robgo2 Posted August 30, 2017 Share #41 Posted August 30, 2017 Advertisement (gone after registration) You got the point. It is rather new. No one for sure knows whether it is safe or not. If you trust history, then we can onky use other brand and other third oarty charger for refetence. The wiseman says, encourage more and more others to be the skinny pigs. But if yhe battery is cheap, OK to be the skinny oig. Well, then I guess I'm one of the guinea pigs. You're welcome. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted August 30, 2017 Posted August 30, 2017 Hi robgo2, Take a look here Universal Travel Charger for SL. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Lazytiger Posted August 30, 2017 Share #42 Posted August 30, 2017 Well, then I guess I'm one of the guinea pigs. You're welcome. Good thing with us guinea pigs is that without us, we'd all be still freezing in caves looking afraid at the dangers a fireplace might mean to our homes 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leicaiste Posted August 30, 2017 Share #43 Posted August 30, 2017 (edited) You got the point. It is rather new. No one for sure knows whether it is safe or not. If you trust history, then we can onky use other brand and other third oarty charger for refetence. The wiseman says, encourage more and more others to be the skinny pigs. But if yhe battery is cheap, OK to be the skinny oig. I felt I was the guinea pig for so many Leica cameras, lenses and accessories that I don't really care about being one for a professional battery and charger maker. Leica changed battery sizes on about every new digital camera. [emoji6] Edited August 30, 2017 by Leicaiste 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gvaliquette Posted August 30, 2017 Share #44 Posted August 30, 2017 ... Leica changed battery sizes on about every new digital camera. [emoji6] For digital Leicas, which become dead bricks when their batteries die, as far as I know, only the M8 and M9 share a common battery! Guy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMRMAN Posted October 30, 2018 Share #45 Posted October 30, 2018 On 8/27/2017 at 10:47 PM, robgo2 said: Here is the link to it on Amazon. Unfortunately, it is now listed as "unavailable" with no info on when they might have it back in stock. This thread may have caused a run on it. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074XG46SB/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Fortunately, you can get it directly from the Nitecore Store. Click on the discount coupon code in this link: showthread.php Rob Hmm.. don't ship to Europe anymore:( Pity here it is getting tedious to find a decent battery firm:) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
thighslapper Posted October 30, 2018 Share #46 Posted October 30, 2018 They have a UK distributor: https://www.nitecore.co.uk/Shop/Products/Chargers.html They will ship anywhere Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vanhulsenbeek Posted October 30, 2018 Share #47 Posted October 30, 2018 (edited) Advertisement (gone after registration) And it works well, gives more detail about the loading process, is lighter and smaller and attaches to a USB charger, so one does not need one more mains-cable. Edited October 30, 2018 by vanhulsenbeek Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
howiebrou Posted October 31, 2018 Share #48 Posted October 31, 2018 I use Nitecore for my Q, 240 and SL. My Leica chargers have been relegated to the cupboard...I think Leica should consider supplying nitecore chargers with its products. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramarren Posted October 31, 2018 Share #49 Posted October 31, 2018 17 minutes ago, howiebrou said: I use Nitecore for my Q, 240 and SL. My Leica chargers have been relegated to the cupboard...I think Leica should consider supplying nitecore chargers with its products. I use Nitecore chargers for my M-D and CL, and used them for my SL, but I find that Leica's chargers actually charge their batteries a bit more than Nitecore chargers do, closer to capacity. So I carry the Nitecore chargers for convenience on the road and when traveling, but at home I charge with the Leica chargers. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
laowai_ Posted October 31, 2018 Share #50 Posted October 31, 2018 1 hour ago, ramarren said: I use Nitecore chargers for my M-D and CL, and used them for my SL, but I find that Leica's chargers actually charge their batteries a bit more than Nitecore chargers do, closer to capacity. So I carry the Nitecore chargers for convenience on the road and when traveling, but at home I charge with the Leica chargers. Hi ramarren, I‘d be interested to understand how you come to the conclusion that one type of charger charges the some battery more than the other type of charger. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
