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Eskie nailed it. As long as it is functioning properly, it would be a perfectly acceptable choice to charge 18650s.
I’ve got one too. It definitely works fine. There are arguments made that it is not the “very best” but it works reliably without problems.
Have you ever charged 4 empty batteries at once? If you have what are the charging time? About 10 hours?
Yes i have. And charge time is about 4 hours. It charges one or 4 in the same average time. The i2 would take 5 hrs.
I have a nitecore 2bay intellecharger and I like it just fine. Charging time isn't an issue for me, and I've heard it's better for the battery to charge slower, in any case. The fact that I've heard that doesn't necessarily make it true, but I have heard that on occasion.
I like mine, it does the job, and it's lasted very well so far. I would consider a 4 bay in the future, but so far, so good. The sleds were a bit rough at first would be my only complaint but they eased up over time.
But, no reason not to use it if that is what you have. It should work just fine. In fact, I was surprised mine also charges the 26-series and 27-- series batteries, but it does indeed support charging them.
Anna
I like mine, it does the job, and it's lasted very well so far. I would consider a 4 bay in the future, but so far, so good. The sleds were a bit rough at first would be my only complaint but they eased up over time.
But, no reason not to use it if that is what you have. It should work just fine. In fact, I was surprised mine also charges the 26-series and 27-- series batteries, but it does indeed support charging them.
Anna
I can confirm this. The time will vary some depending on the battery being charged, but those seem to be the average times for those chargers. I can also say that these nitecore chargers fit 20700 and 21700 batteries well without damaging the wraps.
Yes, it takes about four hours. Each bay charges at about 0.5 amps no matter how many batteries are being charged.
My Xtar VP4 can charge two batteries at 1.0 amp which is faster than the Nitecore i4. With four batteries charging simultaneously the VP4 only charges at 0.5 amp.
If you want a charger that can charge 4 batteries at 1.0 amp simultaneously, look into the Efest LUC V4.
so at 0,5amps it only takes 4 hours to charge 4 empty 18650 batteries?my xtar vc2 plus in 0.5 amps takes 6 hours to charge 2 18650
I admit that I haven't timed with a stopwatch. I was guessing the time it took with both of my chargers. I'm pretty confident that my Xtar VP4 charges faster than my Nitecore i4, period.
You do realize that you and I are comparing two different model Xtar chargers, right?
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Though it charges 4 batteries at .375 amp I believe, I still use one from 2014 and like that it will charge most anything you throw at it and recognize what it is (please refer to instruction manual).
If you're in the market for a new charger I can vouch for the Nitecore Q4.
Doesn't have a fancy screen or buttons and dials, but it does do 2*2A or 4*1A and can cater for anything between 14500 all the way up to 26700.
Doesn't have a fancy screen or buttons and dials, but it does do 2*2A or 4*1A and can cater for anything between 14500 all the way up to 26700.
yes i know that but i try to understand why a 2 slot charger can charge in slower time than a 4 slot charger
3 factors go into charging time totals.
1) Battery Voltage level at time it is put on the charger, a battery at 3.8 will charge quicker than a battery at 3.0v, next comes #2
2) The battery mAh rating, higher the mAh on a battery, the longer it takes to charge, remember, mAh is like the size of a gas tank on a car, or energy density capacity. a 3000mah battery will take 2x the time to charge compared to a 1500mah battery.
3) Charge input amperes (amps), 2.0amps rapid charge will charge a battery 1/4 the time it takes compared to trickle charging at 500mA (or 1/2 amp), more amperage current being pushed generates heat inside the battery, where 1/2 amp will make the battery warm just from the battery natural resistance, 2.0amps rapid charge will heat the batteries up quicker. Heat in itself is kryptonite for Li-Ion batteries, less heat they maintain constantly, longer they last, as heat is applied the chemicals and other ingredients inside the battery change chemistry and in the end lowers the life time of the battery in age but also its total mAh capacity, which in turn lowers its CDR a bit. No getting around it as even lowest trickle charge puts a nail in a battery's coffin anyway.
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Follow up to your post above this.
Even if you manually set a charger to 1.0 amps, the charging computer doesn't do 1.0amp constantly. The computer monitors not only battery voltage, if monitors the battery temperature, battery gets really warm the computer lowers the charge current or shuts it down until the battery cools off again. Also as a battery gets closer to full charge, its resistance to input increases, computer detects this as well and lowers the current being applied. Difference between a 2 bay and a 4bay, the 2bay may only have a circuit board that can handle 1.0 input amps from the wall maximum and the heat sinks to maintain the heat that 1.0amps generates, a 4bay Nitecore i4 can handle max 2amps input/output, so has also 2x the heatsinks to control heat generation.
Not all chargers are identical either, Xtars use their own proprietary charging algorithms where Nitecore uses their own algorithms as well. Even identical model chargers from the same company will function slightly differently than another (quality of internal components, impurities in the wiring, whole list of variables).
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I goofed, I have the D4 that I use every day. It has a digital screen like the Xtar, so I can see what the progress is on charging. I also have an older 2-bay Nitecore with just the LED lights. That one is my backup charger, but it's still working perfectly after 3 years. I'll probably get an Xtar as a replacement if either one of mine go belly up, but so far I've had zero problems with them.
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