Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Hong Kong
Posts: 5

Haven't read anything about the duration the Visor can last on the AAA batteries. Any ideas? and how many of them do you need?

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Pittsford,NY,USA
Posts: 223

They are quoting up to 2 months of battery life. Even under extremely heavy use, I have always gotten over a months usage from a pair of AAAs in my Pilot.

-Eric

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Pittsburgh, PA USA
Posts: 12

Is that with or without the constant use of the backlight?

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Sydney Australia
Posts: 1883

I would say without the constant use of the backlight because backlights normaly use a lot of juice... that's also why color (CE) PDA's consume a lot of electricity (Color screens always have the backlight on..)

So use you backlight only when you need it and you can get a battery life of a couple of months..

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Ingleside, Tx
Posts: 68

I'd like to add there was a threa somewhere talking about NiMH batteries. I've done the research and these are the way to go. You can buy three 650 mA batteries for under $8 and they last LONGER than alkalines, can be recharged 300-1000 times (lotsa variables) and NEVER develop a memory. I've already ordered mine.

Ray

------------------
"One can never step in the same river twice."

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Rio Rancho, NM, USA
Posts: 129

Thanks for the info about the NiMH batteries, Solo. Does anyone know a downside, with the apparent initial price point, of going with these over standards?

Oh, and why is the National Institute of Mental Health issuing batteries? Some sort of portable electro-shock technology?

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Urbana IL
Posts: 144

Nice Nachtswerg! :]

Anyone have an online source for NiMH cells?

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 69

I got mine w/ a 1 hr charger at the infamous but ubiquitous Shack de Radio.

Around 10 bucks or so for a cupla AAA's and around 50 for the quick charger. There are some cheaper chargers there, but this one is fast and does AAA, AA, and 9V of both NiCad and NiMH types.

(National Institute of Mental Health... GET OUTTA HEAH!

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Ingleside, Tx
Posts: 68

Sure, try www.nimhbattery.com (really)

I called them and asked for specs. These puppies rock. I ordered not only AAAs for my ViDlux, but ordered AAs, Cs and Ds. NiMH is the way to go, but many people will be content with simply tossing out their "dead" alkalines (did anyone know ALL alkaline can be recharged about 20-25 times?? hmm?).

Anyway, I'm making the switch. Go to the site and check them out. I got the addy from somebody else here, but this is the best and cheapest place I found. Good luck.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Austin TX, USA
Posts: 79

Ok, do ya'll know if NiMh is any better than Rayovac Renewals? I used to use Renewals all the time a few years back. I don't know what happened to my charger, but it was great when I used it. So, are Nimh's a lot better? Are they better at all? I'd like to know. Thanks

-Achilles

Registered: Sep 1999
Location:
Posts: 54

Well, I remember that Rayovac Renewals didn't like to be fully discharged before recharging. In fact, doing that seems to *decrease* their lifespan. NiMH, on the other hand, are more like NiCads in that they can be run dry before recharging. Their advantage over NiCads is NiMH doesn't have the "memory effect" of NiCads. And they are pretty cheap at the above website. I think that solar-powered battery charger is damn cool.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location:
Posts: 18

I have read all the replys regarding the rechargable batteries. I am still not seeing the answer I am looking for. If I bought the NiMh batteries, how much longer would they last than regular Duracell or Energizer batteries?

If I am going to spend 2-3 bucks a battery and 20-50 bucks for a charger, I would like to get some real facts. Can anyone offer some advice?

Thanks to all.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location:
Posts: 40

Wow, that solar charger looks pretty cool - http://www.nimhbattery.com/solar.htm
Except for that it only charges AA batteries, not AAA like we'll need for the Visor - maybe soon.
Dafreeds, the way I see it most chargers are not $20-50, but even if they were it would be worth it in the long run. You pretty much would never have to buy batteries for your Visor again. . .


[This message has been edited by bhammons1 (edited 10-01-1999).]

Registered: Sep 1999
Location:
Posts: 18

bhammons1, I see your point. I also know there are chargers out there in the 10-20 buck range. All I am trying to find out is how long they last?

If the Visor can run for 2-3 months on plain old batteries, how long would the NiMh batteries last with an equivilent amount of usage.

Thanks.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: US Military in Germany
Posts: 46

They last approximately the same time as a standard alkaline, give or take a couple of days. I use rechargeable NiMh batteries for my Kodak dc265 camera which eats batteries alive and the time between battery deaths is about the same for the alkalines and the NiMh batteries. The difference is I have to throw away the alkies and buy new ones.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 69

Same here... I find that the NiMHs last almost as long as alkalines.

You really shouldn't expect them to last as long as alkalines, tho. If you're more concerned with battery life than money, keep feeding the machine alkalines. But if you're willing to swap batteries more often and save some bucks, get the NiHM.

The big issue for me is the dramatic increase in performance over old-skool NiCads. If you've used NiCads for a while then switch to NiMH, the increase in battery life is perceivably alkaline-like.

Yeah.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: US Military in Germany
Posts: 46

It is not just an issue of money although that should be important to anyone. I live in Germany now, I am a military employee. Here they recycle quite a bit more than they do in the states. One of the things they can't recycle very easily or reuse in any way or even dispose of safely is used batteries. Their useful lifespan is measured in weeks whereas they live on in a useless state for probably millenia. My advice to anyone buy three sets of NiMh batteries and a charger then swap, in a pinch on the road buy a set of alkalines but you should see the barrells full of batteries that are thrown away monthly even in this tiny country the size of Oregon.

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Schaumburg, IL
Posts: 151

Peter Strobel (located in Germany BTW) is one of the gurus of battery usage in the Palm devices. He's the developer of Eco-Hack, Battery Monitor, and a number of other power-related software and hardware solutions for the Palm. Check out his website for a full discussion on rechargeable batteries, how to properly treat them, and the types of performance to expect.

Peter also has a tendency of tearing these things apart so if you want to know the intimate details behind your Palm devices, pictures and technical discussions are included. I wouldn't be surprised to see him do a FULL review (inside and out) of the Visor when he can get his hands on one.
http://www.pstec.de/ppp/index.html

Registered: Sep 1999
Location:
Posts: 18

Thanks Jackal for all that great advice. I just checked out Peters page and it proved to be of great assistance. I am sure that I will use the NiMh batteries now.

I know there is a big problem with all these batteries sitting in landfills all over the world. I hate using them myself for I know I use quite a few throughout the year as it is -- and that is before I get my VD. I will give the rechargables a try.

Once again, thanks to all for your assistance. It is sites like this and people like yourselves that make this great.

Registered: Oct 1999
Location:
Posts: 4

Say, I was just off to order some batteries for my (hopefully soon-to-arrive) VD then I realized I had no idea how many I needed. How many AAA's does the VD hold?