howiebrou Posted October 31, 2018 Share #51 Posted October 31, 2018 39 minutes ago, laowai_ said: Hi ramarren, I‘d be interested to understand how you come to the conclusion that one type of charger charges the some battery more than the other type of charger. One previous post actually stated the opposite, i.e. that Nitecore continued to charge even after the Leica charger had finished. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramarren Posted October 31, 2018 Share #52 Posted October 31, 2018 1 hour ago, laowai_ said: Hi ramarren, I‘d be interested to understand how you come to the conclusion that one type of charger charges the some battery more than the other type of charger. I first began to notice that something was different because I was charging the battery in my M-D a bit more frequently. Then I put a battery freshly charged (with a one hour wait period) out of the Leica charger into the M-D, and the battery indication said "100%". When I put the same battery charged by the Nitecore charger into the same camera, the battery indication says "85%". Tests with an accurate VOM show the battery voltage after charging at 0.3 to 0.4 V different between the two chargers. I've repeated this same test with the CL batteries and find a similar differential between the Leica and the Nitecore chargers in terms of the voltage difference of fully charged batteries. My takeaway on this is that the Nitecore chargers are very good for their cost, but the Leica chargers do a better, more complete job. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
laowai_ Posted October 31, 2018 Share #53 Posted October 31, 2018 9 hours ago, ramarren said: I first began to notice that something was different because I was charging the battery in my M-D a bit more frequently. Then I put a battery freshly charged (with a one hour wait period) out of the Leica charger into the M-D, and the battery indication said "100%". When I put the same battery charged by the Nitecore charger into the same camera, the battery indication says "85%". Tests with an accurate VOM show the battery voltage after charging at 0.3 to 0.4 V different between the two chargers. I've repeated this same test with the CL batteries and find a similar differential between the Leica and the Nitecore chargers in terms of the voltage difference of fully charged batteries. My takeaway on this is that the Nitecore chargers are very good for their cost, but the Leica chargers do a better, more complete job. Hi ramarren, That is a compelling experiment! I know very little about battery technology, electro-chemistry and other relevant topics, I am just another guy poking around the internet. Citing from a DgiKey tutorial: https://www.digikey.com/en/articles/techzone/2016/sep/a-designer-guide-fast-lithium-ion-battery-charging first the state that overcharging a battery can severely damage the battery. The they describe the typical charge cycle: […]the battery is typically charged at a constant current of 0.5 C or less until the battery voltage reaches 4.1 or 4.2 V (depending on the exact electrochemistry). When the battery voltage reaches 4.1 or 4.2 V, the charger switches to a “constant voltage” phase to eliminate overcharging. Superior battery chargers manage the transition from constant current to constant voltage smoothly to ensure maximum capacity is reached without risking damage to the battery. Maintaining a constant voltage gradually reduces the current until it reaches around 0.1 C, at which point charging is terminated. If the charger is left connected to the battery, a periodic ‘top up’ charge is applied to counteract battery self discharge. The top-up charge is typically initiated when the open-circuit voltage of the battery drops to less than 3.9 to 4 V, and terminates when the full-charge voltage of 4.1 to 4.2 V is again attained. Not sure if your experiment provides enough information to conclude that one charger is better than the other. As a minimum you would likely have to measure the charge current and understand where in the charge cycle you are for each charger. Neither a highe price nor a fancy display makes a superior charger. