I compare the superficial differences between the SmallRig VB99 and the Neweer Mini V-Mount batteries. I was looking for inexpensive V-Mounts and came across both of these on Amazon, and from the basic descriptions and product photos they seemed to only have cosmetic differences.

They’re both ostensibly 99Wh battery packs with D-Tap out, USB A and C out (with charging on the C connector), as well as 8V and 12V barrel plug outputs (and, of course, the V-Mount connector).

And they are in fact pretty much the same as far as features, weight, and capacity goes. Though, neither one was able to deliver the promised 99Wh (they got close at around 92Wh).

The SmallRig was almost twice the price, so as far as value-for-money is concerned: Buy the Neweer (or something entirely else).

This video is NOT sponsored nor affiliated with the companies featured. As usual, I just fancied comparing these two products for my own purposes, and purchased them with my own money just like anyone else would.

I’d been seeing a lot of different brands of rechargeable lithium ion standard-sized batteries on the market, and couldn’t decide which ones to buy. Hence, I bought many of them. Hopefully this helps you out of the same conundrum!

I built a test “rig” (really just some plywood) which consisted of 5 each of milliamp-hour meters, 4-position battery packs, and 12 Ohm resistors. In all, I tested 7 brands of lithium cells, as well as 6 sets of alkaline batteries (as a point of reference for capacity), 1 set of non-rechargeable Energizer Lithiums, and 1 set of NiMH Panasonic Eneloop cells.

The batteries were discharged until their aggregate voltage reached 3 (or 0.75V per cell) which I felt was a comparable “empty” voltage to alkaline cells. It should in theory be irrelevant, as all of the cell’s converters are supposed to deliver a constant 1.5V. So they would dip rapidly from 1.5V (well, it’s a bit lower under load — see the spreadsheet) to almost 0V. Theoretically.

I compiled all of the data (and then some) into a Google Docs Sheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ssAuFEysVVlKPtFfrIxoYvVqXOxYQG9o0NkWmeibzlQ/edit?usp=sharing

I didn’t cover this in the video, but I was quite surprised that the capacity of the Eneloops was in the vicinity of the capacities of the lithium cells, as were some of the Alkaline cells. The Energizer Lithium batteries showed an extraordinarily high capacity.

Lithium ion cells do have a higher energy density than the other chemistries, but I have a feeling that their relative downfall here is that the manufacturers also have to squeeze a step-down converter into the small AA package size. Then again, the Energizer Lithium cells must also have a DC-DC converter on board as well, and they clocked in at 3427mAh compared to the best of the rechargeables at 2068mAh. I’m not sure wherein the discrepancy lies, so if you have any idea please let me know in the video comments.

The tests were performed by fully charging all the cells, fully discharging them, then fully charging them once more before data was recorded.

For posterity, and because they weren’t really shown in the video, below are the discharge tests at 100x speed. Unfortunately because the mAh meter vacillates between showing Voltage, Amperage, and mAh the readings are a blur, and pausing it on just the right reading can be tricky. But in any case you can see the final readings at the end of the video, and when each of the batteries dropped to less than 0.75V per cell.

Finally, if you’re curious as to how I got the charge times, it was nothing fancy. I recorded the batteries as they charged, and reviewed the footage with an attached time code to find the end-of-charge:

I needed new batteries for my pepper grinder, and ended up going down a vast rabbit hole.

First, I purchased 15 different brands/models of Alkaline AAA batteries from Amazon. (This cost about $150, which means that I strongly overpaid to run a pepper mill.)

Then I built a test rig for at 15 battery types. (It’s a redic long video, but you can see the process at 50x speed which only takes a couple of minutes!)

And used that to make the video at the top of this page, after running a 100 hour test.

The spreadsheet with the raw data and calculated results for the tests is available on Google Docs:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-wWU2XRqiwQYu8Mf14S9t1k3e9BCGTiulbm4DLLoztk

And you can watch me further discuss the spreadsheet as well.

Updates

YouTube user autismspeaks brought up a good point about name-brand batteries having a lower self-discharge rate than cheaper batts.

