18650 Battery Comparisons - Which has the most Value?

[T^2]

I've been poking around the internet to find battery comparisons. I found the following:

LiIon 18650 battery comparison - CandlePowerForums

Light-Reviews.com • View topic - Li-Ion 18650 shootout

This first link was more useful in my opinion.

I've seen good comments about the AW 2600's, but based on the above links, I wonder about their premium price. The Tenergy 2600 (cyan), AW 2600, Trustfire TF2400, and the Ultrafire BRC3000 all seem to perform in the same neighborhoods for 1 and 3 amp loads (the neighborhood needed for our purposes).

Prices on the other hand vary enough to catch the penny pinchers attention. For example:

Tenergy 2600 - $7.99 ea. or 4 for $28.99.

Amazon.com: tenergy 18650: Electronics

AW 2600 - $15.99 ea.

AW 18650 Protected 2600 mAh Rechargeable Lithium Battery

Trustfire TF2400 - $9.68 for a 2 pack.

DealExtreme: $9.68 TrustFire Protected 18650 3.7V True 2400mAh Rechargeable Lithium Batteries (2-Pack)

Ultrafire BRC3000 - $14.21 for a 2 pack.

DealExtreme: $14.21 UltraFire Protected 18650 3.7V 3000mAh Lithium Batteries (2-Pack)

Bang for the buck wise - the Trustfire TF2400 or the Ultrafire BRC3000 seem like they might be good picks.

Yes I saw that the AW 2600's appear to have a better Charge/Discharge C rating than the others listed here. I'm not sure that the difference with this type of application (even with LR atty's) will make much of a difference. Other performance parameters may come into play though.

So what has been the experience here? AW's worth that extra change or no? Or is it better to go with one of the other options?

 

[Dogzlife]

Bumping this up and hoping for responses.

 

[Scott EE]

I have those 2400 mAh Trustfires from Dealextreme and they last in my Silver Bullet for 1.5-2 days depending on my vaping habits. Also use them in a flashlight and they are holding up well at 7 months since purchase. Those 2600 mAh AW's you listed do not have the button top design which may or may not be an issue with some mods. Could require a magnetic spacer for contact. Lighthound has a 2200 mAh version with the button top design. So really have to make sure they will function as is in your particular device. Or get the appropriate spacer. AW's are consistently rated the best from what I have read about them.

For me the cost of the Trustfires in a 2-pack was just too good to pass up. I even bought 3 2-packs at once to take advantage of the bulk rate pricing discount to make them even cheaper. It does take awhile to get to the US from China however so that may also be a deciding factor. Customs is the wild card which can make for some varying delays.

I read something about the 3000 mAh batts requiring special charger due to some limitation in the regular ones they never quite top off. I didn't really research any further since mine are good enough for my use. I would look into it before choosing those.

 

[banjo]

I have some of the Ultrafires and don't like them at all. I also have a couple of Tenergy batteries, and they perform great. I also use Samsung and Panasonic, which are excellent batteries, but expensive.

 

[T^2]

I've been using the Trustfire TF2400's and the AW2900's in my Ali'i. So far I've used LR 306, LR 510, and regular 510 atty's with this setup (I prefer the regular 510's and have recently discontinued use of the LR atty's). So far, the Trustfire TF2400's have preformed well. Any differences between the AW2900's and TF2400 haven't seemed to be discernable in this application - at least to me. With the 2 pack price of the TF2400's at DX, it seems hard to justify the cost of the AW's.

Now the Pila charger is another story... I think it's be worth every penny.

 

[Elendil]

Look here: AW IMR18650 1600mAh LiMN rechargeable lithium battery

10.50 for a high drain 18650. I have bought a bunch of high drains from these guys. I won't buy any other kind at this point.

 

[T^2]

Look here: AW IMR18650 1600mAh LiMN rechargeable lithium battery

10.50 for a high drain 18650. I have bought a bunch of high drains from these guys. I won't buy any other kind at this point.

Lot of good stuff said about those batteries. They have a safe chemistry as well. But, I don't know that I would spring for the cost without some other compelling reason. You can get two TF2400's for the price of one AW-IMR18650.

I've bought from Lighthound. No problems with them.

 

[Firefly13]

Look here: AW IMR18650 1600mAh LiMN rechargeable lithium battery

10.50 for a high drain 18650. I have bought a bunch of high drains from these guys. I won't buy any other kind at this point.

^^ This

I only buy AW batteries for my GGTS, waiting on my 2900mah one to play with.

 

[Elendil]

Lot of good stuff said about those batteries. They have a safe chemistry as well. But, I don't know that I would spring for the cost without some other compelling reason. You can get two TF2400's for the price of one AW-IMR18650.

I've bought from Lighthound. No problems with them.

The performance and life of these batts are the superior of every other 18650 I've used. Don't let the 1600mAh scare you. They outlast any 3000mAh batt I've ever used.

 

[Firefly13]

The performance and life of these batts are the superior of every other 18650 I've used. Don't let the 1600mAh scare you. They outlast any 3000mAh batt I've ever used.

The 1600mah did scare me at first but when i compared them to my other 18650's there is no comparison, i kinda got forced to try them as they were the only ones at the time which fitted my GGTS, but i'm glad i did now ! Ultrafires just sit in the draw now.

 

[teabagger]

Im using the aw2900 right now could not be happier
AW 18650 Protected 2900 mAh Rechargeable Lithium Battery
from all i have read aw is the way to go... or go raw panisonics(aw before protection circuit and sticker)