Need a AA charger quickly

[100man]

Hi everyone,

I'm going on a business trip to Zurich on Saturday which doesn't leave me any time to order a charger from the net. Is there a charger that is sold in a local store (Walmart, BB, CC) that will do the job. My current charger is a Maha C401FS that has a power adapter that only accepts 120V 60hz. Voltage in Zurich is 230V 50hz. The batteries that I need to charge are Duracell AA rebranded eneloops.

This might be off topic but anyone know of a good travel voltage adapter?

Ben

 

[Mr Happy]

My suggestion would be either of the Duracell Power Gauge or Duracell Mobile chargers, probably found in Target or Wal-Mart. The Duracell Mobile charger comes with 4 Duracell PreCharged cells. It also has a USB power output for mobile powering and charging of USB devices.

Voltage adapters are a bit limited for travel. Often they are only intended for short periods of use and can be a bit bulky.

 

[100man]

Thanks for the reply.

Another option I have is to purchase another power brick that is capable of 230V 50hz and can supply 12v 1A. I know there might be warranty issues here but it just might work.

Any objections?

 

[Mr Happy]

If you make sure it has a regulated output and you match the plug and polarity at the charger it should be fine. You can often get universal adapters with a selectable output voltage and a variety of plugs for different equipment, for example at Radio Shack.

 

[Bones]

If you can resolve the time in transit issue, Powerex makes at least two switching adapters for your charger, one with a Euro plug:

http://www.mahaenergy.com ... Product=129

http://www.mahaenergy.com ... Product=271

However, if you can convince them to ship it separately, the switching adapter supplied with the MH-C9000 would be my first choice from Powerex. It is small, light and puts out a full 2.0 amps.

Presuming the DC plug is the correct diameter, there is also this one on eBay which puts out 2.0 amps as well, making it handy for other purposes:

http://cgi.ebay.com ... item=330261499265

Insofar as another charger is concerned, if you will have access to a USB port during your travels, the Energizer USB Duo is a viable alternative that is available almost everywhere:

http://www.energizer.com ... usbcharger

http://www.candlepowerforums.com ... p=2564165

It can charge one or two AA or AAA cells, and includes an AC to USB adapter that puts out 500mAh. It can be used for powering the charger and other USB devices when your not travelling.

As well, the two Energizer 900mAh AAA cells bundled with the Duo are solid performers, albeit not low self-discharge.

 

[Bones]

The Energizer site doesn't really provide a decent view of the Duo, but there are lots of images are available on Google for a better feel for what's in the box:

http://images.google.com/images ... energizer+usb+duo

 

[drmaxx]

For the next travel:
I am using this one:
http://www.batteryjunction.com/tpec-ttg2800.html
Very handy because there is no cable and no wall wart. And for europe I got a converter (99 cents) from dx:
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.3529

Good luck

 

[UncleFester]

drmaxx thanks. I've been kinda lookin' for a charger like that one.