Received the Tenergy T9688 charger in about a week. Unit was nice looking, with what looks like a better quality AC adapter. I put a battery in the charger my Duracell charger indicated was bad. I set it to discharge and then charge. After ten minutes it was still in the discharge phase, I canceled that mode and set it to charge. At no time did the charger indicate the battery was bad. When I removed the battery, my voltmeter indicated a 1.42 volt charge. I then charged 4 more AA batteries. These charged quickly,(30 minutes)and also were in the 1.42 volt range. The only negative I found was one of the slots has a weak spring to hold the prong against the negative end of the battery. The unit was quick, easy to use and batteries were warm not hot when finished. I also liked having the LCD with barsand words, indicating the status of the batteries, instead of lights that may not truly indicate the state of the batteries. Tenergy T9688 Super Universal LCD Battery Charger with USB Port
Background:
I did a lot of research; I wanted a good nimh charger that can charge multiple battery types and be easy enough for anyone to use.
Pros:
* Clear, easy-to-read display
* Charges quickly and efficiently
* Uses zero power when plugged in but not in use
* Charges 1-4 batteries independently
* Good construction quality
* USB charging!
* The vented transparent battery window is a nice touch.
Some nimh chargers leave the batteries wide open when
charging (although very rare, nimh can still explode) and others
completely cover them in black plastic (can't see!).
Cons:
* I believe I have had one bad cell but the charger continued to try to charge it
for many hours (did not detect it?)
* The power adaptor has a power factor of .56, but it is 12v so easily replaceable
* It would be nice if the unit could charge USB devices at the same time as
batteries. I understand why it does not, though.
Bottom line:
A good product that is definitely worth the money.
I was looking for a universal battery charger that recharges not only AA/AAA sizes but also the larger C and D sized batteries. I owned an Energizer Family Charger but became disatisfied because as it has a tendancy to not properly detect batteries. A review of that charger can be found here: Energizer Family Battery Charger
Now, about the Tenergy Universal LCD Battery Charger with USB Port...
After receiving my charger, I charged (didn't use the discharge feature) several AA sized batteries. Of the older batteries, some were detected as bad, but when I used a battery tester, there still was life in them. Out of a dozen relatively new batteries, one battery was detected as bad (when it really wasn't). I find that the bad battery detection process is sometimes inaccurate. It's probably best just to have a battery tester along side to test any "bad" batteries for verfication. For the one battery of the newer group that showed as "bad", I moved to another channel of the charger, then the battery charged up fine. I just hope this situation isn't recurring in which many batteries that still have life in them only get detected as "bad."
Each battery gets charged in it's own channel. That way charging in pairs is not necessary.
The USB port for charging/operating USB devices is a bonus. But I wish the USB port was located in the front or side instead of the back. That would be more convenient. Although I can't recharge batteries and charge via the USB port simultaneously, I still can leave my device (like a phone) plugged into the USB port while charging batteries. That way, when the batteries finish charging, the USB charging automatically kicks in. In otherwords, I can load the charger up with batteries, and plug in my phone to charge via USB and let them all charge overnight. When I wake up, the charger will have both the batteries and my phone all charged up.
What I like:
- charges sizes AAA up to D size
- LCD display shows individual battery charge status
- LCD display is bright and easy to read
- when batteries are charged, charger goes to trickle charge status
- USB charge port
What I dislike:
- USB port doesn't charge same time batteries are charging
- USB port located at back of charger, not in front
- the spring loading of batteries is a bit tight. Takes a little getting used to.
Conclusion. The chargers works fine as a universal charger (AAA through D sizes). The extra USB port is an added bonus. Though not perfect, the Tenergy charger gets the job done and is not as finicky as the Energizer Family Charger.
This is a very reliable product, it does suit my purposes very well in fact.
I've only had one issue, the Charger specifically could use a bit more versatility, for those that are looking to go into full on rechargeable battery land, with this charger you can only charge 4 x 1.5 volt variations (AA, AAA, or C, or Ds,) plus 2 x 9v at a time, which limits your ability to charge up your battery stock if you need to charge more than 6 batteries at a time. Leading to my suggestion, which would be to purchase this product if you can afford to wait to charge up your entire stock of batteries over a few cycles, which may mean a day or more depending on how many you need to use, the average person wouldn't need to charge up more than this provides for for typical home use applications.
Now about buying rechargeables in general. Before being put in a position to have to purchase rechargeable batteries we'd toyed with the idea with no real intention of actually jumping in and making this investment, we were wary about such an unknown and unpublished/unreviewed product. Well, in 2010 I was in an auto accident which left me with a lovely permanent nerve/back injury and I was prescribed a T.E.N.S. Unit for the pain, which works fantastically, but EATS BATTERIES like there is no tomorrow.. so, I began researching rechargeable batteries, 9V specifically which is difficult to purchase in the stores by the way (go Amazon!, you always come through for us), and really couldn't find any concrete evidence that they were better than the consumable batteries.
WELL, if you're toying with the idea, and teetering on the ledge of making this kind of investment and have any gadget that's eating your batteries I'll gladly push you off the battery buying cliff and tell you these are absolutely better than I'd ever expected. The Charge actually lasts longer than the standard run of the mill Energizer (consumable) and the standard Duracell (consumable), when you run low drop 'em back up on the charger and you're ready to go in a few hours, or less if you've invested in enough to switch them out.
Bottom line, Tenergy rechargeable batteries while might be an uncomfortable and weary investment for the inexperienced is actually an absolute winner once you get into them. You'll never buy consumables again if you can help it!
Hope that helps you with your purchasing decision, please don't forget to use the review voting buttons. - Chargers - Tenergy - Charger - Rechargeable Batteries'
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