How Do I Pick a Lithium Rechargeable Battery?
If you are someone who uses a lot of battery operated equipment like a photographer, you probably go through a lot of batteries in a week. Most people like to use rechargeable batteries to save on money and create less toxic waste. Lithium Ion (or Li-Ion) batteries have the longest battery life per charge for equipment that requires a lot of energy to operate, but they are also useful for equipment as simple as a flashlight.
What Are Some of the Battery Models That Are Li-Ion Based?
No matter what kind of electronic equipment you have, there is probably a version of the right sized battery using Lithium Ion. The modern Li-Ion Battery had its precursor in the Lithium Polymer battery. Li-Ion batteries last much longer than alkaline batteries for use in everyday devices.
- Everyday Batteries - You can find AA and AAA batteries that are rechargeable, and any number of easy to use wall mounted battery charger units that will allow you to quickly and safely recharge your batteries at home or while traveling.
- Cell Phones, Laptops, and Tablets - Most people are familiar with Lithium Ion batteries from their portable devices. Lithium is light weight and can hold several hours of charge in one small cell.
- Cars - Lithium use in batteries has also made rechargeable batteries for hybrid and electric cars possible. It is very light weight, so extra drag on the vehicle is avoidable. To make the charge efficient, multiple cells are dispensing their energy through a parallel circuit so that no one cell depletes too quickly.
How Do Lithium Batteries Compare with Nickel Metal-Hydride (NiMH) and Other Rechargeable Batteries?
Of course, Lithium Ion batteries are not the only kind of rechargeable battery available on the market with a high capacity. Here are a few other kinds available with their pros and cons v. Li-Ion. Lithium still has a lot of advantages for everyday home use.
- Ni-MH -NiMH batteries come in a wider variety of models beyond AA and AAA. NiMH options are also cheaper than Li-Ion, but they lose one to five percent of their charge a day when sitting in storage, so they are not ready in a pinch because you need to charge then before use. It also suffers from voltage depletion overtime. Li-Ion have little to no self-discharge.
- Ni-Cd - Much like Ni-MH, Ni-Cd batteries are cheaper, but heavier and lose power over time due to memory effect. For power tool use, Lithium batteries that are rechargeable also require a protection circuit for safety.
- NiZn - Like Li-Ion, these range in sizes AA to AAA. Like the other nickel-based batteries, they work well in high-drain devices, are cheaper, but also are subject to memory effect and voltage depletion over time. They have also been mostly discontinued.