Battery Vampire Using half deads - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / projects

author: bgsteiner
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 31, 2014, 11:26:17 pm
content: Saw this on kick starter. It is definitely something I wand to get. Should work great in all my remotes and some other low power devices.https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2ndlifetech/batteryvampire

author: mtdoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 01, 2014, 12:10:16 am
content: I don't get it. Looks like a $40 version of a $1Joule Thiefin a cheap ABS housing.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: November 01, 2014, 12:19:07 am
content: Better to invest that money in charger and rechargeable batteries, would be greener and much more handy. With such device you would need to wait the moment batteries die, then replace one of them with this device, when it completely dies, second one. Good only for two battery devices with specific contact arrangement, and I'm not sure if that part with wire will fit in every device. If using with fresh battery it will just reduce a capacity because of the efficiency and because battery capacity decreases with increasing load too. Also can use only in a one device at a time, just useless,get rechargeables.

author: Rufus
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 01, 2014, 12:44:02 am
content: Quote from: bgsteiner on October 31, 2014, 11:26:17 pmIt will work if you have some crap and low power devices which shut down with a worthwhile amount of energy in the battery. Given that and the hassle using it the substantial amount of money would be better spent on some low self discharge NIMH batteries and a charger.

author: rr100
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: November 01, 2014, 01:24:24 pm
content: Most devices I have are actually extremely good at using "alkys" completely (or let's say 95 or 99%). What's more in the last 5-10 years I've noticed that many low powered devices REALLY last a lot, like multiple years: remotes, clocks (even radio controller), even one logitech mouse (yea, they advertise something like 3 years life) and so on.For high drain devices just get rechargeables as mentioned before. Other than that how much is $40 in no-brand but good alcalines? 100+ batteries if you know where to shop? How many batteries you need to suck dry to get even, 200 (even assuming your device doesn't use 50% of the energy and the efficiency of the conversion is 100%, both too favorable assumptions)?That being said I very often reuse the batteries in low-drain "can use the last drop" devices, like remotes. When the batteries in such devices are finished I don't go for new batteries, I just take the batteries from the noise canceling headphones or from the emergency radio or "glove-box torch" or from some other device where I'd like to have new batteries and where this matters.

author: rob77
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 01, 2014, 03:08:39 pm
content: well... $40 is approx 32Eur and i can have 128 alkaline AA cells for 32Eur.... so it's pointless when considering economyand as it was mentioned rechargeables are the way to go if you want to be green.

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 01, 2014, 03:20:51 pm
content: See this thread here:https://www.eevblog.com/forum/crowd-funded-projects/batteryvampire/