Is the Cellpro Multi4 best for my charging needs?

[FlashlightKid]

I am in to process of deciding which hobby charger to buy to charge 18650 and other rechargeable batteries with. I believe that the Cellpro Multi 4 is the best suited for my task without over spending on a charger.

I read the manual and it seems it has both features I want but just wanted to make sure that it can do both and see what else you may recommend. Again I only need it to charge 18650 and similar batteries, not NIMH or battery packs and I don’t want to spend too much if it gives me features I don’t need.

Two features I need:
1. Ability to set the ending charge voltage manually. I want to charge most of my cells to 4.1v in order to keep my batteries longer and some to 3.8v to allow them to remain in storage for a while.
2. Ability to view the MAH charge put into the batteries in one particular charge DIRECTLY on the charger screen. I need this to be accurate enough to help me track the cycles put on the battery so I know about when to recycle them. I was planning on keeping a log for each battery and based on the manufacturer MAH and total accumulated charge MAH I can estimate the number of cycles the battery has been though.

I also had a question about setting the charge current. For AW and Ultrafire 18650 what is the optimal charge current to preserve battery life yet not take days to charge (I don’t need to speed charge).

Thank you for any recommendations and advice.

 

[flashflood]

I am in to process of deciding which hobby charger to buy to charge 18650 and other rechargeable batteries with. I believe that the Cellpro Multi 4 is the best suited for my task without over spending on a charger.

I read the manual and it seems it has both features I want but just wanted to make sure that it can do both and see what else you may recommend. Again I only need it to charge 18650 and similar batteries, not NIMH or battery packs and I don’t want to spend too much if it gives me features I don’t need.

Two features I need:
1. Ability to set the ending charge voltage manually. I want to charge most of my cells to 4.1v in order to keep my batteries longer and some to 3.8v to allow them to remain in storage for a while.
2. Ability to view the MAH charge put into the batteries in one particular charge DIRECTLY on the charger screen. I need this to be accurate enough to help me track the cycles put on the battery so I know about when to recycle them. I was planning on keeping a log for each battery and based on the manufacturer MAH and total accumulated charge MAH I can estimate the number of cycles the battery has been though.

I also had a question about setting the charge current. For AW and Ultrafire 18650 what is the optimal charge current to preserve battery life yet not take days to charge (I don’t need to speed charge).

Thank you for any recommendations and advice.

I have the CellPro Multi4 and am very happy with it. It does all of the things you mentioned. As for charge current, you have several options. For big cells like 18650, I just use the "LiPo Generic" setting, which figures out the optimal current by observing how the battery responds. For small cells like 16340, I use "LiPo Small" which is a constant 350mA. There are also preconfigured options for faster charge (higher current), longer life (stops at 4.1V), and so on, or you can define your own charge profile using the Charge Control Software. The latter is pretty cool -- makes graphs, keeps history, etc.

Finally, if you go with this charger, I recommend Quantum Hobby as a dealer. They are domestic and have inventory, so you'll get your charger in a matter of days -- as opposed to weeks or even months if you order from Revolectrix, which ships direct from Singapore.

 

[FlashlightKid]

Thanks Flashflood for the info. I was wondering it I can still get the MAH charged readout and set the ending charge voltage without hooking up to a computer since I use a Mac and I see that they don't support OSX. So basicly straight from the box without ever hooking it up to the computer can still get the features I need?

Again thank you for the help and thanks for the info on the charging current, I missed that in the manual!

 

[flashflood]

Thanks Flashflood for the info. I was wondering it I can still get the MAH charged readout and set the ending charge voltage without hooking up to a computer since I use a Mac and I see that they don't support OSX. So basicly straight from the box without ever hooking it up to the computer can still get the features I need?

Again thank you for the help and thanks for the info on the charging current, I missed that in the manual!

Yep, that was important to me as well. Lack of OSX support sucks, but I have a cheap-o netbook for just such things. BTW, I researched this a couple of months ago and found that all the other chargers that have software are also Windows only. Including, somewhat ironically, one called iCharger.

On the charger itself, you can see the charge current (mA), initial capacity (%), initial voltage (V), present capacity (%), present voltage (V), elapsed time (H:M:S), charge mode (CC or CV), total charge applied (mAh), and power supply stats (V and A). The only thing you actually need a computer for is creating custom charge profiles, but the 25 built-in ones provide everything I need anyway. I only use the computer for the pretty graphs.

The one other time you might need a computer is if a new battery chemistry comes along that has different characteristics than any existing chemistry (e.g. when LiFePO4 was introduced at 3.2V nominal), and you want to use those new batteries. FMA/Revolectrix would issue a firmware update to support this, and you'd need a computer to get it.

Other than that, you're good to go.

 

[FlashlightKid]

Thank you very much for your help Flashflood!