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Rayovac?


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Got some new NiMH batteries, this time I picked Duracell since they were the

same price as the Energizer and had 2,650 MAH versus only 2,000. I'll see if

there's a difference between the two brands.

 

What I am wondering about is, I saw some rechargeable Rayovac batteries. They

seemed just as good as any other batteries but they were only $8.99 for a pack

of four... Does anybody use those? Are they as good as the other ones? If so,

I really wouldn't mind saving six big bucks! =P

 

Thanks for any input!

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"What do you mean by..."

 

Rayovac (I think it was them) came out with a line of rechargeable alkaline batteries. I was just making sure that was not what you were looking at. Alkaline has too much internal resistance to put out the current needed. NiMH AA batteries are generally what you want for most camera equipment. Disposable lithium AAs work very well too.

 

I have no experience with Rayovac NiMH batteries, but I'm suspect they are fine.

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Rayovac has been in the battery business for a very long time. In fact, when I was a kid, there were only two battery brands available - Rayovac and Eveready. (I'm not saying how long ago that was, but it was before cheap foreign imports, and the only jet aircraft were military.)
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I bought a dozen or so a few weeks ago to try because of the price. On the ones I bought, nowhere does it state the MAH. I figure if they drain quickly in my flashes / backup camera (Pentax DL), I'll use them for remotes, kids toys, etc...
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Tibby - You can find Sanyo Eneloop batteries for under $9 a four pack. They're 2000 mA-H batteries, instead of the 2600, 2700, or 2800 ma-H ratings you may see on the Duracell, Ray-O-Vac, or even the non-Eneloop Sanyo batteries, but the mA-H rating dosn't tell the whole story.

 

Jim Strutz mentioned the other part of the equation: internal resistance. The Eneloop batteries have much less internal resistance than the "super high capacity" NiMH batteries. So they send all their power to the camera or flash, instead of turning a good part of it into heat. The upshot is that the 2000 mA-H Eneloops give me about the same number of flashes in a Nikon SB-800 as I get from the 2700 mA-H "super" batteries, but they stay cooler (which has got to be good for both the flash and the batteries) and they recycle the flash faster. And they charge faster, but stay cooler charging.

 

All in all, it's a win-win-win situation with the Eneloops.

 

p.s. where are you buying Duracell or Energizer that $9 for 4 Ray-O-Vac represents a $6 savings? That would mean you're paying $15 for 4 Duracell or Energizer, and those are both pretty poor batteries. Even the Sanyo 2700 mA-H, the Lexus of "super" batteries, are only $14 for 4. The Sanyo 2500 mA-H or the Duracell 2650 mA-H usually go for about $10, Energizer for $9.

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Oxide Blu - "As far as I know, "D" "C" "AA" "AAA" alkaline batteries do not specify an a/hr rating."

 

Well, it is refreshing to see you admitting a lack of knowledge of a subject for a change. Conventional alkaline batteries have elaborate manufacturer's data sheets, just as NiMH batteries do. Here's the Duracell Zn/MnO2 "Ultra Digital" AA Alkaline from their web site:

 

http://www.duracell.com/oem/Pdf/new/MX1500_US_UL.pdf

 

They provide an elaborate family of graphs, if you read them you'll see capacity ranges from about:

 

3200 mA-H if you draw under 5mA (probably useless for any photographic equipment) and let the battery discharge all the way from its initial 1.6V to a 0.9V that is also probably useless for photographic purposes.

 

600 mA-H if you draw 1000 mA (as high as the chart goes, but less than half what a Nikon SB-800 draws) and assume that the battery is effectively dead when it hits 1.1V.

 

"Ultra Digital", indeed!

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