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Hey everybody,
I am about a month out from from stepping off on a Nobo, and just received my Ankor battery pack. I am going to charge it up and give it a test run.
My question is, after I am done playing around with it, should I leave it fully charged until my trip, or should I drain it to nothing, and charge it right before I leave?
4eyedbuzzard
01-15-2017, 12:28
Lithium Ion batteries don't suffer from "charge memory" like NiCd or other rechargable battery technologies. The best thing for them is to operate them in a partial discharge to partial charge state - say drain to 30%, then charge to 80%. But only charging to 80% is impractical for most users. And real world, it's not going to matter a lot. The battery actually has capacity beyond what it charges up to and drains down to - the technology is such that manufacturers engineer the system to charge and discharge within a certain charge curve which is less than the true range of the battery. You'll likely charge it to 100% when you can, and probably never drain it completely (especially true as Li Ion have an internal cutout circuit when voltage falls below a certain level). Just use it a few times (charge the phone and recharge/run the pack down) prior to taking off to be sure it doesn't have any other flaws. Things like bad connectors are far more common problems than charge issues.
Lithium Ion batteries don't suffer from "charge memory" like NiCd or other rechargable battery technologies. The best thing for them is to operate them in a partial discharge to partial charge state - say drain to 30%, then charge to 80%. But only charging to 80% is impractical for most users. And real world, it's not going to matter a lot. The battery actually has capacity beyond what it charges up to and drains down to - the technology is such that manufacturers engineer the system to charge and discharge within a certain charge curve which is less than the true range of the battery. You'll likely charge it to 100% when you can, and probably never drain it completely (especially true as Li Ion have an internal cutout circuit when voltage falls below a certain level). Just use it a few times (charge the phone and recharge/run the pack down) prior to taking off to be sure it doesn't have any other flaws. Things like bad connectors are far more common problems than charge issues.
Sounds good, thanks!
soumodeler
01-15-2017, 12:40
Leave it until the next trip, then top it back off.
I'm going against the tide. Use it . Can't hurt
thom
Christoph
01-15-2017, 18:49
I've had mine for a few years and it's still almost fully charged after sitting in the drawer. I'm going to take it with me again. It's a 10K Ankor and it lasted me a long time on the trail even helping out a few fellow hikers charging their phones. Just top it off and like said before, lithium batteries are pretty durable.
Even if your model allows it, Do Not charge a device while charging the battery pack- the battery will perform worse over time.
On the trail, this means either having an outlet splitter or plug with USB ports, or waiting to charge all devices from the battery pack.
Even if your model allows it, Do Not charge a device while charging the battery pack- the battery will perform worse over time.
On the trail, this means either having an outlet splitter or plug with USB ports, or waiting to charge all devices from the battery pack.
Didn't really think about that, but it makes sense. Thanks!
Even if your model allows it, Do Not charge a device while charging the battery pack- the battery will perform worse over time.
On the trail, this means either having an outlet splitter or plug with USB ports, or waiting to charge all devices from the battery pack.
I just bought a pair of Honeycomb DASH10-2 batteries at Sam's Club. The batteries have 2 USB ports and the instructions say that 2 devices can be charged simultaneously.
What proof do you have that charging 2 devices will degrade my batteries?
Wayne
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Oops. My bad.
I won't charge the batteries and devices simultaneously. Sorry.
Wayne
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Even if your model allows it, Do Not charge a device while charging the battery pack- the battery will perform worse over time.
On the trail, this means either having an outlet splitter or plug with USB ports, or waiting to charge all devices from the battery pack.
I've never heard that to charge a device off the battery while the battery is charged itself would do any bad to the battery, and given that the electronics is designed properly I can't think of any technical reason.
Carrying a charger with dual or triple USB ports is very good advice though. I've seen hikers fighting for wall outlets in hotspots.
I charge a LG3 from a ankor,. If I use the short cord, that comes with battery pack, the phone will tell me to use the LG cord for better charging? Anyone know why? It still charges the phone either way.
Dont know specifically for LG phones, but several phone companies try to push a proprietary quickcharge mode that asks for and depends on a higher power output from the charger.
This can be done either by much higher voltage (obviousely only working with very specific chargers), or by eliminating as much of resistance in the circuit as possible.
Obviousely your LG is measuring the resistance of the cable and by this detecting if you're using the short LG cable, or any other longer/thinner cable.
I doubt that there is a tiny microchip in the cable - but still this could be fact, too.
But given the sad fact that the whole phone business is a world of cheat and treat, it might be a simple resistor in the plug and by failing to detect this, LG is pushing you to use the original cable - and if you've lost the original, pushing you to buy a new LG cable for some more $.
In general, its good practice to use a short and thick high end USB cable.
I've never heard that to charge a device off the battery while the battery is charged itself would do any bad to the battery, and given that the electronics is designed properly I can't think of any technical reason.
Carrying a charger with dual or triple USB ports is very good advice though. I've seen hikers fighting for wall outlets in hotspots.
Anker website says don't do it... just says very bad for battery lifespan. Vague, right? Under FAQ's for the chargers.
I couldn't come come up with a technical reason last year, and my battery would charge a device while charging. I used it that way for months of daily use. Now that battery will lose charge and will charge my devices less times than when new, and I've now gotten a new portable charger.
This time I will be following the manufacturer's advice, and would recommend others to do the same.
Scratching my head...
If it is known to be bad for the stuff, why make it possible? Because its a sales feature only?
OTOH, this remembers me of the fact that my Varta powerbank (reportedly one of the best products we can buy here) doesn't support charge-while-being-charged.
