An 18650 battery that charges in under 60 seconds

[gordian]

This is not my Kickstarter but I saw it; thought it was interesting:

Pledge $65 or more

1 18650 battery, 3.8 Volts, 1550 mAH and charger that holds 2 batteries.

Charges in slightly less than 60 seconds.

Has about a quarter reduction in time between charges, compared to standard 18650 batteries.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/shawnpwest/30-second-charging-rechargeable-battery

 

[Baditude]

Nice to see innovation to improve technology. However, I'm skeptical. If you read his product description:

"Basically, I've taken a lithium ion capacitor, which provides 3.8 volts of electricity and put it, along with a very small circuit that brings that 3.8 volts down to the usual 1.5 volts that you get out of your standard AA, C & D battery, in to a footprint that is the same size as a AA, C & D battery...The capacitor has only discharged .9 volts, while the battery itself continues to provide a steady supply of 1.5 volts."

His setup is only providing 1.5 volts. That is completely insufficient for our purposes. Our devices require 3.4v to 4.2v. We need more power than what a toy needs.

 

[Ryedan]

His setup is only providing 1.5 volts. That is completely insufficient for our purposes. Our devices require 3.4v to 4.2v. We need more power than what a toy needs.

Bad, on the right on that web page, where it says 'Pledge $65 or more' he offers '1 18650 battery, 3.8 Volts, 1550 mAH' so he must be able to regulate to 3.8V also. 1550 mAh isn't bad either if they charge that fast.

The problem I see with this is the cost. I looked up some of these capacitors and they are quite expensive. OTOH if they do 10,000 charge cycles, don't vent or explode and they can draw huge current, they might well be worth significantly more than what we're used to paying for batteries.

 

[ScottChensoda]

Geez, did you see that pig that just flew past?

 

[dr g]

Bad, on the right on that web page, where it says 'Pledge $65 or more' he offers '1 18650 battery, 3.8 Volts, 1550 mAH' so he must be able to regulate to 3.8V also. 1550 mAh isn't bad either if they charge that fast.

The problem I see with this is the cost. I looked up some of these capacitors and they are quite expensive. OTOH if they do 10,000 charge cycles, don't vent or explode and they can draw huge current, they might well be worth significantly more than what we're used to paying for batteries.

How long do they hold charge?

 

[Ryedan]

How long do they hold charge?

I read a spec on that somewhere dr g. All I remember now is that it was long enough to make me happy

 

[Ryedan]

Geez, did you see that pig that just flew past?

LOL, same thing I thought when I first read the OP Scott. Then I did a bit more reading ...