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Topic:
Battery Life / Docking Station
This thread has 21 replies. Displaying posts 1 through 15.
Post 1 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 00:09
Andy
Historic Forum Post
What sort of longevity are people getting out of
the Pronto rechargables w/ docking station?

What about other rechargable AA's? My first set
of regular AA's ran out in 10 days, mind you
they were the ones packed with it, hopefully
these Duracells will do better.

All my light settings are at 1 min.

What about recharge times w/ dock?
OP | Post 2 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 00:45
jack schultz
Historic Forum Post
Andy,

Tell me you just did the basic programming and put the Pronto down, right? No friends to see....no visitors to see....Only teasing.

Based on the rating of the batteries in the dock (1200mah) as compared to std AA duracells or similar at about 1/2 that, I would have expected the dock batteries to last at least twice as long on a charge. I also would expect a quick charge to take probably 4-6 hours....same technology as cell phones. The NiMH batteries also have alower internal impedance than alkalines so this also helps the situation.
When I have a dock long enough to test it, I'll let you know!
Docks are currently in very very short supply. Perhaps given the choice between building docks vs Prontos, Philips has taken the high road. Don;t know exactly but it's my best guess.
OP | Post 3 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 01:04
ziad
Historic Forum Post
Andy,
Have you tried the energizer lithium batteries?
I saw them at Target in AA size
OP | Post 4 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 01:33
jack schultz
Historic Forum Post
Andy,

The lithoums may be worth a go but I don't thinks they're rechargeable. They are probably straight Lithiums similar to the UltraLife 9V technolgy as compared to the newer rechargeable Lithium Ion used in cell phones.
I would expect them to provide perhaps 4-5 times that of a good alkaline at I expect a fairly premium price.
OP | Post 5 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 01:55
Andy
Historic Forum Post
Jack your right, honest, just the basic programming and that was it... and only ten
days charge....must of been the batteries...
yeah that's it, the batteries :)

No, in all seriousness, I'm continually futzing
with it. The ooh-aah factor doesn't seem to
wear off, or maybe I'm developing chronic-Prontitus. I would expect under more
normal usage even the stock cells would last
better.

Anyways, I was just trying to get a feel for
whether or not some sort of rechargable
was an effective option to the Pronto dock system.
I imagine 4 topline AA rechargables plus charger gets close in price to the dock.


OP | Post 6 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 08:08
Patrick J. Quairoli
Historic Forum Post
I still have the original Philips batteries in my Pronto and I've been using it for over 5 weeks. I checked the indicator last night and the gauge still reads full charge. I spent close to two full days futzing with it and programing it and It looks like I might get more than 6 months from regular alkilines.

Maybe there is something different about the software revision on the pronto.

pjq
OP | Post 7 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 08:11
Rob Deckman
Historic Forum Post
I'm afraid my experience with the docking station (received yesterday from Metronet) has been terrible. The docking station blinks (meaning that either the battery isn't in the unit correctly) or that the remote-to-docking station connection isn't good. So far after 12 hours of trying everything, I'm ready to return the docking station to Metronet and settle on a lifetime of battery changing. Jack, I'll call you guys later today for advice or an RMA. Thanks.
OP | Post 8 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 10:13
Will Cunningham
Historic Forum Post
I have had some strange battery experiances with the pronto, but I have figured out why. The batteries that shipped with the Pronto died on me after a few weeks of use (aprox 3 if memory serves). I replaced them with Duracell Ultralife batteries and was shocked to discover that they died after 4-6 days of normal use! That freaked me out but I figured out what had happened.

I tend to leave the remote on my couch when I am done watching TV for the evening, and I have kind of a bouncy couch. I tossed the remote onto the couch and it flipped over. The way that it landed it was semi wedged in between the cushin's a little bit...just enough to press one of the hard buttons...draining the battery!

This lesson taught me to pay a teeny bit of attention to how I set it down and have not had a problem since. I still plan on getting a Docking station though, because it just seems more economical over the long run, and I know I will be using my Pronto over the long run. :)
OP | Post 9 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 11:56
jack schultz
Historic Forum Post
Rob,

Sorry to hear of the problem with the dock. It may be a faulty dock...happens to every mfr from time to time I suppose.
I haven't had enough docks around to even have one to test etc.
If it's bad, it'll be replaced, no problems.