So I decided to set a pair of each type aside for a few years (except for the Rayovac Industrials because I’d only bought an 8-pack and used all of them).

I’ll admit this looks like a kindergarten arts and crafts project.

Whether I’ll ever get back to it? That’s another matter entirely.

I’ve been working on two things lately (well, more than two, but whatever): Live streaming and testing AAA batteries.

The former is going somewhat OK, but I’m still trying to get the hang of it. The latter is coming together nicely.

This video is me assembling a rig to test 15 different brands/types of AAA batteries:

Duracell Optimum, Anker, Allmax, EBL, Fuji, Duracell Procell, Rayovac Industrial, Duracell Quantum, Rayovac Fusion, Rayovac, Eveready Gold, Energizer Max, Energizer Industrial, Maxell, and Amazon Basics.

The idea being that I’ll shoot that test rig with a time lapse camera, observing how the voltages of the batteries decrease over time. There are light bulbs both to provide a visualization and as a load to deplete the cells. More to come on that project.

Edit: ACTUALLY, NEVERMIND

It’s now June of 2020, and I figure it’s time to put a big “disregard” in the title of this post.

While my objectives were indeed grand, there’s a fundamental flaw in my methodology:

Most of the UPSes in question do not perform battery self-tests. As such, I really only find out about bad batteries when there’s an actual power failure. And those happen very inconsistently, and infrequently. (Which is good for me overall, but bad for this “log”.)

For example, my power just flickered briefly and one UPS shut down as soon as the power went off. The batteries were dated as replaced on 2017-12-10. However, that UPS survived the last power outage some months ago, at least until I shut it down.

SLA batteries don’t usually fail catastrophically. They’ll lose their ability to hold a charge over time. So when did those batteries go “bad”? And moreover, what exactly do I consider “bad”?

As I wrote below, “a decent battery should last 3 years”. So clearly those batteries didn’t. It was more like 2.5 years at best. So they’re not very good, but what about batteries that fail after the 3 year mark? Did they fail in 2 years, and I just didn’t notice until 3 years had passed? And if they got me through a brief 5 minute outage at the 3 year mark, are they still “good”?

I’ve updated the info below with that latest failure, but the below data is going to be incredibly approximate, and will really only end up highlighting some of the bad batteries that completely give up the ghost in under 3 years as being brands to avoid.

Atypical Post

This post isn’t only for you, but also for me. I have roughly sixteen 120V 1300-1500VA UPSes in my basement of various ages. They each take two SLA 12V ~8Ah batteries.

As such, I need to replace those batteries periodically. Being a cheap bastard, I don’t buy the branded APC or CyberPower packs, but go for inexpensive generics from eBay or Amazon. In theory there’s no difference, but in practice some cheap batteries are, well, cheap. I’m attempting to figure out which off-brand brands work best.

This Log

Hence I’m going to start logging battery replacements to get an idea of which brand(s) represent the best value and longevity. This will always be a work in progress, because a decent battery should last 3 years. A good one should last 5 or more. Unfortunately I only started labeling them a couple of years ago.

So, uh, stay tuned.

This is a follow-up of sorts to my NiMH Battery Roundup video, except this time I’m looking at triple-As, and only one brand.

I was vexed by the fact that Amazon had EBL AAA cells with an 1100mAh capacity for only 7 cents more per cell than the otherwise-identical 800mAh variety. That didn’t make sense to me, and besides, 1100mAh is rather high for a AAA package size. Hence I bought a bunch of each and tested them.

The Bottom Line

The 1100mAh cells appear to be a big fat lie. The average capacity for those clocked in at 980mAh, with one cell showing as low as 946mAh and the highest at 1005mAh.

The 800mAh cells were respectable at an average of 809mAh, and less of a variance between cells.

Despite the fact that the “1100mAh” units were well under capacity, they are of course the better deal coming in at 852mAh per dollar with the 800mAh cells giving 749mAh per dollar.

