rechargeable NiMH AA cells, plus a simple charger. Similar to the Sanyo "eneloop", the Hybrid is also advertised to have low self-discharge rate, but not as low as that for eneloop. The eneloop is supposed to retain 85% charge in 12 months (when stored at 20 degree C), whereas the Hybrid is supposed to retain 80% charge in 6 months (no mention of temperature).
On the other hand, the capacity for the Hybrid is rated at 2100mAh, which is slightly higher than that for the eneloop (2000mAh). I have tested both brands and can confirm that both ratings are accurate. In actual applications, the difference in performances between Hybrid and eneloop cells is probably negligible. So it all comes down to price. Unfortuantely, this Hybrid package offered here is just not a good value compared to similar eneloop packages.
The charger included here is a timer-based dumb charger. It forces you to charge cells in pairs (either 2 or 4), and it does not know whether the cells are fully charged. It simply charges at around 350mA for 8 hours and turns off (obviously it was designed for 2500-2700mAh batteries, because 350mA*8hr=2800mAh). In contrast, the chargers included in eneloop packages are "smart", in the sense that they charge cells individually, and stop whenever each cell is full.
Unless prices for the Rayovac Hybrid batteries come down significantly, I'll say stay with the Sanyo eneloop. [...]
[update on Nov 29, 2007]
The price of this item has came down significantly since I first wrote the above review. So it should be considered a much better value right now.
|
