k2ns
Member
I recently got a Uniden BCD396T scanner. As you know, it came with its own charger and 3 NIMH GP Industrial 2250 Mah batteries. I recently got a charger/battery combo on Ebay, so I could recharge one set of batteries while the other set is powering the scanner. It's a Chinese made charger and it came with twelve BTY brand 2500 Mah NIMH AA cells. I figured that I would have about 4 sets ready to go while 1 set was in use.
It's not working out. The charger outputs a charge of 160 milliamps, so I have been letting it charge a set for 18-20 hours. The charger does not have any kind of charge indicator other than 2 red leds to tell you that power is applied. I figured that 18-20 hours would be fine, but I am only getting 1-2 hours out of a set of those BTY cells. I put the original GP cells in the charger yesterday, and let them charge for 20 hours, and I have them in the scanner now, and I'll see how much time I get out of them. I usually get about 4 hours with them after being charged with the Uniden charger while in the radio.
What are you guys using for power ??? I just ordered a La Crosse BC-900 charger, and I'm wondering what brand & type of AA cells I should look for. I've seen lousy reports on Duracell regular NIMH cells, but great reports on their "precharged" NIMH units. Sanyo eneloop cells get great reports, but I've seen them in many capacities--up to 2700 Mah, and as low as 2000 Mah. I think some of those are early ones and others are currently sold ones. I don't know which are which. I found one company selling the 2700 Mah Eneloops for $9.75 per 4 pack, but that sounds too cheap--maybe it's early technology. Their website is:
http://www.digitalfotoclub.com/sc/from-froogle.asp?id=964740767&rf=froogle&dfdate=7_18_2008
So, what do all of you "experts" use for power ??
RON
P.S. Maybe the forum operators should start a separate discussion group for "power"---batteries & chargers in "Topic Specific Forums". I'm sure that there are a lot of users who would post on and read that group. Everyone is interested in getting more life out of their batteries.
It's not working out. The charger outputs a charge of 160 milliamps, so I have been letting it charge a set for 18-20 hours. The charger does not have any kind of charge indicator other than 2 red leds to tell you that power is applied. I figured that 18-20 hours would be fine, but I am only getting 1-2 hours out of a set of those BTY cells. I put the original GP cells in the charger yesterday, and let them charge for 20 hours, and I have them in the scanner now, and I'll see how much time I get out of them. I usually get about 4 hours with them after being charged with the Uniden charger while in the radio.
What are you guys using for power ??? I just ordered a La Crosse BC-900 charger, and I'm wondering what brand & type of AA cells I should look for. I've seen lousy reports on Duracell regular NIMH cells, but great reports on their "precharged" NIMH units. Sanyo eneloop cells get great reports, but I've seen them in many capacities--up to 2700 Mah, and as low as 2000 Mah. I think some of those are early ones and others are currently sold ones. I don't know which are which. I found one company selling the 2700 Mah Eneloops for $9.75 per 4 pack, but that sounds too cheap--maybe it's early technology. Their website is:
http://www.digitalfotoclub.com/sc/from-froogle.asp?id=964740767&rf=froogle&dfdate=7_18_2008
So, what do all of you "experts" use for power ??
RON
P.S. Maybe the forum operators should start a separate discussion group for "power"---batteries & chargers in "Topic Specific Forums". I'm sure that there are a lot of users who would post on and read that group. Everyone is interested in getting more life out of their batteries.
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