I do think that the docs are probably the best long term solution...especially from an environmental standpoint. I think it's kind of like getting a cell phone that runs on rechargables or alkalines, who ever uses alkalines?
OP | Post 10 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 12:35
Clay W.
Historic Forum Post
Hi,
Being an avid Photographer, I have several sets of radio shack Nimh rechargable AAs I use for flash equipment. I have been rotating these batteries with one set in the recharger at all times. I have been continually tweeking my Pronto and thus, would characterize my use as "heavy." I received my Pronto from Jack at Metronet on November 27, 1998. I have used about one fresh charge one these battereis in the intervening 12 days (I say about because I replace the batteries when they show about half drained).

BTW, I also noticed that standard AA do not sit very securely in the battery compartment. After a while, one or more of the batteries would momentarily loose its connection and Pronto would lock up. The immediate cure was to remove and reinsert the batteries. To prevent recurrence, I have used a small foam rubber insert to hold the batteries more securly in place - no problems since.

Clay W.
OP | Post 11 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 13:15
Daniel Tonks
Historic Forum Post
I'm using the docking station in everyday life. Every night it seems that someone "cleans up" and moves the Pronto from the table to the charger. While I'm slightly worried about how long the NiMH batteries are going to last with this constant topping-up charge cycle, it is real nice to always have a fresh ready-to-roll unit.

The station I was shipped is actually a build sample, so I would expect a few problems. But besides an initial 6 hours or so of trying it with flashing lights, it's worked flawlessly since. It may simply have been dirty contacts on either the charger or the remote.

Clay: if I remember, there should be a small plastic "tray" that the original batteries were attached to (mine were taped). No, this isn't packing material - it fills the extra space required by the rechargable batteries, and provides a completely snug compartment for simple AA batteries.
OP | Post 12 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 22:52
Troy
Historic Forum Post
I have the docking station, and I have been replacing the remote to the unit after every use. I briefly considered battery life, but have not thought much about it since. Are the NiMH batteries with the dock considered "smart" batteries, which are immuned to developing a "memory" from constantly being topped-off??? If not, and the solution is to let them almost drain before replacing the unit to the dock, then please let me know. Thx.
OP | Post 13 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 23:03
David
Historic Forum Post
Troy,

On page 5 of the Pronto manual, "It's a good idea to place Pronto on the recharging dock when your're not using it." This make me assume that the batteries should be immuned to developing a memory. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
OP | Post 14 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 23:39
jack schultz
Historic Forum Post
NMiH batteries are smart although not as smart as Lithium Ion. This is to say that they will not develope "memory" like the prized NiCad of yesteryear. My expreience has been that they don't mind be "topped up" on a regular basis. In addition, the manual advises a 2-3 recharge time so they can certainly be fast and hard cycled.
A lot of the solution comes from greatly reduced internal battery impedance as compared to their alkaline and NiCad counterparts. The latter really just develope so much internal impedance that they won't provide the power to the load and also won't charge properly because of the internal impedance. Think of an additional unwanted load being placed between the battery and your Pronto leaving less than full voltage available at the Pronto. This is essentially what happens with older battery technologies.
The NMiH batteries offer a solution at reasonable cost that is quite reliable and long lasting.
OP | Post 15 made on Wednesday December 9, 1998 at 23:39
jack schultz
Historic Forum Post
NMiH batteries are smart although not as smart as Lithium Ion. This is to say that they will not develope "memory" like the prized NiCad of yesteryear. My expreience has been that they don't mind be "topped up" on a regular basis. In addition, the manual advises a 2-3 recharge time so they can certainly be fast and hard cycled.
A lot of the solution comes from greatly reduced internal battery impedance as compared to their alkaline and NiCad counterparts. The latter really just develope so much internal impedance that they won't provide the power to the load and also won't charge properly because of the internal impedance. Think of an additional unwanted load being placed between the battery and your Pronto leaving less than full voltage available at the Pronto. This is essentially what happens with older battery technologies.
The NMiH batteries offer a solution at reasonable cost that is quite reliable and long lasting.
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