Anyone familiar with the XTAR MP1S single-cell charger?

[Danielight]

I ordered the XTAR MP1S charger along with one EagleTac (Panasonic) 3100mAh 18650. Probably not a top-of-the-line charger, but should get me by for what I need. Just curious to see if any of you are familiar with this unit, and are there any issues to watch?

[postieboy]

I have successfully used an Xtar MP1 for over a year now to top up the 18650 used in my flashlight/bicycle headlight I use to commute to work.

I originally purchased it as an emergency charger to keep in my desk at work. But now use it as my main charger for this system. It just sits on my desk plugged into the computer via USB. It is not a fast charger as it takes quite some time to charge and I always take the battery out when the green light indicates full charge. I measure 4.19v at this point and the battery is basically at room temperature.

[Danielight]

I have successfully used an Xtar MP1 for over a year now to top up the 18650 used in my flashlight/bicycle headlight I use to commute to work.

I originally purchased it as an emergency charger to keep in my desk at work. But now use it as my main charger for this system. It just sits on my desk plugged into the computer via USB. It is not a fast charger as it takes quite some time to charge and I always take the battery out when the green light indicates full charge. I measure 4.19v at this point and the battery is basically at room temperature.

Thanks for the response, postieboy. I bought this charger when I bought my new EagleTac light and an 18650 battery, but wasn't sure how good it would be. Glad to hear it's working fine for you. I was impressed with how small it is ... would be ideal to run on a desktop from your PC.

[nekdo12]

Two of mine charge till 4,17V and one till 4,22V

[hank]

>Two of mine charge till 4,17V and one till 4,22V

4.22 is not so good, it's cutting off too late? Would they exchange it if you asked?

If you leave them in after the green light, does the voltage keep increasing over time?

[Danielight]

How are you checking your batteries after they have been charged? If you are using a digital multimeter, what kind? any recommendations for a reasonably inexpensive DMM? I don't own one yet.

[Danielight]

As an update to my previous post, I bought an Innova Equus 3300 from WalMart for about $13. Used it to test my EagleTac 3100 18650, and it showed the charge to be 4.07 v. DMM appears to be working OK. (I haven't actually had theh chance to test the XTAR charger yet.)

[RBWNY]

As an update to my previous post, I bought an Innova Equus 3300 from WalMart for about $13. Used it to test my EagleTac 3100 18650, and it showed the charge to be 4.07 v. DMM appears to be working OK. (I haven't actually had theh chance to test the XTAR charger yet.)

... 4.07 is a little low! Do you have the DMM on the correct setting? You should at least be reading 4.15 or higher.

[Danielight]

... 4.07 is a little low! Do you have the DMM on the correct setting? You should at least be reading 4.15 or higher.

The Equus 3300 offers a couple of options for testing batteries. For my EagleTac 18650, I tested it on BAT 9V and on DCV 20V. Both produced readings between 4.07 and 4.09 V. Keep in mind that the battery isn't freshly charged ... I have been using it for about a month. At what voltage should I recharge it?

[Joe Talmadge]

>Two of mine charge till 4,17V and one till 4,22V

4.22 is not so good, it's cutting off too late? Would they exchange it if you asked?

If you leave them in after the green light, does the voltage keep increasing over time?

Hank, I think 4.22 is fine, the specs call for 4.20 +-.05. So 4.25V and below is in spec -- provided the battery is being charged with the proper algorithm. At least some of the Xtars use a decent algorithm, anyone know if we can assume that they all do? In any case, I'm happy with an earlier cutoff for cycle life, but 4.22 is nothing to worry about.

nekdo12: your chargers charge *every* battery to 4.17 and 4.22, no matter how old the battery is, etc?

[lebox97]

guy's - do not confuse the Xtar MP1 and the new upgrade model MP1S which became available in December 2011.

Per Xtar - "the MP1S, is the upgrade version of MP1.
MP1S can charge 14500, 10440, 16340, 18650, 15270 with connectors, which MP1 cannot."

--------

An info refresher from another thread:
Here is open circuit "Resting" Voltage for Li-ion:
4.3 volts = OVER CHARGED!!! (WARNING: Defective charger, discontinue it’s use!)
4.2 volts 100%
4.1 about 90%
4.0 about 80% (I usually top them up back around here)
3.9 about 60%
3.8 about 40%
3.7 about 20%
3.6 empty for practical purposes
<3.5 = over-discharged
Continually discharging below 3.7v down to 2.7v PTC cutoff will damage cell and reduce life.
“0” volts means the Protection Circuit has been tripped


Cheers
Tod

The Equus 3300 offers a couple of options for testing batteries. For my EagleTac 18650, I tested it on BAT 9V and on DCV 20V. Both produced readings between 4.07 and 4.09 V. Keep in mind that the battery isn't freshly charged ... I have been using it for about a month. At what voltage should I recharge it?

[nekdo12]

Hank, I think 4.22 is fine, the specs call for 4.20 +-.05. So 4.25V and below is in spec -- provided the battery is being charged with the proper algorithm. At least some of the Xtars use a decent algorithm, anyone know if we can assume that they all do? In any case, I'm happy with an earlier cutoff for cycle life, but 4.22 is nothing to worry about.

nekdo12: your chargers charge *every* battery to 4.17 and 4.22, no matter how old the battery is, etc?

Every battery. Tested with two different DMMs.
Oldest battery is 1,5 year old, youngest 3 weeks.

[Danielight]

About how often do you typically check the voltage on your batteries? I realize that it's going to depend on how much you use the flashlight that holds the battery. As a general rule of thumb, every day? Every week? Twice a week?

[kosPap]

guy's - do not confuse the Xtar MP1 and the new upgrade model MP1S which became available in December 2011.

-------

An info refresher from another thread:
Here is open circuit "Resting" Voltage for Li-ion:
4.3 volts = OVER CHARGED!!! (WARNING: Defective charger, discontinue it’s use!)
4.2 volts 100%
4.1 about 90%
4.0 about 80% (I usually top them up back around here)
3.9 about 60%
3.8 about 40%
3.7 about 20%
3.6 empty for practical purposes
<3.5 = over-discharged
Continually discharging below 3.7v down to 2.7v PTC cutoff will damage cell and reduce life.
“0” volts means the Protection Circuit has been tripped

is this overcharging by the MP1 (older version)...then it is PERFECT for those Sanyo cells that charge at 4.3 Volts!

[Red23]

Hi there

I just received a MP1S and a pair of Xtar 3100 maH batteries. After 10 minutes of the charger on the red light goes away and there is no light. When I remove the battery a green light came on. Would using a wall plug USB converter damage the cell/charger or is this just how the charger stops over charging and will just resume when its safe to do so?

Thanks

[MattSPL]

I have an MP1. Did you get a manual with the MP1S?

As far as i know, Red means charging, Green means complete. I'm not sure if no light should happen.

I've used a 750mA mains USB adapter(that was supplied with my MP2), and an iphone charger which is 1000mA. Both work fine. The MP1(S) will still output 500mA into the battery, so its ok.