Curious_character
Flashlight Enthusiast
- Joined
- Nov 10, 2006
- Messages
- 1,211
I just got my first three CR123A size LiFePO4 cells from AW.
One of the first things I did was check the run time of my P1D CE using one of the cells, and I ended up letting it go until the light was almost out. When I pulled the battery, its open circuit voltage was 1.73 V, which is below the minimum allowable voltage of 2.0. But it recharged fine, and the capacity was just about identical to the other two which hadn't been abused.
The three cells all measured 370 - 380 mAh at 1 amp, to 2.0 volts. For comparison, a Battery Station CR123A primary lithium cell measured 913 mAh to 2.0 volts, a Battery Station protected RCR123A Li-ion cell was 517 mAh to 3.0 V., and an AW protected RCR123A Li-ion cell was 495 mAh to 3.0 V. So if your light is drawing about 1 A from the battery (typical for the brighter lights), expect a primary lithium cell to last about 2.5 times as long as one charge of a LiFePO4 cell. The LiFePO4 cell will also last very roughly half as long as a 3.7 volt Li-ion cell, depending on how the regulator reacts to the different voltages. (It has about 60% the energy of a 3.7 volt Li-ion cell at 1 A.)
c_c
One of the first things I did was check the run time of my P1D CE using one of the cells, and I ended up letting it go until the light was almost out. When I pulled the battery, its open circuit voltage was 1.73 V, which is below the minimum allowable voltage of 2.0. But it recharged fine, and the capacity was just about identical to the other two which hadn't been abused.
The three cells all measured 370 - 380 mAh at 1 amp, to 2.0 volts. For comparison, a Battery Station CR123A primary lithium cell measured 913 mAh to 2.0 volts, a Battery Station protected RCR123A Li-ion cell was 517 mAh to 3.0 V., and an AW protected RCR123A Li-ion cell was 495 mAh to 3.0 V. So if your light is drawing about 1 A from the battery (typical for the brighter lights), expect a primary lithium cell to last about 2.5 times as long as one charge of a LiFePO4 cell. The LiFePO4 cell will also last very roughly half as long as a 3.7 volt Li-ion cell, depending on how the regulator reacts to the different voltages. (It has about 60% the energy of a 3.7 volt Li-ion cell at 1 A.)
c_c
