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 Sunsei SE-500 The new Sunsei SE-500 from ICP Solar has arrived. We have been waiting some time for these new solar chargers to arrive from ICP Solar, but yesterday they finally turned up. These latest ICP Sunsei SE-500 solar panels utilise a new Dual-Junction Amorphous technology to make them more efficient in low light conditions – ideal for the UK! These new solar panels are a slightly different shape and have a higher output to their predecessor giving up to 500mA, 7.75W of output.  Sunsei SE-170 The new Sunsei SE-170 from ICP Solar has arrived. We have been waiting some time for these new small solar chargers to arrive from ICP Solar, but yesterday they finally turned up. These latest ICP Sunsei SE-170 small solar panels utilise a new Dual-Junction Amorphous technology to make them more efficient in low light conditions – ideal for the UK! These new solar panels are a slightly different shape and have a higher output to their predecessor (ICP Sunsei SE-150) giving up to 170mA, 2.6W of output.
 2009 circle Of Excellence We are extremely proud to be given this award, especially as it is a result of the feedback from our customers. We have always tried very hard to treat our customers in the way we all hope to be treated when shopping, offering a quality service and level of support rarely found with other suppliers. It is absolutely fantastic to know that our efforts are appreciated by our customers and we can’t thank them enough for taking the time to rate our performance, products and services. The Circle of Excellence recognises those online retailers within the BizRate® Research network who have demonstrated outstanding performance, as rated by their customers, throughout a one year period. In 2009, over 2,000 online merchants in the UK were considered for an award. Tantronics were 1 of only 20 winners who consistently obtained feedback from their customers throughout the award year period and received the highest ratings. The ratings are from the direct feedback, collected at the point-of-sale and after delivery of goods, from customers concerning seven key satisfaction metrics:
Click HERE for details of all the 2009 BizRate Circle Of Excellence winners  2850 mAh AA Nickel Metal Hydride or NiMH, Ni-MH type rechargeable batteries are higher capacity replacements to the generally poor performing Ni-Cd (Nicad) type rechargeable batteries. These are available in all five battery sizes (AAA, AA, C, D & PP3) and can usually replace normal disposable batteries in just about every application. Typical battery capacities are: AAA (LR03) 800 mAh to 1100 mAh Performance of NiMH rechargeable batteries is in a different league to the early Ni-Cd rechargeable batteries, and anyone who hasn’t tried rechargeable batteries recently really should give them another go. NiMH rechargeable batteries tend to perform particularly well in higher drain applications like digital Cameras, Flash Guns and radio controlled toys. “Next Day” services unaffected despite further postal strikes Thursday, Friday and Saturday this week. All our “Next Day” (Next Business Day) services are being sent by City Link courier to try and ensure these don’t get caught up in the Royal Mail backlog, this costs us more for the smaller items, but at least we can have some confidence in the service. The strike action will undoubtedly mean delays to deliveries for those customers selecting the Standard 2nd Class Post and 1st Class Post services, but all our mail is still being collected and so getting into the system as quickly as it can. We do get asked about alternative carriers to Royal Mail, but right now there is no alternative at the price, and the convenience of having you delivery arrive with the Postie in the morning is something many of our customers look for.  Ansmann 2850 Pack of 4 Ansmann 2850 mAh AA batteries. These are the latest DIGITAL version of these Ultra High Capacity NiMh AA size rechargeable batteries from Ansmann. Not the cheapest of rechargeable AA batteries, but no other rechargeable battery we have will last as long in high drain applications like Digital Cameras, Flash Guns and children’s Toys. So if you want the maximum possible run time from your high drain equipments then these are probably the best rechargeable battery option for you, but remember to check your battery charger is capable of charging them. Don’t forget though, if you want rechargeable batteries for low drain applications like TV remote controls, cordless phones or wall clocks, these these are not the batteries to choose.  Ansmann Energy 8 Plus The Ansmann Energy 8 Plus is described as: A professional quality desk top battery charger capable of charging 6 x AAA batteries, 6 x AA batteries, 4 x C batteries, 4 x D size batteries and 2 PP3 batteries in various combinations.
