Sanyo Eneloop AA NiMH Pre-Charged Rechargable Batteries with Charger - 4 Pack

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Product Description

Style: AA 4 Pack w/ Charger
From the Manufacturer
These Sanyo Eneloop are used for rechargeable AA batteries for digital cameras, remotes, and are Pre-charged and ready to use right out of the pack, preserves charge for long periods.
Sanyo eneloop (4) 2000mAh Pre-Charged AA NiMH Rechargeable Batteries are one of the most environmentally friendly and long lasting batteries available to consumers. Sanyo eneloop batteries retain up to 85% of their charge even after one year. Not only that, but they can be recharged up to 1000 times.
The included charger features LED indicators to inform the user of charging status.
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Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1.2 x 2.8 inches ; 12 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000IV0REA
• Item model number: SEC-MQN064
  

Technical Details

• Compact charging kit with quartet of 2,000 mAh AA batteries for digital cameras, remotes, and more
• Pre-charged and ready to use right out of the pack; preserves charge for long periods of time
• Extremely slow self-discharge rate maintains 85 percent of capacity after 1 year of storage
• Over-voltage protection system; foldaway AC plug offers worldwide voltage for traveling
• Batteries can be charged up to 1,000 times (including partially) without experiencing memory effect

 

Sanyo Eneloop AA NiMH Pre-Charged Rechargable Batteries with Charger - 4 Pack

 

Customer Reviews

[Updated Oct 24, 2008]
My original review on the Sanyo eneloop NiMH cells was written nearly two years ago. Since then, I have learned a lot more about the characteristics about eneloop and other low-self-discharge cells. So it is time to clear up some inaccurate information I wrote about eneloop's self-discharge rate.
1. I was told that the Sanyo eneloop cells were not 100% fully charged when they leave factory. This makes sense because new cells are fast-charged in the factory to save time. In order to avoid problem with heat and gas built-up, they cannot be charged to 100%. I have tested some eneloop cells that were manufactured 20 months ago, and they still maintained about 70% charge. On the other hand, cells manufactured 6 months ago contain about 75% charge. This confirmed that the discharge rate is much lower than I previously estimated.
2. The self-discharge rate of eneloop (and other LSD cells) is not linear! My own testing showed that a fully charged eneloop may lose 10% of its initial charge during the first month of storage, but in the second months it may lose just 2-3%. The rate becomes even slower after three months. In fact, my 5-month self-discharge test using various brands of LSD cells gave nearly identical results as my previous 3-month test.
3. When an eneloop cell is freshly charged, its capacity actually measures at about 5% higher than its rated capacity (2100mAh vs. 2000mAh). In my previous tests, I used measured capacity as base to calculate the percentage loss. This results in apparently higher percentage loss. Had I used the rated capacity as base value, the self-discharge rate would be about 5% lower.
Based on the above revelation, I believe Sanyo's claim about eneloop (maintain 85% charge after one year, 80% after two year) to be accurate. Therefore the title of my previous review ("The News of LSD Has Been Slightly Exaggerated") has to be replaced.
Over the past two years, I have tested several different brands of LSD cells available from Amazon.com, including Rayovac Hybrid, Kodak Pre-Charged, and Duracell Pre Charged. They have all performed very well - practically no difference from the Sanyo eneloop. So the bottom line is: just pick which ever brand of LSD cell is on sale, and you can't go wrong.
[Update on April 21, 2011]
- After testing and using various brands of LSD cells over the past four years, Sanyo eneloop cells have proven to be the most reliable and consistent of them all. I now have to recommend Sanyo eneloop over all others brands.
- Recently Amazon started to offer the SANYO NEW 1500 eneloop cells, at around 25% higher price. In my testing, the improvement of the new eneloop over the original is hardly noticeable. So you'll have to decide whether it is worthwhile to pay the extra cost.

I received several sets of Eneloops in February and label told they were produced in April - so they sat at warehouse for nine month. I put them into camera and they worked just fine. Kudos Sanyo!
I should also mention that Sanyo includes reusable battery holders with each set of four. These holders do not look very sturdy, but they perfectly usable.
Technically, Sanyo solved the main problem with NiMh technology - frightening self-discharge rate (up to 40% a month for standard cells). By doing this Sanyo reduced cell capacity down to 2000 mAh from today's top line of 2700 mAh.
Simple calculation shows that due to self-discharge a good 2700 mAh battery holds only around 2000 mAh after a month and a half.
So the answer to the question "which battery is better - Eneloop or standard NiMh" - lies in the usage pattern.
If you always keep batteries in your camera in top-notch charged condition, then standard 2700 mAh set is a winner. For occasional shooters who always forget to charge batteries (like me), Eneloop makes lot of sense because in three month I get around 1900 mAh out of Eneloop and only 1400 mAh from the standard cell. So Eneloop is a winner for everyone who keep batteries inside the camera or any other device for more than 6 weeks.
And, well, if paragraph above looks too technical with too many details and numbers - then Eneloop is a clear winner too, because it just behaves the way battery should behave - without forcing users to know how it works.
This observation made me buy additional sets of AAA Eneloops to use in my wireless mouse, keyboard, voice recorder and LCD flashlight. It should be taken into account that Eneloops are four times more expensive than Alkaline cells, so it is reasonable to use them for devices that require fresh batteries at least twice a year.