15 minute battery chargers

I don't use my flash often, maybe 3-4 times a month usually and there are times where the batteries just run down after no use and I forget to charge them. This morning I picked up my flash, put the batteries in and the recharge time for full power took 16 seconds ! I may consider picking up one of those Sony 15 minute battery chargers seeing the number of things using AAs but do they really work or just a gimmick? It just seems kinda impossible that a normal charger's sit-for-7-hours time can be shortened to 15 minutes using one of those!

They don't hold a charge as long. I've had better luck using Energizer 2500mah with the 8 hour chargers.

I have the 15 minute energizer charger and 4 sets of 4 2500mAh AA's. been using them for 2 years with out problems. nmh batteries self depleat, so if they sit for a few weeks you need to top them off befor using them in your flash. The 15 minute chargers get pretty warm but give them a few minutes for the fan to cool them off. Dead batteries, on the charger for 20 minutes, back into flash and I can get 120 full blast flashes befor the recycle time starts to slow.

I wouldn't use fast charging unless I absollutely needed it. It kills the batteries.

My 8 hour chargers work much better and the batteries stay at ambient.

The 15 minute charger is a gimmick IMO. Read this thread through the second page:

https://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthre​ad.php?t=310631

If you use the flash very rarely, why not just use alkalines? They're cheap and have a long shelf life. Sounds perfect for you. Otherwise, try the Sanyo Enelope cells. They are rechargeable and have a lower rate of self-discharge than nicad or nickel metal hydride.

You'd be better off with a smart battery charger such as the La Crosse Technology BC-900. With it you can not only charge your batteries (with different currents, depend on how fast you want it), you can also discharge it, test it (weed out the dead batteries) and refresh your batteries. It has an individual LCD readout for each battery - each battery is discretely monitored. If you have lots of NiMH batteries that you use regularly, this would be a great investment.

I have pretty good experience with the Duracell 1 Hour Charger that I got as a set with 4 AA batteries awhile back. None of my batteries have been deemed "shot" thus far, and I've had most sets for at least 6 months.

I wouldn't do a 15 minute charger though.

As far as what Pio said about weeding out the baddies - I number mine in sets of 4 with a Sharpie when I purchase them, and because of that I can easily use them in sets of 4 and charge them in sets of 4. When they go bad, they get trashed as a set of 4. No checking of individual batteries needed.

I have a set of 4 Kodak 2500mah AA's which charge in a regular 6-hour Sony charger yet the batteries seem warm-ish (kinda hot to hold) after a charge. Is this normal for a regular charger?

And correction: by saying I use my flash 3-4 times a month, I meant using it a lot till I recharge them after each shoot. So yeah, the batteries are recharged about every week or so.

liza wrote in post #3131501
They don't hold a charge as long.

DocFrankenstein wrote in post #3131728
It kills the batteries.

I sure would like to see some credible documentation to go along with statements like that, or at least some personal anecdotes to back them up. There is so much misinformation, misunderstanding and myth about rechargeable batteries that the last thing I would believe is unsupported statements like this on a photography forum.

The following is from personal experience using NiMH batteries for seven years. I have had three chargers for NiMH AAs. The two that still work are both Energizer chargers. One is an overnight charger and one is a 15 minute charger.

The batteries come out of the 15 minute charger cooler than the overnight charger. There's a simple reason for this: It has a cooling fan!

I have six flash units and at least eight sets of batteries, some of which are seven years old. I use them a lot in my redneck "portable studio" setups. I have yet to experience a battery failure, or even a noticeable loss of battery capacity.

Does a 15 minute charger shorten a battery's life? I honestly don't know. But I have been using such a charger almost exclusively for 2 years now, and the convenience is sure worth it to me.

Curtis N wrote in post #3132019
I use them a lot in my redneck "portable studio" setups.

You're not a redneck. You're a farmboy.

I love my 15 min energizer charger alot!

Curtis N wrote in post #3132019
I sure would like to see some credible documentation to go along with statements like that, or at least some personal anecdotes to back them up.

I'd like to see world peace.

You can put your batteries in liquid nitrogen and "charge them completely" in 30 seconds for all I care.

Asking for "proof" on a forum is unproductive. This isn't an scientific journal.

I have a quick charger and while the elevated temp may shorten the batteries life a bit, so what? The batteries aren't that expensive and It's nice to be able to do it quickly. Something to be said for planning ahead though. I always prepare two fresh sets before a shoot. Then I'm sure.

Thanks, Curtis, Kerry and Poloman. It seems like every time a recommend the 15 minute charger, 20 people kick me in the nuts. I have a total of 8 sets of 4 AA's, but 4 of the sets are two years old and they work just as well as the ones Ive had for 6 months and they all get a good amount of use. It just seems to many people preach as to what you should or shouldnt do and they have no or incompleat experience with the subject matter.