Our Opinion The Ansmann Energy 8 PLUS is a fantastic NEW battery charger from Ansmann, it is simple to use, quick enough for most applications whilst not over stressing the batteries, and can charge all the “Big 5″ (AAA ,AA, C, D & PP3) range of cells. This is a professional quality desk top battery charger capable of charging 6 x AAA batteries, 6 x AA batteries, 4 x C batteries, 4 x D size batteries and 2 PP3 batteries in various combinations. The Ansmann Energy 8 PLUS can be used throughout the world, as it has a switch mode power supply built in allowing it to operate from 100 – 240V AC at 50-60Hz, it even has both a UK AND Euro style plug included. The Ansmann Energy 8 PLUS provides advanced individual charge control using the Ansmann “5 Way Protection System” with LED charge indicators for each battery position, including the PP3. Add to this the 3 year warranty and the Ansmann Energy 8 PLUS becomes a great choice for anyone needing a professional quality charger for PP3, D, C, AA and AAA size rechargeable batteries.
Nickel Cadmium or Ni-Cd, NiCd, NiCad batteries are the original type of readily available rechargeable batteries for the normal consumer or home user market. There is lots of information on Wikipedia about the technical characteristics of these rechargeable batteries so there is little point in going into detail here, but the main things to understand are:
Many people have been put off the idea of using rechargeable batteries because of poor experiences when using NiCd batteries, but things have moved on enormously since these were introduced. NiCd batteries have pretty much been superseded by the much better Nickel Metal Hydride (Ni-MH) type of rechargeable batteries which offer higher capacities, no memory effect and no nasty chemicals. So if you are still hanging on to some old NiCd batteries of have had a poor experience with them in the past, this you really should consider using rechargeable batteries again. Have a look here for our full range.  Ansmann Powerline 5 The Ansmann Powerline 5 mobile is a good quality intelligent battery charger for all the standard size (AAA, AA, C, D ad PP3) rechargeable batteries. It is simple to use, quick enough for most applications whilst not over stressing the batteries, and can charge different combinations of batteries at the same time. One of the real advantages the Ansmann Powerline 5 Mobile Intelligent Battery charger has of most others, is its ability to be used from a 12V supply. An In-Car power lead is included that allows it to be connected to the cigar lighter socket found in most cars and caravans making it a great choice for anyone who needs to charge more than just AAA or AA types of rechargeable batteries whilst out and about. The Ansmann Powerline 5 Mobile provides individual negative delta V (-dV) battery monitoring and charging and LED charge indicators for each battery position, excluding the PP3 type batteries which only have a charge LED. Add to all this the 3 year warranty and the Ansmann Powerline 5 Mobil becomes a great choice for anyone needing a good quality charger for PP3, D, C, AA and AAA size rechargeable batteries with the added functionality of being able to use it from a 12V supply. The only gripe we have with this charger is that you cannot have a PP3 type battery inserted at the same time as having 2 D size batteries in the middle 2 charge slots. The size of the D batteries does not leave enough room for the PP3 battery to fit in between. |
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Rechargeable Batteries and DAB Radios
DAB Radio
DAB Radios are real battery eaters, especially the older ones.
We often get calls from customers who have bought a DAB radio that uses 6 x C Size or D Size alkaline batteries and are only getting something like 8 or 10 hours from a new set of Duracell Alkaline batteries.
This costs something like £9.00 each time they have to change the batteries for another set of Alkaline cells, let alone the environmental cost of throwing away all those batteries.
From a rechargeable front this can be a little tricky to solve if the DAB radio uses 6 C or D size batteries, as most chargers only cater for 4 cells at a time.
One solution is to use the Ansmann Energy 16 Battery Charger (as this can charge 6 C or D size batteries at a time) and a set of the Ansmann maxE 8500mAh D size (or Ansmann maxE 4500mAh C size) batteries. This would cost something like £150.00 – yes a lot of money, but only equivalent to having to buy 16 or 17 sets of Alkaline batteries. That’s just 160 hours of radio time if you only get 10 hours from a set of Alkaline batteries.
A cheaper alternative would be to use the Ansmann Powerline 5 Mobile (or even 2 of them to enable you to charge all 6 cells at the same time!) and a set of the CAMLINK 8000 mAh Ready-2-Go batteries. This would cost more like £65.00 – £85.00, that’s just 7 – 9 sets of alkaline batteries!
Link to this post: "http://www.tantronics.co.uk/blog/2009/11/rechargeable-batteries-and-dab-radios/"