Some R123 li-ion comparison tests

[bessiebenny]

Thank you for such awesome tests and graphs Raymond.

From what I can see, it seems the white trustfires are the best batteries overall.
Hopefully it wasn't a case of luck with the ones that you received. hehe.
I'm tempted to get them now but I'll await for your KD RCR results. =)

oh. I noticed that one of them died already for you?

With some of my grey RCRs, I had to take off the protection PCB as it died.
Without it, it still charges fine and works properly. Just no protection. =P

 

[jirik_cz]

Great work, thanks! :thumbsup:
I have white trustfires and AW cells. And I get exactly the same runtimes with them in my lights. Unfortunately Trustfire cells are too long for Fenix lights (tested in P2D & TK10).

Edit: see also my other post about trustfires after a couple of months :shakehead
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/posts/2632540&postcount=54

 

[Raymond]

yeah, that seems to be the only downside of the trustfires: a certain percentage dies after only a little use. On the other hand: they're cheap enough to order an extra pair. They have a warranty, but it seems like a lot of effort for a $2,50 battery.

The white trustfire has the highest voltage under load, but the grey ones have the biggest energy capacity. It depends on what you're looking for in a battery. Of course, sometimes they just don't fit and you have to go for an AW or batterystation cell, because they have the same size as a normal primary R123.

After these tests, I'm not comfortable recommending the AW cells. They have the right dimensions and from the reports here on CPF they seem dependable enough (less risk as with the trustfires of receiving a bad cell). But they're expensive and don't perform all that well.

 

[bessiebenny]

Yeah. I always thought AW cells were miles ahead coz everyone here uses them and recommends them.
But looking at your test, I'm better off with just the cheap grey Trustfires! I'm sure many will be surprised.

Let's see how the KD RCR's go against your comparative testing. I can't wait. hehe.

I'll also do my own less-controlled tests using my flashlights as a discharger and measuring run-time tests. =)

 

[Raymond]

I think the AW's get recommended because of their safety, consistency and of course because AW is a CPF member. But performance-wise, they're not the best. I don't think the difference can be completely explained by the difference in size. I'm not the only one with these results. Silverfox has done some RCR123 tests and the AW's voltage drops a lot under higher loads.

I have a $8 credit at DX, maybe I'll order some more trustfires, to see if they perform the same as the trustfires I already have. I'm not going to order any ultrafires, I've read too many bad reports about them.

 

[Raymond]

I ordered another pair of the white Trustfires, and also a pair of the grey ultrafires, just to see how they perform.

 

[mudman cj]

Has anyone measured the point at which overdischarge protection kicks in on these cells?

 

[Raymond]

I haven't, and not planning to either
I've also monitored voltages while charging and when the batts are fresh of the charger. Highest voltage I've seen was during charging, about 4.24V, which is too low to trip a protection circuit.

I also haven't discharged any battery below 2.7V.

 

[bessiebenny]

I've received and tested the KD Protected 625mAh RCR123A batteries with the Fenix TK10.
They advertise that it has 5% more capacity that Trustfire. But it doesn't seem so.
(This test is based on just 1 pair of KD RCRs that I have so I hope to see if Raymond gets same results)

 

[Raoul_Duke]

Any Idea what the DX 11670 protection cuircuit will allow. Looking to drive a 1.25A lamp from these as the V stays highest throuout the discharge...but would be pointless if they wont work at that current draw.

Cheers for the results!!!

 

[Raymond]

I've received my KD cells on friday. I have almost completed my tests on them (Still need to do an 1000mA discharge test on one cell). They seem to hold up pretty well under higher loads. The capacity is a little less than the grey trustfires, but the capacity is the same at all 4 discharge rates, which is a feat in itself. I haven't graphed the results yet, so I can't say anything about the voltage under load.
I'll try to update the graphs tomorrow.

About that 1,25A discharge with the white trustfires: I can't say, because I can only test to 1A. But I know that they can handle a high charge rate, and 1.25A isn't really very high, so I think they'll won't have a problem.

 

[Raymond]

Added results for kaidomain SKU 4512
Seems to perform best under higher loads, where it holds it's voltage better than most other batteries. Total capacity exceeds AW cells, but not as good as grey trustfires. Also, size is smaller than the trustfires, just slightly larger than primaries and AW/batterystations. They fit in a fenix P3D. This makes them the best rechargeable choice for that light, imho.

I also changed the colors in the graphs, and gave each pair the same color. I hope this makes the graphs easier to read (I was running out of colors )

I hope that my dealextreme order arrives later this week, with a new pair of white trustfires and a pair of ultrafires.

If anyone is still following this thread, let me know what types of protected rechargeable R123's you'd like to see reviewed I'd like to test some brandname cells (pila, wolfeyes etc), but they're difficult to obtain without being overcharged on shipping costs.

 

[Raymond]

I added the grey Ultrafire 880mAh to the charts.
These cells are about the same size as the trustfires, and too big for a fenix P3D.
They also perform very poorly (as was expected from the different reports on the board). If you're looking for cheap chinese cells, the grey trustfires are a much better choice.

I also have to reconsider my recommendation for the white trustfires. of the 5 pieces that I received, 2 were defective. Also, there's only one cell that offered the very good performance you see in the graphs. The other 2 cells perform similar to the other batteries. Which isn't bad, but it makes the grey trustfires a better choice.

 

[bessiebenny]

Great to see even more batteries covered!
I really appreciate your work for sharing such useful info. =)

 

[richardcpf]

Thanks! great info!

KD's protected info is kinda untrue because they say "approximately 5% more capacity than a Trustfire "880mAh" 16340" and I see 10 minutes less of runtime.

Never realized trustfire protected are that big compared to a primary. Good to know KD's fit a fenix tk10, just ordered 3 pairs and a wf139 charger.

 

[mdocod]

Hey Tom, was thinking this thread has a lot of good reference material building up. Maybe you could toss it into the "threads of interest" bin alongside some of your tests

 

[geek4christ]

Hey Raymond,

Thanks for all your work. This is very useful information.

I have one request if you don't mind humoring me: Is there any chance you'd have access to some calipers to measure the dimensions of all the reviewed cells (length and diameter)?

 

[rizky_p]

nice test, thanks for doing this.

 

[Raymond]

Hey Raymond,

Thanks for all your work. This is very useful information.

I have one request if you don't mind humoring me: Is there any chance you'd have access to some calipers to measure the dimensions of all the reviewed cells (length and diameter)?

Thanks for reading it

Dimensions: (L*W in mm)
Batterystation: 34.4*16.7
DX11670 (white TF):35.9*16.7
DX8683 (grey TF):35.8*16.6
DX3273(ultrafire):35.8*16.8
KAI4512:34.5*16.5
AW:34.3*16.6

 

[geek4christ]

Thanks for reading it

Dimensions: (L*W in mm)
Batterystation: 34.4*16.7
DX11670 (white TF):35.9*16.7
DX8683 (grey TF):35.8*16.6
DX3273(ultrafire):35.8*16.8
KAI4512:34.5*16.5
AW:34.3*16.6

Oh dear, I take it by your smiley that those measurements were already there and I just missed them. Sorry about that.