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramarren Posted October 31, 2018 Share #54 Posted October 31, 2018 It's at best a quick test. The Nitecore chargers are convenient as they use USB power rather than mains voltage. This means I can keep all my devices (iPhone, iPad Pro, camera, etc) charged with the same pair of 2.1A USB Apple chargers (or the 2.1A dual-port third party charger) that I have for the iPad Pro. The readouts are neat but mostly irrelevant if the unit does it job well, and the Nitecore chargers do a good job. They are small, and have limited space for heat dissipation, etc. I do like the battery internal temperature readout they provide. I think they're calibrated to keep the battery safely below the damage and danger threshold when charging, and stop early to put a cap on any possibility of over-charging damage (which can include explosion with Li-Ion cells). They do a full charge pretty quick, and they're also affordably priced. The Leica chargers are expensive and much larger. That's plenty of space for more sophisticated circuitry and cooling, and they charge a battery from flat much more slowly. They have more control of the input voltage since they connect directly to the mains and have their own AC->DC converter and voltage regulator in each one of them. The '80%' indicator to full charge indication is very slow and I suspect they're carefully monitoring static voltage and battery temperature, tapering the charge, there trying to eke the greatest storage capacity they can without risking damage. What is a superior charger? Surely one that achieves the best charging speed and the fullest charge while promoting the best life for the battery. What I see here is two chargers on that balance, one does the faster charge but a little less capacity, the other does a fuller charge but takes a bit more time. They're both good; the price makes a couple of Nitecore chargers worthwhile along with an OEM charger. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
thighslapper Posted October 31, 2018 Share #55 Posted October 31, 2018 I'd confirm Godfrey's conclusions ..... SL batteries from the Nitecore go almost immediately from 'full' to one bar down after being in the camera for a short period of time and a dozen shots or so..... so they are not 100% charged as far as the camera is concerned. They don't last quite as long but the difference is not enough to be really noticeable in general use. The light, compact package and convenience of inbuilt USB connector far outweighs the reduced capacity. These days I carry a single syncwire plug with 4 usb outlets that enables me to charge CL, SL, iPhone and iPad simultaneously without a bag of chargers and cables. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pico Posted October 31, 2018 Share #56 Posted October 31, 2018 (edited) I'm a lazy bastard and have *115V AC in my vehicle as well as two full-time-on 12V and four part-time 12V. * and I'll bet a lot of our members do, too Edited October 31, 2018 by pico Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmradman Posted October 31, 2018 Share #57 Posted October 31, 2018 3 hours ago, pico said: I'm a lazy bastard and have *115V AC in my vehicle as well as two full-time-on 12V and four part-time 12V. * and I'll bet a lot of our members do, too Some may, majority not really. I can imagine in addition to 115VAC charger you have also an axe, shovel, winch and probably some sort of fire arm in the vehicle. As much as i would love to have such kit handy/in the car, i don't really need it in gentile Europe, some of the stuff may also be illegal. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pico Posted November 1, 2018 Share #58 Posted November 1, 2018 (edited) 1 hour ago, mmradman said: Some may, majority not really. I can imagine in addition to 115VAC charger you have also an axe, shovel, winch and probably some sort of fire arm in the vehicle. Funny, but I do have this fire-axe in the back, but only because I have yet to deliver it. The power circuits are factory equipment, properly fused and on relays where appropriate. No firearms, ever. Edited November 1, 2018 by pico Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemgb Posted November 4, 2018 Share #59 Posted November 4, 2018 On 10/31/2018 at 6:08 PM, mmradman said: Some may, majority not really. I can imagine in addition to 115VAC charger you have also an axe, shovel, winch and probably some sort of fire arm in the vehicle. As much as i would love to have such kit handy/in the car, i don't really need it in gentile Europe, some of the stuff may also be illegal. Add me to the list, charger, axe, shovel and winch, as well as a lot more recovery gear, I use my vehicle off road and have needed to pull myself out of trouble on occasion. 😁 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmradman Posted November 4, 2018 Share #60 Posted November 4, 2018 On 11/1/2018 at 12:06 AM, pico said: Funny, but I do have this fire-axe in the back, but only because I have yet to deliver it. The power circuits are factory equipment, properly fused and on relays where appropriate. No firearms, ever. Ah, satanic cult axe is out again. With such powers at your finger tips do you really need battery charger? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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