Best 18650 charger? Also question about my charger (ultrafire)

AW+ Power 3.7 2200mAh IC Li-ion rechargeable prottected battery

Whats the best charger to use for the battery above under $25. I have an ultrafire rapid charger 'for 3.7 lithium batteries'. when i put this battery in it for charger, it stays red and flickers every 2 seconds real quick then stays red and flickers. LIKE in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsFcjqPLWqM does this mean it is charging? And how will i know its done charging. will it turn green?

some people made a comment saying the blinking light means something is wrong and be careful not to burn the house down...

thanks

I would not use the charger you own. I wouldn't feel safe. I would recommend any charger Xtar makes. If you only need it for one battery you could just get the Xtar MC1 or MC1 plus which charges faster but if your going to eventually be upgrading your needs you could get the MC2 or any other model you like. I own the XP4 and VC2 and just purchased the MC1 for $6 on eBay.

Toss that charger in to the garbage, get yourself something decent. Xtar and Nitecore are both considered good charger brands.

thx guys

got the vc2 bc it had LED..was looking at nitecore...already have a panasonic charger for my eneloop AA/AAA batteries.

vc2 will be used for the 18650 and CR123's

My Pila IBC charger is going strong for like 10th year now. Pila used to be #1 recommended on CPF before more flashier chargers with features took over in recent years.

I have this one. Digital readout, auto detect, recognizes types, etc. Work very well.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00LCHE1F0/?tag=cpf0b6-20

Hi, I live in Singapore and we get tons of sunshine every year, if fact it's between Spring and Summer all year round, that's why I am thinking of getting an Anker 14W solar charger and a charger which can use USB from foursevens (unless there are other suggestions), the point I am trying to make is the versatility of the foursevens charger, it can use USB or normal AC.

EDIT:

After spending some time doing research, i think I shall get the XTAR VC4 Charger looks quite useful and will charge everything I own, and get a Powerbank, I am leaning towards Mipow, that and the Anker and I should be set

jackbauer said:

got the vc2 bc it had LED..was looking at nitecore...already have a panasonic charger for my eneloop AA/AAA batteries.

vc2 will be used for the 18650 and CR123's

Click to expand...

Good choice, I bet you will enjoy it.

hyperloop said:

Hi, I live in Singapore and we get tons of sunshine every year, if fact it's between Spring and Summer all year round, that's why I am thinking of getting an Anker 14W solar charger and a charger which can use USB from foursevens (unless there are other suggestions), the point I am trying to make is the versatility of the foursevens charger, it can use USB or normal AC.

EDIT:

After spending some time doing research, i think I shall get the XTAR VC4 Charger looks quite useful and will charge everything I own, and get a Powerbank, I am leaning towards Mipow, that and the Anker and I should be set

Click to expand...

Xtar makes a bunch of usb chargers the VC2 with screen is one of them in a two bay format.

Raysbeam said:

Xtar makes a bunch of usb chargers the VC2 with screen is one of them in a two bay format.

Click to expand...

Yes, I noticed that too, but I want one which will also charge Eneloops, thanks for the tip. Much appreciated.

hi,

i just got it in the mail. i noticed when i unplug and replug the power in to begin charging it resets the mAh info from back to 0 and starts going back up as it is connected. How come it doesn't tell you how much is charged/or how much is left to charge and why does it reset the info of the mAH to 0???

ALso it is showing 3.9 V when the battery is 3.7 volts???

If you give it time you'll get the info. Also the 18650 can charge up to 4.2 V so it's normal.

Should it go over 4.2 V RUN!!! :shakehead

i dont know if its going over 4.2 it is showing 4.2 now!!! but it tops the diagram at 4.2...so how would i know if its going over??!!!!

btw this is suppose to be a protected battery so is it safe??

i gave it 'time' both times but they always started charging from 0 mark and going up slowly at the same rate...for example if i disconnect the power right now (it is currently at 1400), it'll start showing from 0...and go up the same rate as it is now...

this charger takes forevs to charge!!!! ughh

i think ill return the xtar 4 and get teh nitecore 4 bay...

not happy with xtar..;( takes foreverrrr

mega_lumens said:

My Pila IBC charger is going strong for like 10th year now. Pila used to be #1 recommended on CPF before more flashier chargers with features took over in recent years.

Click to expand...

Screw the flash. It's still the best one out there, and the only one that's actually long-term time-proven.

I have the xtar vc2. It can handle all lithium batteries. I think. It can charge from USB. Xtar has another one that can do lithium, NiMH, AA, and AAA but it's a regular wall plug.

Protected or not it's not safe to leave 'em in the charger. Some models may protect against over charging but you can tell by touching the batteries. If it's hot to the touch you're pushing it.

jackbauer said:

i think ill return the xtar 4 and get teh nitecore 4 bay...

not happy with xtar..;( takes foreverrrr

Click to expand...

I believe Xtar has models that do fast charging better than the Nitecore models. The Nitecore Digicharger D4, for instance, uses a maximum charge current of 750mA. Some Xtar models do better.

Before swapping to another charger, check whether there is a review by HKJ. That way, you can be sure the new model will do what you want. Here is the link for the D4 review.

jackbauer said:

i dont know if its going over 4.2 it is showing 4.2 now!!! but it tops the diagram at 4.2...so how would i know if its going over??!!!!

btw this is suppose to be a protected battery so is it safe??

i gave it 'time' both times but they always started charging from 0 mark and going up slowly at the same rate...for example if i disconnect the power right now (it is currently at 1400), it'll start showing from 0...and go up the same rate as it is now...

this charger takes forevs to charge!!!! ughh

Click to expand...

Your charger sounds fine , if you remove the cell or power off it will reset the mah. Otherwise the mah would continue every time you change the cells. The mah is only counted from what the cell is discharged from. So for example, 1 cell is at 3.3v and another is at 4.0 v,the mah readings will be far greater on the 3.3v when charged.

The final part of the charge is the longest,so even though it shows 4.2v it can take anything up to maybe an hour to finish. If in any doubt about the final cell voltage,let it rest for a few minutes and measure with a mm.

Also bare in mind the vc2 only charges at 0.5a, imo its way too sloooooooow............ok ok i am impatient . I charge mine at 1a or now 1.5a with the opus.

Even if it charges to 4.21v or 4.22v its still within spec up to 4.15-4.25v iirc(stand to be corrected) . Either way its fine.....

cheers ven