R30 Icom BP-293 Battery Case for IC-R30 Evaluation

[palmerjrusa]

Thought I'd evaluate the Icom Alakaline battery case (BP-293) for the IC-R30 and battery life.
In each case the time to the IC-R30's "power down" was noted.

IC-R30 settings:

#1 Squelch = auto
Volume = 20
Display = auto/dimmer
GPS = on
Power Save = as stated
Frequency/Mode = 133.975 MHz (AM), heavy radio traffic (every few secs)

#2 Squelch = auto
Volume = 20
Display = auto/dimmer
GPS = on
Power Save = as stated
Frequency Search/Mode = 133 to 134 MHz (AM), heavy radio traffic (every few secs)

#3 Squelch = auto
Volume = 20
Display = auto/dimmer
GPS = on
Power Save = as stated
Frequency/Mode = 153.845 MHz (FM), very light radio traffic (approx. every 15 mins)

ACDelco Alkaline 3 X AA:
As #1 = 6 hours, 30 mins
As #1, (GPS off), = 8 hours, 3 mins

Amazon Basic Brand High Capacity (2,400 mAh), 3 X AA:
As #1 = 8 hours, 25 mins
As #1, (GPS off) = 10 hours, 4 mins

Powerex Pro High Capacity (2,700 mAh), 3 X AA:
As #1 = 10 hours 29 mins
As #1 (display off) = 10 hours, 55 mins
As #1 (display off, GPS off) = 12 hours 12 mins
As #1 (GPS off) = 11 hours, 39 mins

As #2 = 9 hours, 29 mins
As #2 (display off, GPS off) = 11 hours, 36 mins

As #3 (display off, GPS off) = 12 hours, 19 mins
As #3 (display off, GPS off, power save short) = 22 hours, 38 mins
As #3 (display off, GPS off, power save medium) = 27 hours, 27 mins
As #3 (display off, GPS off, power save long) = 30 hours, 37 mins
As #3 (display off, power save short) = 18 hours, 29 mins
As #3 (display off, power save medium) = 21 hours, 58 mins
As #3 (display off, power save long) = 24 hours, 45 mins

 

[bearcatrp]

Great job taking the time to do this for us R30 owners.

 

[palmerjrusa]

Great job taking the time to do this for us R30 owners.

Thanks!

One of the advantages of the BP-293 is that it makes the IC-R30 more stable since the battery case is wider than the Li-ion cell.

The IC-R30 has a very narrow form factor, making it easy to knock over.

I did buy one of those 3D printed scanner stands on ebay that also fits the IC-R30.

From the data it's obvious that the GPS function draws significant current, gonna turn that off unless I need it which I don't usually do.

 

[bearcatrp]

That’s the 1st thing I shut off when I turn the R30 on. I have my entire state P25 by county in my R30. Going to do other states when time is available. Tried to import into my R8600 but didn’t work. Have to buy the Icom software and copy/paste from the R30 software.

 

[bearcatrp]

Had to send mine in to Icom but will test out the AA battery pack when it comes back.

 

[YoShep69]

I did buy one of those 3D printed scanner stands on ebay that also fits the IC-R30.

Which one did you buy? eBay link?
Thanks

 

[palmerjrusa]

Which one did you buy? eBay link?
Thanks

This one:

Whistler TRX-1 Scanner Stand PSR800 PRO668 Non Slip Base Made In The USA | eBay

<p>*FITMENT IS WITHOUT THE RUBBER CASE* This stand holds the Whistler TRX-1, Grecom PSR800, and the Radio Shack PRO668 all without the rubber case they come in. This is great for preventing your stand from tipping over and possibly breaking. </p><p>Whistler TRX-1 Scanner Stand PSR800 PRO668. </p>

www.ebay.com

The IC-R30 fits only with the Li-Ion battery attached.

 

[YoShep69]

This one:

Whistler TRX-1 Scanner Stand PSR800 PRO668 Non Slip Base Made In The USA | eBay

<p>*FITMENT IS WITHOUT THE RUBBER CASE* This stand holds the Whistler TRX-1, Grecom PSR800, and the Radio Shack PRO668 all without the rubber case they come in. This is great for preventing your stand from tipping over and possibly breaking. </p><p>Whistler TRX-1 Scanner Stand PSR800 PRO668. </p>

www.ebay.com

The IC-R30 fits only with the Li-Ion battery attached.

Thanks

 

[mesuteknik]

Hello! Did I get right ? Did you test these times with a high capacity rechargeable battery?
I would be very happy if you add some photos.🙏
@palmerjrusa

 

[palmerjrusa]

Hello! Did I get right ? Did you test these times with a high capacity rechargeable battery?
I would be very happy if you add some photos.🙏
@palmerjrusa

Both the following are the NiMH rechargeable batteries that I evaluated and were purchased from Amazon:

Amazon Basic Brand High Capacity (2,400 mAh)
Powerex Pro High Capacity (2,700 mAh)

The only 2700mAh AAs that are accurately rated on the market are the Powerex Pro AAs.
Other manufacturers that claim a higher capacity are lying, e.g. EBL AAs supposedly rated at 2800mAh are actually only 2500mAh.

Stick with Eneloop AAs or the Powerex Pro AAs (both made in Japan).
The Amazon Basic Brand AAs are also good value. Though made in China they perform to spec.

I don't have any pics.

 

[mesuteknik]

Tamam icom için pil kutusu sipariş ettim ve bende bu pillerden çok var, sorun çıkması beni korkutuyor, firma şarj edilebilir piller için koruma olmadığını yazmış. @palmerjrusa

OK, I ordered a battery box for icom and I have a lot of these batteries, it scares me that there will be problems, the company wrote that there is no protection for rechargeable batteries.

 

[palmerjrusa]

Tamam icom için pil kutusu sipariş ettim ve bende bu pillerden çok var, sorun çıkması beni korkutuyor, firma şarj edilebilir piller için koruma olmadığını yazmış. @palmerjrusa

OK, I ordered a battery box for icom and I have a lot of these batteries, it scares me that there will be problems, the company wrote that there is no protection for rechargeable batteries.

I don't know why they warn against using rechargeables, as far as the radio is concerned it's just a power source. I've seen this warning in other radio manuals, I think they're just repeating it for some reason. I never encountered any problems in the IC-R30 or any other radio.

It's very important to charge NiMH correctly. Avoid dumb trickle chargers or chargers that claim to charge your batteries in an hour = fry your batteries in an hour.

It's worth the cost investigating in a smart charger.

The following two smart chargers are the best on the market (I own both):

Powerex Maha MH-C9000PRO Professional Charger Analyzer

Opus B-C2400 Battery Charger Analyzer.

Both are available at Amazon.