First look: Apple Battery Charger and AA batteries

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  • Reply 41 of 155
    bregaladbregalad Posts: 816member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by johnmcboston View Post


    You know, if you unplug the thing form the wall it takes zero milliwatts... Do folks really leave chargers plugged in after a set of batteries has charged?



    All the time.



    My old fashioned charger takes more than 20 hours to charge batteries. It frequently finishes in the middle of the night or while I'm away at work. Do you sit there watching your charger all day so you can unplug it the moment it's done?
  • Reply 42 of 155
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by dpackman View Post


    Now all we need to do is carry this wall outlet with us when traveling and change out whatever we find in our hotel room.



    I'm sure you think that was funny, but people mostly use their rechargers at home.
  • Reply 43 of 155
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by melgross View Post


    I don't know if you guys are aware of this, but there are wall outlets that contain USB recharging sockets. No recharger required.



    And not one of the many I've ever seen holds a steady >550mA current and can charge any recent iPod or iPhone. They can charge my cellphone and a few other accessories though.
  • Reply 44 of 155
    wigginwiggin Posts: 2,265member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Bregalad View Post


    I've been using both Energizer 2500mWh and generic 2000mWh batteries in my camera. Both of them seem to die very quickly just sitting my in camera bag. Seems like I need to invest in some Sanyos.



    My guess is that you do not have LSD batteries, but rather standard NiMH batteries. I could be wrong, but I don't think you can get 2500 mWh LSD batteries. If that is the case, yes, they will do dead in just a few months even if they aren't used.



    Most major manufacturers (Duracell, Rayovac, Sony, etc) now make LSD batteries, and they all perform similarly so get whatever is cheapest, which is usually the Eneloops. But you won't find those at Target, you'll have to go online or maybe a camera store.
  • Reply 45 of 155
    desarcdesarc Posts: 642member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Suddenly Newton View Post


    I'm surprised Apple didn't call them "Magic Batteries."



    yeah, there's a little too much iMagic coming out of cupertino lately. next the MagicMac will replace the iMac, the MagicBook will replace the MacBook, and the MagicPhone will replace the iPhone.
  • Reply 46 of 155
    sheffsheff Posts: 1,407member
    I've had my energizers in the mighty mouse for about 3 years now. Max charge - 50%. That said the batteries still work for a very long time, something like 2-3 months vs about 6 that I would get when I first got the batteries.



    I don't know how to measure useful life, but I doubt these batteries will last me another 7 years, so I suspect apple cooked up some special formula for its batteries.



    The price is not too bad either. I bought 4 rechargeables for something like $11 and the charger for another $5 for a grand total of $16. If we add two more batteries we get to $22, which is awful close to $29 I believe apple is selling these for. Considering their longevity it might be a better deal.
  • Reply 47 of 155
    desarcdesarc Posts: 642member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Bregalad View Post


    All the time.



    My old fashioned charger takes more than 20 hours to charge batteries. It frequently finishes in the middle of the night or while I'm away at work. Do you sit there watching your charger all day so you can unplug it the moment it's done?



    no, do you leave your charger plugged in even when it's NOT charging batteries?

    [i'm pretty sure that's what he was asking]
  • Reply 48 of 155
    sheffsheff Posts: 1,407member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by desarc View Post


    yeah, there's a little too much iMagic coming out of cupertino lately. next the MagicMac will replace the iMac, the MagicBook will replace the MacBook, and the MagicPhone will replace the iPhone.



    And after that we will get the Mickey Mouse and Mac Minnie. Disney is taking over Apple.
  • Reply 49 of 155
    Just so you know - Sanyo chargers will ONLY work in pairs. (ie, 2 batteries at a time)
  • Reply 50 of 155
    MarvinMarvin Posts: 15,309moderator
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by StLBluesFan View Post


    Recharge only 2 batteries at a time? No thanks.



    Yeah that doesn't sound too good, especially when they take 6 hours for each set. I really like the slow discharge though - I got cheap high Amp rechargeable batteries but they have awful discharge rates. They almost discharge all at the same time whether in use or not give or take a week or two.



    The price here is also competitive. If they were as competitive with the international Mac Mini pricing, I'd be making two purchases. Sadly not, so £25 batteries it is.
  • Reply 51 of 155
    gxcadgxcad Posts: 120member
    These are likely to be related to the sanyo eneloop battery.



    Only thing is guys, eneloops have been out for 5 years and have always claimed 1000 recharges, but recently they have been updated to a new design with improved self discharge and 1500 recharge cycles. Since apple claims only 1000, I would venture a guess that these are the old eneloops.



    I also think eneloops white design actually look more apple like than apples own batteries!
  • Reply 52 of 155
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Booga View Post


    You don't have kids, do you?



    We have 2 4-AA chargers and sometimes they're both in use. Sometimes only one. Rarely is no battery being charged. It seems like every silly little toy requires batteries these days.



    Battery chargers are not necessarily better environmentally speaking unless you use them correctly. Leaving them plugged into the wall outlet beyond the time required to charge the batteries is a waste of electricity. This also applies to all kinds of wall wart type power supplies and phone chargers. When not in use, you should unplug them. Also most rechargeable AA batteries are not really suitable for high drain devices such as motorized toys, but they are appropriate for keyboards and mice etc. Battery recycling is also an important part of ecological responsibility.
  • Reply 53 of 155
    gxcadgxcad Posts: 120member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by kpluck View Post


    It looks nice but I can't help but feel that Apple blew it on the design of this thing. It really should have included at least one USB port for charging devices like the iPad or iPhone.



