Maha 808m vs. 801d vs. 800d

[bp044]

Let's assume I only charge Eneloop AA and AAA, eight at a time and In no rush .
In which way is the 808m superior to the the other two models ? Is it better built ?,will it perform better in charging and discharging ? Is the display better or are the non -spring loaded contacts better ? Is the additional space between cells an advantage for my application.
I'm ok with the additional cost if the 808m is truly better in some respect.
Please help me decide

 

[SilverFox]

Hello Bp,

If you ever plan on using C or D cells, go with the 808M.

If you use "crap" cells, or plan to use cells with capacities higher than 2000 mAh, go with the 801D and use it at its default charge rate.

If you use quality cells with capacities of 2000 mAh or under, recycle them when the drop below 80% of their initial capacity, and have applications that typically run 2 hours or more, go with the 800S and use it at its default charge rate.

Of course the 801D can also charge at 1000 mA utilizing the soft charge feature, so it may be the best choice. It comes down to what cells you want to use and how bothered you are pressing an additional control button when starting the charge.

Tom

 

[bp044]

Re: Maha 808m vs. 801d vs. 800s

Hello Bp,

If you ever plan on using C or D cells, go with the 808M.

If you use "crap" cells, or plan to use cells with capacities higher than 2000 mAh, go with the 801D and use it at its default charge rate.

If you use quality cells with capacities of 2000 mAh or under, recycle them when the drop below 80% of their initial capacity, and have applications that typically run 2 hours or more, go with the 800S and use it at its default charge rate.

Of course the 801D can also charge at 1000 mA utilizing the soft charge feature, so it may be the best choice. It comes down to what cells you want to use and how bothered you are pressing an additional control button when starting the charge.

Tom

If the virtues of wide spacing , non-spring loaded cell contacts or any other advantages that I'm not aware of in the 808m I would go for the extra cost . Any further thoughts welcome

 

[Power Me Up]

Re: Maha 808m vs. 801d vs. 800s

If the virtues of wide spacing , non-spring loaded cell contacts or any other advantages that I'm not aware of in the 808m I would go for the extra cost . Any further thoughts welcome

The LCD screen is backlit on the C808M, but not on the C801D or C800S.

I've seen reports that AA and AAA cells can be a bit hard to get out of the C808M.

 

[AndyTiedye]

Hello Bp,

If you ever plan on using C or D cells, go with the 808M.

If you use "crap" cells, or plan to use cells with capacities higher than 2000 mAh, go with the 801D and use it at its default charge rate.

Most non-crap C and D cells have capacities greater than 2000 mAh.

 

[bcwang]

The wider spacing is definitely and advantage as cells stay cooler. I use an 808M and my friend uses an 801D and he says his cells get pretty toasty but mine always feel pretty cool.

 

[Kremer]

I have an 808m, there's no problem getting AA/AAA in and out of it. you just have to be aware they are at the bottom of a fairly deep well. It's when packing it full of C's that I have a little issue getting them out, hard to find a fingerhold to get started, like I've heard AA's with the 800S is. I keep a plastic knife next to the charger for that purpose, and itisn't really necessary, but it makes things easier when working with a bay full of C's. I think I may call Thomas/Maha and see if the funky display has been corrected on newer ones.

 

[bp044]

I have an 808m, there's no problem getting AA/AAA in and out of it. you just have to be aware they are at the bottom of a fairly deep well. It's when packing it full of C's that I have a little issue getting them out, hard to find a fingerhold to get started, like I've heard AA's with the 800S is. I keep a plastic knife next to the charger for that purpose, and itisn't really necessary, but it makes things easier when working with a bay full of C's. I think I may call Thomas/Maha and see if the funky display has been corrected on newer ones.

What was funky about the display? Will you let us know if you get the answer ?

 

[Kremer]

What was funky about the display? Will you let us know if you get the answer ?

The indicators for the left two bays sometimes don't like up correctly, or only halfway, or are just hard to see, even at the right angle, and the charging/done/soft/recondition words are also funkily lit up or just plain difficult to see. The charger has always worked perfectly for me, it's just the display.

I also agree that the extra space inside it makes for nice cool cells, well maybe not cool, but no more than a slight bit warm.
~Dougk

 

[BVH]

No issues for me getting AA's out of my 808M.

 

[Kremer]

Will you let us know if you get the answer ?

I shot an email to Thomas Distributing after I posted this, they are sending a new unit and prepaid return label for the existing one, no questions asked. I know it's been mentioned a hundred times, but the Thomas people are top notch.
~Dougk

 

[Pokerstud]

From Thomas distributing:

" The MHC801D will also charge the new ENELOOP rechargeable batteries from SANYO with absolute precision and safety. "

 

[bp044]

From Thomas distributing:

" The MHC801D will also charge the new ENELOOP rechargeable batteries from SANYO with absolute precision and safety. "

Does this mean the 801d and the 800s WILLNOT charge the new Eneloop cells "with absolute precision and safety " ?

 

[Canuke]

Does this mean the 801d and the 800s WILLNOT charge the new Eneloop cells "with absolute precision and safety " ?

My new 808M just did a batch of 8 Eneloops without a hitch.

 

[BVH]

I've charged Eneloops in my 808M since they came out with no issues.

 

[bp044]

Does this mean the 801d and the 800s WILLNOT charge the new Eneloop cells "with absolute precision and safety " ?

My question was mis -understood. I was questioning the literature from the the maha company which contained the above statement in quotation marks.the question is ; will the the 808m provide better performance then the 801d or the 800s ? Any opinions ?

 

[Power Me Up]

My question was mis -understood. I was questioning the literature from the the maha company which contained the above statement in quotation marks.the question is ; will the the 808m provide better performance then the 801d or the 800s ? Any opinions ?

As far as charging goes, I believe there isn't any real difference between the C808M and the C801D except for the ability to charge C & D cells - both chargers charge at 2A and use the same charge termination algorithm.

The C800S has a default charge rate of 1A which is below the recommended 0.5C to 1C charging rate for high capacity NiMH cells which could cause it to miss terminatations, although I haven't heard of any reports of that occurring.

Overall, I think that you would be happy with any of them.

If you need to charge C & D cells now or possibly in the future, get the C808M. Otherwise, get the C801D unless you're not in any hurry and want to save a few dollars, in which case, just get the C800S.

 

[SafetyBob]

Is Thomas Distributing a good place to get one of these C808M chargers? Can anyone recommend anything else to recharge AA, C & D NiMH batteries? The reason I ask is that it has been recommended to me that I purchase one charger for NiMH and a separate on for Li-ion's.

Can someone also make sure I have this right, I want to have the higher charging rate of the C808M charger when I start using those 10,000mA D cells because if I use one of the other chargers, it's electronics can become confused as to when to stop charging when using that 1/2amp or 1A charge rate. I thought it was better to charge slowly or does that pertain to Li-ion and NiMH batteries are much more robust and able to take a high charge rate?

Bob E.

 

[Turbo DV8]

Using the 808's full 2A charge rate to charge a 12,000 mAh D cell is charging at only 0.17C, and the 808 terminates just fine at that rate. I have had termination problems using the 1A rate on these cells while using a cooling fan over the cells. It seems for me that using the cooling fans I so fastidiously hung over my 808 and three BC-900's very often causes the cells to keep charging indefinitely. Within 1-2 minutes of turning off the fan, the cells all terminate.