Low mAh readings from my eneloop's
Update 2 on 1/4/12<br />I am putting the update at the top to cut to the chase. I have broken into the second set of 16 batteries and they are are testing at 1900-2000mAh, just as they should. I seems as if I have one four pack that is bad with less then 50% of what they should be after 4 charges.  Sanyo tech support thinks so anyway and I agree. I recommend a good charger and testing all batteries to catch any bad batteries. I am thinking this isn't the norm after testing the rest. I have 8 more to test but am thinking they will test good also.  They will replace the 4 bad ones I have. updating my ratings by 1 star but because of the time and effort I can't give  a perfect 5 stars. I can say it looks like 28 of the 32 will be perfect and I just got one bad pack. Stuff Happens. Side note the second set didn't come with battery holders as advertised but will request them from Amazon.<br /><br />Update 1 on 1/1/12<br />The second set of four all read in the 1900mAh range so I now know that the battery charger isn't having an issue with under charging the batteries. So now I am marking the good batteries with a permanent marker and will keep those. I will continue to test and will request replacements for the ones that are way down on mAh readings (below 1000mAh). I am feeling a bit better as I believe I can identify and hopefully at some point will end up with 16 batteries that in are in the 1800mAh range.<br /><br />Original post.<br />I am new to rechargeable battery technology and don't claim to be an expert by any means so take this for what it's worth. I ordered this new eneloop 16 pack (4x4) 2000mAh after reading the mostly perfect reviews. In fact, I was so excited and have enough equipment (weather stations, multiple high powered flashlights, remotes, etc.) that use AA's, I ordered a second 16 pack while the first was in transit. I also ordered the La Cross3 BC-700 charger which also had great reviews. Here is my experience and feedback so far;<br /><br />1 of the plastic battery holders was broken in two pieces. 3 out of 4 aren't bad and I will see if Amazon will replace it. Not a big deal but wanted to report it. Stuff happens, I understand that. The batteries are stamped 1900mAh on the batteries themselves so I don't understand why they are packaged and sold as 2000mAh batteries. I am not too worried about the 100mAh discrepancy to tell you the truth. I put my first pack of 4 on the BC-700 charger and put them into the test mode. That's the only way you can test the capacity (mAh) as it completely charges, then discharges and once again charges the batteries. Upon completion you get a mAh reading for each battery. Slot 1 was 822mAh, slot 2 was 799mAh, slot 3 was 1267mAh and slot 4 was 921mAh. I called a battery shop in town and they suggested it might take 5 or so full cycles to get the full capacity of the batteries. I have run the same test cycle multiple times on these same four batteries and the mAh readings change a bit but they aren't getting any better. I guess I was hoping to see readings closer to 1500-1800mAh and 3 out of 4 of them are in the high 700's up to the low 900's. The last averages around 1200mAh. I will note they seem to be working good in my Fenix TK41 flashlight which wants a lot of power to run in turbo mode at 800 lumens. I am thinking it would work better if I can find a rechargeable that is closer to 2000mAh.  I have emailed eneloop and am awaiting their thoughts. Because I don't know any better I think I will buy a 4 pack of a another brand to simply to see if I can get to the 1500+mAh I think I should be seeing. I will not go as far as saying anything negative, just that I don't understand the apparent low readings. Again they are marketed at 2000mAh batteries but I am seeing most around 900mAh. I will update this when I can test the remaining 12 and another brand. Maybe I just don't understand but hope to soon.<br /><br />If anyone would like to help me understand what I am seeing please leave a comment.<br /><br />Thank you!<br /><br />Update 1<br />The second set of four all read in the 1900mAh range so I now know that the battery charger isn't having an issue with under charging the batteries. So now I am marking the good batteries with a permanent marker and will keep those. I will continue to test and will request replacements for the ones that are way down on mAh readings (below 1000mAh). I am feeling a bit better as I believe I can identify and hopefully at some point will end up with 16 batteries that in are in the 1800mAh range.
Rating: 4 stars