    -kpluck



    Intentional, it would have cannibalized sales of their chargers.
  • Reply 54 of 155
    foo2foo2 Posts: 1,077member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by melgross View Post


    No more energy has been spent in designing and building this recharger than any other.



    How would you know?



    Quote:

    What kind of misunderstanding do you have here?



    I understand you have a bias to promote the Apple party line, even when it's of laughable significance.



    Quote:

    Your money argument is absurd. That's not the real reason for this, though some people will be swayed by even saving 5 cents a year.



    Don't look all ignorant now. It's all about money.



    Quote:

    You have no understanding of the concept of green energy devices.



    I understand more than you. Apple's charger isn't worth writing home about. If you want to do something for the environment, buy rechargeable batteries to power your environmentally destructive computer components and look for other, far more significant ways to conserve energy.
  • Reply 55 of 155
    gxcadgxcad Posts: 120member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bdkennedy1 View Post


    Apple could have saved space in the Magic Mouse and Magic TrackPad if the batteries were permanent and not user replaceable. After 2 months of use, you would have to send it back to Apple for replacement batteries for $49.



    Well, except that logitech does this for their mice and OH they were clever enough to make them RECHARGABLE. Keyboards too, I believe.
  • Reply 56 of 155
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Prof. Peabody View Post


    I basically agree, but for the record, most of the Apple wireless keyboards sold to date use three batteries, not two and it's reasonable to assume that people have other products besides Apple products that need AA batteries.



    I understand totally why Apple did it the way they did, but it's not without it's drawbacks and gotchas. Being an owner of a three battery keyboard that's still practically brand new, I would certainly prefer that Apple went with the more standard 6 battery charger.



    Methinks the designers assumed rather a bit too much in terms of usage scenarios for this product.



    I have been using Sanyo's eneloop as well as a pair of Sony's cycle energy for over a year now. They all are pretty much the same product honestly and I just get the ones that I can find on sale at the moment. Any regular NiMH charger will do for any of those and will also do for Apple's. However, as recommended in this excellent review, it is probably better to avoid fast chargers if you want your batteries to last longer. Sanyo has a 4-batterie charger that will do both AAA and AA so people needing more batteries can simply get one of those. I use a Sony Cycle energy 2-batterie charger at the moment when I travel but Apple's charger is more compact and has the added convenience of the removeable prong connector for travelling overseas. I will probably get the Apple charger next time I need an extra 6 batteries.
  • Reply 57 of 155
    anonymouseanonymouse Posts: 6,857member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Booga View Post


    You don't have kids, do you?



    We have 2 4-AA chargers and sometimes they're both in use. Sometimes only one. Rarely is no battery being charged. It seems like every silly little toy requires batteries these days.



    You make a strong argument for not having them.
  • Reply 58 of 155
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Bregalad View Post


    All the time.



    My old fashioned charger takes more than 20 hours to charge batteries. It frequently finishes in the middle of the night or while I'm away at work. Do you sit there watching your charger all day so you can unplug it the moment it's done?



    Not "The moment" it's done, no. But the difference in power consumption of the device being plugged in for an extra half a day is negligible... They as copy make it seem like people leave their chargers plugged in 24/7 no matter what. If you were that concerned about 'vampire' power usage, you could just unplug the charger once charging is done.
  • Reply 59 of 155
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    [QUOTE=Foo2;1689113]You do understand the difference between a watt and a milliwatt, don't you?{/QUOTE]



    Obviously.



    You see, unlike you, I have a scientific education and understand what I'm talking about.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Foo2 View Post


    The real benefits to the environment would seem to be Apple's promotion of rechargeables, not its charger.



    No, the real benefit is that Apple is taking the lead in being environmentally friendly. It's not about any one thing. It's about reduced packaging. It's about reduction or elimination in chemical use. It's about miniaturization (less materials used). It's about energy efficient devices (like the Mini which is EXTREMELY low energy consumption for a desktop computer).



    You may think that the world has endless resources, but most people understand that the planet is finite. Even if you think there's a 1,000 year supply of fossil fuels and that global warming will never happen, the more fossil fuels we use, the more money we have to send to mostly terrorist countries. There is no excuse for wasting energy and resources. Even if you've only saving a few watts, multiply that by a few billion people (or even a few hundred million in the US) and the savings can be immense.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by melgross View Post


    No more energy has been spent in designing and building this recharger than any other. What kind of misunderstanding do you have here?



    Probably less. Loos at the size of Apple's charger vs the average battery charger. The less metal and plastic you use, the less impact on the environment (everything else being equal, of course). Batteries with a 10 year life have 1/2 the environmental impact of similar batteries with a 5 year life. And so on.
  • Reply 60 of 155
    geekdadgeekdad Posts: 1,131member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by anantksundaram View Post


    (The problem gets resolved if you stick your finger in the socket, though).



    Btw, I got mine too, yesterday, and love it.



    Be sure to do this when you first get out of the shower and you are dripping wet.........
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