NIMH Batteries and Wii Hardware

dean29 · 05-29-2008, 01:16 AM

Anyone else have experience with rechargeable NIMH batteries and your Wii? I bought the Nikko kit and it was horrible. I ended up buying 16 AA NIMH batteries and got a good charger from online. I have had no probelm with the 2600 - 2900mah batteries on the Wiimote. i dont know on the balance board yet until the batteries that came with it die.

Dean

IwataS · 05-29-2008, 02:19 AM

I use Duracell 1800mAh batteries in my Wii Remotes and I never have any charge problems. Is this the Nyko charger you had? My friend has it and it works OK (I've borrowed it once and all his Wii stuff when he was on vacation

)

dean29 · 05-29-2008, 02:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IwataS

I use Duracell 1800mAh batteries in my Wii Remotes and I never have any charge problems. Is this the Nyko charger you had? My friend has it and it works OK (I've borrowed it once and all his Wii stuff when he was on vacation

)

I had the early Nyko one and it was horrible. Battery charge was 2 hours on average. I prefer to get the AA and AAA so i can use it in things other than the Wiimote.

Dean

HubMonkey · 05-29-2008, 03:19 AM

I use the Sanyo Eneloop rechargables I got from costco. It was a pretty good deal on these new technology battery. They claim that they hold 85% of their charge when just stiing for a year. Most NIMH drain themselves much faster than that.

The kit was 26 bucks and came with 8 AA, 4AAA, 2 C adapters, 2 D Adapters, anf the charger in a carry case. I checked around and those were a good deal. I have been using them for about a month and they work really well. They are only 1800mH but are fine for use in the Wii remotes.

Hub

illmasaki · 05-29-2008, 05:15 AM

i bought 2200 mAH energizers with a energizer 5 min charger.

they charge fast and im happy.

i considered getting the nyko or the one you can play while it charges but they come with faults. i hear that it doesnt hold a carge nearly as long(as dean said) and doesnt fit in the wiiwheel or the wiizapper and stuff.
rechargeable batteries are great seeing that u can use them on other items(as dean said) that use batteries.

dean29 · 05-29-2008, 02:59 PM

The newer NIMH have no memory (suppodely) and actually advertise they hold they hold 95% of their charge after a year.

They are claiming that they can be charged thousands of times now but of course that is markting.

I suspect they will last two years with a good charge. The rapid chargers are good but remember than NIMH batteries lose about 1% of their charge while they are just sitting. I bought a good charger (Ordered online) that does 16 but checks the voltage and trickle charges as needed,

It seems to me that the NIMH (one one charge) last longer than the Alkalines but it is hard to say for sure as I just swtiched about 4 weeks ago. I know the NIMH are not as good if you only play your Wii once a month since they will discharge on their own.

Dean

hencam[uk] · 05-29-2008, 03:18 PM

I am pretty sure that the "best" chargers aren't specifically the super-fast chargers as these stress the batteries (which is why the 15 minute chargers have cooling fans etc, but even with these they can cause stress which affects the lifespan of the battery).

It's probably better to get good quality 2700ma batteries with a decent overnight charger, one with overcharge / reverse polarity and overtemp protection. It might take 10 hours to charge your batteries but they'll be in better condition and last longer so they'll thank you for it.

I have 4 wiimotes so if the batteries do run out mid-game I usually just switch to a spare unless they're all in use... You could always buy spare rechargables and keep them charged for when this happens.

The 2700ma batteries I have last for up to a few weeks use (and that might be pretty consistent use of an hour or two every day)

I did consider getting a charging station but decided to get standard rechargables as then you could always use the batteries for other stuff too.

FronzDan · 05-29-2008, 03:51 PM

I'm a big user of NiMH AA's and AAA's...I use them everywhere including Wiimotes (and Balance Board once the alkaline's that came with it die). No problems whatsoever. And I agree with Dean....they don't last through thousands of charges. I'd say around 1.5 - 2 years or hundreds of charges. When they die, they just don't charge anymore. Dead ones usually get really hot when charging which is a good indicator.

sremick · 05-29-2008, 04:03 PM

Yes, the Nyko kit sucks. It probably is NiCad and not even NiMH. The whole pack doesn't even have the juice of a single decent NiMH AA battery, let alone 2. Unfortunately it's pimped hardcore on these forums by people who aren't familiar with technology.

I have a pile of 2500 mAh NiMHs and a quality 1h/trickle charger I got from Thomas Distributing many years ago that I use in all my stuff, including my Wii remotes.

dean29 · 05-29-2008, 04:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hencam[uk]

I am pretty sure that the "best" chargers aren't specifically the super-fast chargers as these stress the batteries (which is why the 15 minute chargers have cooling fans etc, but even with these they can cause stress which affects the lifespan of the battery).

It's probably better to get good quality 2700ma batteries with a decent overnight charger, one with overcharge / reverse polarity and overtemp protection. It might take 10 hours to charge your batteries but they'll be in better condition and last longer so they'll thank you for it.

I have 4 wiimotes so if the batteries do run out mid-game I usually just switch to a spare unless they're all in use... You could always buy spare rechargables and keep them charged for when this happens.

The 2700ma batteries I have last for up to a few weeks use (and that might be pretty consistent use of an hour or two every day)

I did consider getting a charging station but decided to get standard rechargables as then you could always use the batteries for other stuff too.

I always thought the slow chargers were better and I had experienced this many years ago. However, after reading articles, it appears that the one hours "fast chargers" are comparable to the overnight ones as far as the life of the battery goes. I do not trust the 15 minute charges myself and I also dont trust the Energizer, Duraceller, or other cheap chargers that come witht the batteries. This is just pesonal opinion and they may be fine. Right now you can get 2700 - 2900 AA for a good price. Lets keep in mind the quality of the cell is the most important factor. I have 2600mah AA that outlast some of the 2900mah.