And, after owning it for two years now (and not having used it many times), it has suffered a noticeable capacity drop, an estimated 10-15%.
Wise Old Owl
01-16-2017, 10:38
The quick charge mode Leo speaks of is a smart mode - In the first few seconds of connecting a charger the phone decides thru a resistive bridge network hidden at the manufactures included charger. I have posted the diagram here in the past. The phone looks to see the data wires shorted, the correct volts/amps for power charging, and resistance. If the phone doesn't see the three things all correct it flags the user with a beep and message and selects the slower 6-8 hour charge instead of the two.
This all goes back to knock off chargers coming from China that would damage the Iphone and/or catching fire. Samsung and Iphone took notice and made the changes. Iphone chargers are superior and the look alike "cheaper" chargers were poor.
I worked very hard to make a 4-7oz (stripped down) Solar Panel that delivered more than an amp for direct charging and discovered the phones not agreeing with the power from the panel and not selecting the smart mode. My thought was to take a long lunch on the trail at a sunny spot and recharge my needs while having a sandwich. for the moment I charge the Anker Battery (IC3) at lunch and later charge the phone... Sometimes the smart mode kicks in, I will do more testing this year.
If you are really into this stuff CLICK HERE (https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/103211/) and please don't remind me about a green tunnel.
37922
...and please don't remind me about a green tunnel.
Thanks for the update, and if you succeed in producing a reasonable solar chargeing solution: I'm not in the Green Tunnel and would be eager to charge by the desert sun.
Wise Old Owl
01-16-2017, 10:54
Hi Leo - and yes that's the Link on how to build one and get the parts. - I was working on a similar venture but did not rise to posting a good solution like this guy did on UL. I am going to order those USB connections he recommends as there is a circuit behind it, that may provide the answer.
I also purchased the latest Anker Solar to test in the back yard and although its a pound it works very well with Anker Batteries. I have a digital in line meter and this is exceeding my expectations.
CLICK HERE (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012YUJJM8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1)
Hi Leo - and yes that's the Link on how to build one and get the parts...
CLICK HERE (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012YUJJM8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1)
Exciting! Sounds really interesting.
I originally purchased a Rav Power 10,400 External Battery. However, that item left home so I rethought my needs and then purchased an Anker 10000 Power Core External Battery. Here is a video review if interested: https://youtu.be/G_0lWYg7Y0k
capehiker
01-19-2017, 13:04
Chris Berry just posted a review of 3 different portable packs, with one being the Anker 10,000. In his review, the Anker is only 60% efficient, which mostly mirrors my informal testing (resulting in me shifting to the RAV line). You have to watch the end to see some humor and the thought process of most UL hikers. :)
https://youtu.be/YrfNy_n81N8
I totally agree with his and your thought process and humor! Out of all of them, I liked the Rav 10,400 for multi port, pass through charging, and efficiency. However, the size of a candy bar versus the size of a deck of cards, plus weight caused my outcome. That and the fact that my Daughter "packed" the Rav Power with her stuff when you moved to the city! lol.
Looking at the manual for the Ravpower 10400- it also has a warning about using as a pass-thru device.
Actual mileage may vary, I guess.
I pulled the trigger and bought an Anker Astro E3 10000 mAh battery and the PowerPort 2 charger. I bought them after reading here on WB and on the recommendation of an EE friend who has them.
I am not doing careful bench tests with multimeters and such but so far it looks like I can get 3+ charges (about 2.5 hrs each) on my BlackBerry (yes I'm a government employee) and 4+ (about 2 hrs) on my personal iPhone. I'd put the differences down to older and newer technology. The battery did charge pretty fast on the charger, maybe 4+ hours. I won't comment on more on volts, mAhs, etc because I'd have to turn myself into the PE board for practicing out of my engineering competency.
I consider the iPhone as a safety measure, if there is coverage. The next time I go out though (the Allegheny Front Trail in March) I'm going to test out the battery and iPhone by using the GPS, listen to podcasts and probably read a book at night.
Tundracamper
02-17-2017, 17:04
I pulled the trigger and bought an Anker Astro E3 10000 mAh battery and the PowerPort 2 charger. I bought them after reading here on WB and on the recommendation of an EE friend who has them.
I consider the iPhone as a safety measure, if there is coverage. The next time I go out though (the Allegheny Front Trail in March) I'm going to test out the battery and iPhone by using the GPS, listen to podcasts and probably read a book at night.
That's my feeling. I'm not going without the phone, so I may as well make it where I can use it.
The Gaia app on my phone did great tracking my hike last trip. Granted, that's not something you'd do on a thru, but it's great for a weekend hike. Even though I'd be adding a battery, I think I could leave the GPS logger and its AA batteries at home.
I like the Astro E3 because it has two ports. It seems for a little more $ and just a tad more weight (<1 oz), the 13,000 PowerCore is a good option also with two ports.
bamboo bob
02-17-2017, 17:18
The Anker works great. It last a very long time.Months sitting in a draw.
rocketsocks
02-17-2017, 19:19
A Anker's aren't water proof I believe.
Tundracamper
02-17-2017, 20:59
A Anker's aren't water proof I believe.
So I can't submerge my phone and battery in the creek and charge them? Darn!!
Tundracamper
02-17-2017, 21:03
Chris Berry just posted a review of 3 different portable packs, with one being the Anker 10,000. In his review, the Anker is only 60% efficient, which mostly mirrors my informal testing (resulting in me shifting to the RAV line). You have to watch the end to see some humor and the thought process of most UL hikers. :)
https://youtu.be/YrfNy_n81N8
And the 60% is based on what? Charging a phone x.x times? Or what?