Nitecore "new" I2 charger Rant

[Gramdogg]

Didn't see a product review page so I'll rant here. This thing is absolute garbage. First off it says "Twice the charging speed of the i2 charger". It is in fact still just a 1A charger but will do one battery at 1A instead of two at 500mAh. I knew this before purchasing even though I seen reviews say it is 1A per channel.

Here is the kicker, I put "completed" batteries from my "new" i2 on my old i2 and they continue to charge for another 30 mins. Nitecore has always been known to stop short between 4.15-4.17v on the old one is now 4.12-4.14v. My older batteries that would drop to 4.1v are now dropping all the way down to 4.07v overnight. Basically after I'm done charging my 2 batteries in the new i2 I have to wait for the old i2 to finish to actually charge them fully. So "New twice as fast" takes 30mins longer then if I had purchased another old one.

 

[listopencil]

My LUC4 is still chugging merrily along after several years.

 

[VictorViper]

You're describing some of the reasons I went with the New I2. To each their own, but the default charge settings are ideal for mech vaping.

 

[Gramdogg]

The old one is more accurate, better quality and charges at the same speed unless your only charging one battery... in that case the old i1 would do the same thing but more accurate.

 

[Coastal Cowboy]

Nitecore is not the name brand it used to be. My old i2 died earlier this year after years of good service. I replaced it with an Efest LUC2 and couldn't be happier.

I do like the LUC's option to have both bays going at 1A, and the sleds on the bays are an order of magnitude easier to operate.

 

[Gramdogg]

I was gonna get the efest pro c2 but I charge AA as well and couldn't find any info on them doing AA. The sleds on the new i2 are much smoother but they are on a plastic track instead of metal like the old one. It does seem to be just the first battery I charged that came out really low, i'll have to check the others again tomorrow

 

[stols001]

Honestly, I'm fine with my nitcore intellecharger, but if I were to buy another charger (I have a hard time justifying it right at the moment given that my son just totaled his *bicycle* and I had to help fund the new one, today, since I really do not want to drive him EVERYWHERE) I would definitely not buy an nitcore charger, period.

Anna

 

[jfcooley]

My LUC4 is still chugging merrily along after several years.

This. Mine does a great job.

 

[Gramdogg]

The old "D" digital series is very accurate to 4.2v I'd just stay clear of the i2/i4 series and get the original D2/D4 it is build much better even if it don't have the new options. Is much better chargers though. The one that displays mAh (xtar?) would be very useful to see battery age and if your 3000mAh are rewrapped 2500mAh.

 

[jfcooley]

I checked and didn't see it listed in the LUCs description, but I need to find a 20700 charger before middle next month.

 

[Gramdogg]

If I remember correct the efest Pro C4 and nitecore D4/i4 do 20700. Guess iJoy changed batteries and the new 4 post 20700s aren't as good as the 5 post were. Mooch is getting more to test and be sure before posting results.

 

[madstabber]

I've never been a big fan of nitecore. I like the xtar chargers much more. The xtar sp2 I bought several years ago fits all the sizes plus gives me the option of .5, 1.0, 2.0 amp charging. It's been a great charger and never given me any problems for the many years of use. It only has two slots and only does li-ion batteries so I picked up a new charger for some versatility and went with the liitokala 500. It does NiMh and is an analytical charger with four slots covering all my needs. If you want to check out a great site for charger & battery reviews I highly recommend lygte-info. It is a tremendously helpful site for charger reviews and the only one of its kind that exists, to my knowledge.

 

[stols001]

Cool, now I have a reason to buy a charger, LOL.

Anna

 

[Eskie]

I have a D4, works fine for me. 750 mAh up to 2 cells, 375 mAh for 4 (yeah a little more would be nice). Displays all the info I could want and does a nice slow trickle charge at the end to top of to 4.2V. One day when it dies (sooner or later all electronic stuff dies) I'll see what the market offers at that time. For now I'm happy with Nitecore. I mean it's just a charger, not a mod or RTA.

 

[Gramdogg]

I have to apologise to Nitecore big time and thank my lucky stars the house didn't burn down. I believe someone returned it before I purchased it and threw the wrong cord in the box (no wonder they returned it if they were using that). It says Intertek on it not Nitecore, I looked over the manual again and that was all I noticed "only use nitecore cord supplied and clearly marked nitecore". Sure enough my other one is clearly marked in two places.

 

[DPLongo22]

Didn't see a product review page so I'll rant here. This thing is absolute garbage. First off it says "Twice the charging speed of the i2 charger". It is in fact still just a 1A charger but will do one battery at 1A instead of two at 500mAh. I knew this before purchasing even though I seen reviews say it is 1A per channel.

Here is the kicker, I put "completed" batteries from my "new" i2 on my old i2 and they continue to charge for another 30 mins. Nitecore has always been known to stop short between 4.15-4.17v on the old one is now 4.12-4.14v. My older batteries that would drop to 4.1v are now dropping all the way down to 4.07v overnight. Basically after I'm done charging my 2 batteries in the new i2 I have to wait for the old i2 to finish to actually charge them fully. So "New twice as fast" takes 30mins longer then if I had purchased another old one.

I threw two Nitecore chargers away a couple of years ago. They were both brand new, and both heated up to the point of OUCH if touched.

Conversely, I have (or have had) five XTAR chargers that have been flawless. Two of them (older six bays with spacers) have been cranking along for close to six years now.

Just one man's experience, but possibly valuable info to some potential buyers.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

 

[Gramdogg]

Yeah that is what happens with this, it is not trickle charging at the end so it is getting huge voltage sag right after its done charging. Fake charger I'm guessing but I'll say it was a return with wrong cord to the salesmen.

 

[T0mmy1977]

I have an LUC V2 and LUC V4 at home and an LUC V4 at work. No complaints.

 

[listopencil]

I checked and didn't see it listed in the LUCs description, but I need to find a 20700 charger before middle next month.

Efest LUC V4 - Four Bay LCD Charger

LUC V4 charger is compatible with most 3.7V Li-ion or LiMn batteries like 10440, 14500, 14650, 18500, 17670, 18350, 18650, 20700, 26500, 26650 etc. It can charge 15270 or 14250 batteries with spacers.

Features:
1. Charging input: Pressing the rectangle button can change the charging modes(0.5A/1A/2A) and charge different size 3.6V/3.7V Li-ion batteries.

USB output: DC5V 1A USB output connector are compatible with most portable consumer electronics.
0.5A/1A can charge 4pcs : 10440/14500/14650/16340/16650/17650/17670/17350/18350/18490/18500/18650/20700/22650

2A can charge 2pcs : 25500 and 26650 batteries

 

[listopencil]

Also @jfcooley look at the info panel on the back of the charger, as well as the markers on that center strip between slots #2 and #3, to get an idea of what will fit.