Re: Malkoff Runtime Graphs - CR123/Alkaline Comparo (Weekly Updates!)
I take your point. Personally, I'd rather have full output for 8 hours 200 times, than full output for 10 hours 50 times. I've made that point elsewhere. Just one guy's opinion, but the standard eneloops have much to offer.
This is weird, I never saw yours and flatlines posts last night, then they were there today.
I know you prefer standard eneloops because of the recharge cycle count. My statement really was for those that are just looking for the maximum amount of runtime. In this test the pro got 2hrs more runtime at near full output
in some of the other tests, the pro only got .5-1hr more runtime. So in this particular test we are seeing a bigger gap between the 2. That is all I meant by the statement that the pro really shined.
Life expectancy of eneloops I feel is a different story. I bought all my eneloops in Dec 2016, so we will see how they hold up.
The stated claim of 500 cycles for the pros is a very long time for the average user. I personally think a lot of this is just marketing hype.
This hype is similar to when you go to the autoparts store and buy into the lifetime warranty. Sounds great but the product is inferior to the product with a 1yr warranty and will have to be replaced several times; where the 1yr warranty product will continue without issue (in most cases). Okay, probably not the best analogy as we know standard eneloops have proven to be be reliable, but you can get my point about the marketing BS.
Maybe a better analogy would be long life bulbs/LED lights... I have switched most of my bulbs over to LED in my house, life is claimed to be yrs on the leds but I have had several go out on me in a short amount of time. Life of these is nowhere near what they claim. Standard bulbs and compact fluorescents have shown better life but still the compacts do not last near as long as they claim either....and i can't really say i have seen any improvements on the utility bill by running these lower drawing bulbs.
anyway, I am getting off track and rambling, but i hope some of this makes sense. I do understand that most will choose the standard eneloops; which is why I will start to test these more than the pros unless the pros are requested. Eventually i will probably just test them all just so we can see all the options.
So then it would appear that the M31LLL *is* in regulation at 1.2v. Or else we're being fooled by the Eneloop's legendary voltage stability (aka "poor man's regulation").
I suppose the easiest way to find out is to do a test with an alkaline. If it still looks regulated, then it *is* regulated.
--flatline
I have already tested alkaline on this unless you mean 2x alkaline. I need to see what i have done with this module and make sure i have a comparison graph
I'm glad to see the "Actual Current Draw" column in your spec sheets, even if it's currently empty.
If I can get permission to use the power supply we have at work, I would like to measure the current draw of, for instance, the M31LL at every voltage increment in its supported voltage range (.8, .9, 1.0, 1.1...3.2) and draw the curve. I'd like to do the same thing for the M61LL to have a better understanding of how the direct drive circuit works once the voltage gets below 3.4v.
Anyways, this is something I've been thinking about for a while. Should be a fun exercise.
--flatline
I have some of the M31 series tested but I had no plans to test every increment, just what would actually e used. i will input some of what i have into my specs sheet so you can see. I can also take one of the modules (M31LL) and show you what i come up with.
I am not sure if i can do every point increment as my power supply is very sensitive and cannot always be dialed in to what I want. I have already spend several hours on just a few modules.
I will report back in a bit to see what i can come up with for you on this. Also note that every module will be slightly different on actual current draw. Then if you wish to still test yours at work, you can compare and see if the curve matches between our results
