need charger advice

I can use some adice in choosing a new charger.
Looking for on that charges both Li-ion and Ni-mh cells in 18640,16340,15270, AA and AAA size.
Option for12v car charging or usb chargin is a plus but not a must.

I've narrowed it down to these 3:

xtar vc4


Nitecore D4


Opus BT - C3100 V2.2


Are these similar to eachother or is one better in quality, safety or options?

I'm biassed to Nitecore because of good feedback on the brand in general (not specific to this charger) but I can't see the differences anymore through all the specs.

Some motivated advice is appreciated

They are all good chargers tbh, will not go wrong with any you have selected. For me the opus is the best one, i had a vc4 and too problematic to get even 0.5a charge across 4 bays! which is too slow even if you can get it with the added expense of a wall plug. The opus handles 1a across 4 bays with ease , prefer the read out over dials too which look fancy but not brilliant for accuracy imo.

Opus for me by a long way...........

Been using mine every day for months issue free, its working hard too and can be on for up to 16-18hrs a day.

I have and use all 3 of these. The Nitecore D4 is reliable, but is a bit slow and doesn't give you how much charge has gone into the cell, which is handy ( and fun for numbers geeks like me). The VP4 gives you the charge put into the cell in mah but no discharge function and not my favourite display either. The Opus ticks all of the boxes, and can charge one cell at 2000ma if you charge it alone. You've picked 3 good chargers there, but I agree with ven, Opus all the way!

I have the D2 & Opus BT-C3100 V2.2

For small & low capacity cells; i.e. 800mAh 14400, 600mAh 16340, etc... the Nitecore is great. BUT, when it comes to high capacity cells; i.e. 3500mAh 18650, the only 'fast' option is to charge one or 2 at a time (one on each of the 2 circuits) on the Nitecore D4. It also handles LiFePO4 cells.

The Opus, is really great in that regard, 4 independent channels, each one capable of charging at up to 2000mA, plus it has two testing & a refresh option.

The only drawbacks I've come across with the Opus are:
1> it doesn't adjust for LiFePO4 cells... Theoretically, you can charge them, but only if you're willing to sit there, watching the charger, ready to pull the cell(s) off the charger the second it(they) reaches 3.8V.
2> once fully charged, I find that you need to pull the batteries immediately, or they will begin to loose voltage in just a couple minutes. It's not the batteries, these same batteries will sit at 4.20V for up to a couple of hours if pulled from charger as soon as it displays "FULL".
3> will sometimes overcharge, at least according to the display. I had one older cell charged up to 4.24V & a couple more went up to 4.22V before discharge began during testing cycle. Again, that's according to the Opus display, I don't have a multi-meter to verify with.

Don't know if these minor issues have been fixed with the BT-C3400 V3.1? I decided not to get that model (even though it's the newest one) because in discharge, testing, & refresh modes, it cuts off discharge at 3.1V instead of 2.8V, so I decided on the older model for more complete testing of older cells pulled from laptop battery packs.

Does this mean you've ruled out the LiitoKala 500 already?

Not saying its perfect for long term life, may loose a few cycles over the 300 or 500 cell dependent(real life would you notice, does anyone actually count how many charge cycles or part cycles they do.............not me anyway. Cells are too cheap to worry about an extra few charges over the years of use imho anyway.), but up to 4.25v is in spec with most chargers. They usually state 4.2v + or - 0.05v so 4.15v-4.25v is within the spec. So nothing to worry about , my wp6 II charges to 4.22v and as long as i use a set of cells on there, all is good. By that i mean, say a multi cells light which eats 4 x 18650's, to make sure the 4 are charged on that charger and not mixed with another that may charge to 4.19v(just an example).

I would not put the opus up there with some Xtar chargers in the quality, but for value it does make a good option for a pretty flexible charger.

ven said:

I would not put the opus up there with some Xtar chargers in the quality, but for value it does make a good option for a pretty flexible charger.

Click to expand...

There appears to be little if any significant quality difference between the Opus, XTAR and Liitokala. So my advice would be to choose the one that has the best combination of features for your environment.

Have no experience with the XTAR or Nitecore, but I do have the Opus BT-C3400. But of between the first two, I'll be getting the XTAR VC4 and see how goes it.

Hope you find what you're looking for and enjoy!

Thanks everyone for experiences and advice.
The liitokala I'd never heard of before.
I'll be reading some more specs and make my choice.
Seems I can't go wrong with any

The LiitoKala engineer 500 undercharges the NiMH while on Nor test mode.. Measured voltage after Nor test is around 1.31~1.36V. On charge mode, it terminates higher, up to 1.47

The Nitecore D4 charges to about 1.41 but you can't really tell if the cell is in good working condition..

Currently testing the AAA cell which charges fine in D4, but shows <50 mAh charged capacity with the LiitoKala . On the Opus 3100, it only registers 8mAh , and the discharge refresh mode is done already

Other than that, I have the VC2, VC2 Plus Master, VP2 and XP1, all of which are non analysing (like the D4)

I like the LiitoKala engineer Lii 500- very impressed with its features.

I was going to buy the opus but i was put off by the high spike pulse charging method it uses and different updated versions.

I really appreciate all the feedback and experiences guys.
This definitely helped me make up my mind!

I decided to go with the Xtar VC4.
In the end I picked this one because it's powered by an usb compatible powercable which allows me to hook it up to my solar panel
Now the waiting begins.

Splendid! Sure would like to hear your POV on it when you do.

Enjoy!