RadioBanter - View Single Post - Opinions about Yaesu FT-817ND transceiver?

Alan · March 24th 10, 07:24 AM posted to rec.radio.amateur.equipment

In article writes:

It's because lithium cells are a disaster waiting to happen. If you charge
them improperly they will catch fire. If you discharge them to "empty" they
are permanently dead.

Fortunately there are new Li chemistry designs that don't seem to catch
fire/explode.

They also die after around 300 charge cycles. ANY power put in is a charge
cycle, so laptops made in the last couple of years will no longer "float"
a lithium battery. They let it discharge to at least 95% left before
recharging it.

Hmmm. My cellphones (with Li batteries) have somewhere in the 1000 cycle
range on them now, and are still going strong.

The last laptop I bought (3 months ago), charges when connected to power,
without waiting for a discharge. Waiting for a discharge just leaves you
dead if you disconnect at the wrong time in the cycle.

The bigest problem I have with NiMH batteries is that they no longer sell
large size batteries to the general public. Yes you can get real C or D cells
from battery specialists (which are rare here), but generally all you can get
is AA batteries or C or D cells which are just sleeved AA cells (with the
corresponding capacity).

I would not mind if I could get the sleeves, but no one carries them here. :-(

After all, in my 290RII which takes a lot of C cells, sleeved AA batteries
with 2700mAh capacity would far out last the NiCad ones I had in it.

Actually, C and D size NiMH seem pretty rare here, except by mail order.
Presumably, mail order works there.

Alan
wa6azp