SDS100/SDS200: What happens when an SDS100 battery fails.

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djeplett

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Figured I'd share these photos of my original large battery that finally failed (on the right) and a new replacement for comparison.
0902201446.jpg0902201446a.jpg
So if suddenly your SDS100 doesn't display battery voltage but shows "---V" be prepared to find it possibly expanding! This is the main reason why I had @jonweinke replace my original battery clip with one of his carbon fiber ones. My clip didn't fail when I opened the battery compartment, but I can see how this would have put enough strain on the original to cause it to snap.
 

kymarkh

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Sorry to hear about this and thanks for sharing. Other than the voltage display any other symptoms prior to failure? For instance, heat and/or smell when charging?
 

djeplett

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Nothing. I ran it with the battery in it most of its life charging so now my plan is to take the battery out and run it off USB unless I plan to take it somewhere.

The only thing that sucks about that is it won't let you record without the battery in it. Stupid thing is it will allow the replay feature. Which means it is writing to the SD card constantly anyway. So I don't see why it shouldn't just let you record. No different than the SDS200 recording and suddenly losing power...
 

djeplett

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I personally have a couple ways I have disposed of them in the past. My old neighbor's daughter has a recycling business so I've collected and given old batteries to her. I've also dropped them off at Batteries Plus in the past, but I can't remember if they charged me or not. I got rid of this one quickly before it got any worse. If I had to hold onto it for a while it would have gone in an old metal coffee can and sat outside of my house under the carport on the concrete.
 

trap5858

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Staples will take small electronics and batteries. Check with your local store, some are restricting hours or what they will take under current conditions. I do think they charge!
 

Ubbe

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The only thing that sucks about that is it won't let you record without the battery in it. Stupid thing is it will allow the replay feature.
Then Uniden made a mistake. My HP-1 turns off all recording functions when the battery are missing. If it allowed recording it would wreck the filesystem table on the SD card each time the battery dies and you would have to reprogram the SD card each time. When it has the display on and producing audio in the speaker it will draw its most current and die just when it records a file.

But there's no excuse to not let you record when you are using external power to a portable scanner.

I think it is has to be an oversight from Uniden and they never thought of fixing it and now they are just copying over that function from previous scanners. They had too many other things to fix and so little time to do it. It's lots of other little things that Uniden could fix, but it would eat up the profit and it doesn't improve sales and there will anyhow never be a 100% perfect working scanner from any producer so we will have to accept that it will not work exactly how we would like it to do.

/Ubbe
 

buddrousa

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The 436 is the same way UPMan stated if power was lost while recording to the SD CARD it would trash the SD CARD. When UPMan was ask the same question about the 536 SDS200 said it could not be helped.
 

RandyKuff

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I have let my SDS100 run down to the point of the message telling you the power is low and starts beeping at you...
I watched it to see what it would do... It will sit there awhile in that state then wright to the card and shutdown...
 

Eng74

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Home Depot recycles rechargeable batteries. There is normally a box for batteries, florescent bulbs, and plastic bags by the return desk.
 

RT48

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Home Depot recycles rechargeable batteries. There is normally a box for batteries, florescent bulbs, and plastic bags by the return desk.
I tried to give them some batteries for recycling a couple weeks ago and the customer service desk person told me they were not currently accepting batteries for recycling.
 

Eng74

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I tried to give them some batteries for recycling a couple weeks ago and the customer service desk person told me they were not currently accepting batteries for recycling.
I just dropped off some last Friday. Then again I am in California and they are big on recycling. I have also seen Best Buy with recycling bins too. Try looking here to see where a drop off site is near you.
 

a417

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The only thing that sucks about that is it won't let you record without the battery in it. Stupid thing is it will allow the replay feature. Which means it is writing to the SD card constantly anyway. So I don't see why it shouldn't just let you record. No different than the SDS200 recording and suddenly losing power...
They probably didn't plan on this particular failure mode, and then running it in a (compromised) battery-less state.

If you're designing something that you know will nearly 100% of the time have a battery in it, that is usually going to be the fallback power source and when you're writing to the SD card as much as they do...your wallwart is supplemental power (that can be removed at any time). I get what you're saying, but I think that planning for every potential eventuality in a product becomes cost-prohibitive at some point.
 

djeplett

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I get what you're saying, but I think that planning for every potential eventuality in a product becomes cost-prohibitive at some point.
Still doesn't explain why the replay feature is allowed. Inconsistencies like this one further proves that these scanners could use some more work on the firmware, but I don't see that happening any more. They are what they are at this point. Don't get me wrong; I'm very happy with my Unidens. But there is still room for improvement.
 

swman

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Perhaps this might be worth reporting to the (United States)
CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION

Public Incident Reporting - Safer Product

I say this is close of causing a major nasty fire and personal injury !
Uniden would be forced to issue a major recall if deemed bad enough.
 
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