I wish I had the time, inclination, or money to pit a whole bunch of AAA brands against each other, but I’m satisfied in imagining that quality scales from my AA cell results.

It turns out that I have more battery chargers than sense, so I built this monstrosity.

This video goes ridiculously in-depth on the subject of 10 particular models and brands of popular NiMH cells. It covers my recommendations, as well as an extensive dive into my testing methodology.

Downloads

As promised, here’s the spreadsheet that I mentioned in the video. Both links are to the same document, just in two different formats.

Google Docs: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1fu729GXZJyY3RkX3ZNVlp5QjA/view

Excel File: NiMH_Capacity_Analysis-Scott_Dotdot-20170908.xlsx

My Recommendation

Not to spoil the video, but if you’re here for a recommendation: At the current price of $21.99 for a sixteen pack, the EBL 2300mAh cells are the way to go. However, I’d also recommend the high capacity cells by Amazon and Sunlabz.

I own a bunch of Panasonic Eneloop cells, and they are reliable, well made, and meet or exceed their advertised capacity. I’d absolutely recommend Eneloops or Eneloop Pros, at the right price. They can be catastrophically expensive, which is the only reason they aren’t my first recommendation. The EBL and Sunlabz cells give much better value for money.

Update (2017-09-08):

Tenergy was kind enough to get in touch after having seen my review, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t pass on a couple of their corrections:

First of all, I’d like to say that I really appreciate your review. It is one of the most extensive reviews I’ve seen. Regardless how our products stack up against the competitors in the market, I am grateful that Tenergy have been selected to compete against Duracell/Energizer/Eneloop, the giants in the battery industry. That being said, there is one correction I’d like to make in your review, the Tenergy Centura AA battery NiMH batteries you tested are actually rated/labeled 2000mAh, not 2200mAh as stated in your review. This correction would bring the actual capacity vs. stated capacity ratio to 91% instead of 83%.

This is, of course, 100% accurate. I’m not sure where I found (or possibly why I invented) the 2200mAh number, but regardless I apologize to Tenergy for the mistake. Though I can’t correct a video once it’s on YouTube, I updated the related spreadsheet (linked above) and made a note in the description to reflect the correct number.

Their representative goes on to say:

Though, just one last thing, stated capacity of NiMH batteries is from testing at 0.2C discharge rate. This is same for Energizer, Panasonic, and Duracell. It’s somewhat of an industry standard even though some Duracell datasheets show testing at 0.1C. This kind of throws things off a little when you test different capacity cells at the same discharge rate because 0.2C for 2000mAh is 400mA and for a 2700mAh is 540mA so you will always get different results from their stated capacity when testing this way.

Fair enough, I suppose.

The video is a bit long (to say the least), but at the end I did address that my testing methodology probably diverged from the various manufacturers’ testing methods. Call me cynical, but I only pay lip service to their testing.

This is because 1) I’d have difficulty believing that manufacturers don’t design and execute their own tests in a manner that would prove favorable to their own product, and 2) real-world use cases are very rarely (or almost never) going to match the discharge conditions presented in a laboratory. My testing was surely flawed, but it is also surely a representation of the various cells at the conditions I put upon them. My test will obviously also not universally represent real-world conditions. If I’d had more time I would’ve liked to repeat the discharge tests at various other currents, temperatures, as well as before and after numerous cycles.

At any rate, I appreciate Tenergy’s interest in the video and the pride they take in their product! They were also exceedingly polite about the whole thing.

I suppose as an epilogue of sorts I should mention that the 4 Tenergy batteries in my collection are still going strong now, a year later.

A look at some possibly-fake random “NiMH” AA cells from AliExpress, comparing them to Panasonic Eneloop cells.

From my somewhat limited testing, these little green guys had an actual capacity of about 342mAh, which is less than 10% of their claimed specification of 3800mAh (which is probably impossible anyhow for AA-sized NiMH cells.

The part about them perhaps not being real NiMH cells? That’s not the weirdest thing. Unlike most of my AliExpress purchases, these shipped from The Netherlands, despite the seller being called Shenzhen DeKang International Trade.