batteries

bulktrans

I have realised very quickly that toys eat up lots of batteries.

Is it worth investing in a rechargeable device that uses rechargeable batteries. and if so, which ones are best and cost effective?

thanks

bulktrans

any advice??

pogofish

Get yourself a ten cell solar charger (or two if high demand), a load of decent quality rechargables and a fast charger. Brands of cell that I've found decent are Enloop, Digimax and Ex-Pro. Avoid Energiser AA's - they are expensive and don't hold charge long but for some reason their AAAs are excellent.

That way, cells can spend some of their time sitting in a window in the solar charger, charging for free, you finish them off on the fast charger as needed (minimising power consumption) and have a few sets in reserve to keep the cycle going.

If you have a few battery devices, those rechargable USB solar cells (approx 5000mAh) can be useful - Takes about 4-5 days for a full charge (in average conditions) and they will charge phones, MP3 players, smaller tablets, e-cig batteries and the like quite effectively - on a bright day, they will charge strait off the panel. I've got two of them and have not charged a device off the mains at home since the spring and my monthly payment for leccy has just been cut to a tenner!

bulktrans

I stay in Scotland and I think it might be difficult to use solar charge to charge up batteries .. :-(

rpc

bulktrans wrote: »

I stay in Scotland and I think it might be difficult to use solar charge to charge up batteries .. :-(

Do you live underground? If so, place the solar panel above ground.

I too live in Scotland and, while I'm not about to cut us off from the grid quite yet, there is enough solar energy to generate a meaningful amount of electricity. If the batteries are just sitting there on trickle charge then it doesn't really matter if it takes a bit longer than on the south coast.

DigForVictory

I'm intrigued - where do you get the solar panel charger from?

bulktrans

No I don't stay underground but what I meant to say was that it's not sustainable .. but thanks for your comments...v helpful

Krystaltips

I have a maplin own brand charger and I went for their slightly more expensive own brand AA batteries. They hold their charge well and power the Innotab for longer than a standard duracell. I aim keep 4 spare so there's always some charged up and some in the charger. Doesn't always work that way mind.

Cornucopia

Battery chargers don't use much power - solar may be nice to have, but probably won't save money.