The rechargable battery pack that came with my docking base seems to be dead. Where can I get just the battery pack? Thanks for any help!

This has come up before. The battery pack is the same price as a new docking station.

Are you sure about those prices? At least here where i am there is a shop called "Clas Olsson" (or something like that) that carries some very similar battery packs. I don't think it would hurt to try one of those... Provided you check for the obvious compatibilities, of course!

The battery packs for the 1000/2000 were proprietary and could only be obtained from Philips. I'm not sure about the 3000.

In the UK we have an electronics supplier called CPC and they do around 100 different types of NiCd/NiMH battereis for the 'Cordless Telephone Industry'.

The battery in the Pronto is simply a 3x1.2v NiMh (i.e a pack made of 3 1.2v cells). As long as you can find something to fit, with the correct polarity on the connector, ANYTHING would do. You could even make your own..

The 'cells' are readily available and they could be soldered together, crudely taped up (or shrink wrapped) and a suitable lead/connector add (possibly stolen from the old pack).

I am looking at the page now and there is every kind of shape/size you could ever want.

The best news is that they only cost between £3-8 (Approx $5-$15).

There must be equivalent suppliers in most countries! Don't get roped into buying one from Philips and paying a premium for the privilage!

The TSU3000 uses 4x1.2V.

It might even be possible to use individual rechargeable 1.2V cells in the battery holder used for standard batteries. Has anyone tried that?

You can probably find an equivalent rechargeable pack at http://www.batteries.com but they list them by cordless phone make/model rather than by their specs.

This message was edited by Dave Houston on 08/25/04 09:34 ET.

Volfan615,

There is a little fuse between the second and third battery on the top where the red, white, black wires go in. It tends to pop when putting the unit into the charger. Must be under-sized. You could put a jumper (piece of wire) accross it and the pack would probably work for you once again.
The pack also has a diode on the white wire for charging.

This message was edited by Haight on 08/25/04 13:31 ET.

Doh!! You are right.. Its 4.8v, why did I think that 3x1.2=4.8.

Even 4x1.2v packs are readily available.

Its a good point about just putting normal rechargable batteries in where you would normally put the Alkaline Batteries.

It connects to the same point on the PCB, so it would act just like the battery pack..

Infact, its a VERY good idea, as NiMH AAAs arn't that expensive and you can get them with a 800mAh capacity too which is more than the original pack!

I remember something being discussed here along time ago. Something about the rechargable batteries are 4x1.2v=4.8v and normal batteries are 4x1.5v=6.0v, so maybe the Pronto won't show the batteries being FULL and it also shuts down sooner because of the lower voltage. Somehow, they get around it when the rechargable pack is plugged into the little three pin connector.
People were asking Phillips to add firmware code to allow the rechargable batteries to be installed. But they didn't do it (most likely because they want you to buy that very expensive recharger package).

Whatever they are doing to accommodate the 4x1.2V pack should be simple enough to do with individual rechageables.

Two of the leads MUST be 0V and 4.8V. The third lead must somehow signal that rechargeables are in use.

Can someone provide a schematic or sketch showing how the red, white & black leads connect to the batteries?

I don't want to disassemble my battery pack as I have no shrink tubing large enough to replace what's there now. One of my hands is paralyzed so taping the batteries back together is also a problem.

I have checked the leads with my DVM and get 5.42V between Black & Red and between White and Red. I see 0V between Black & White. (The 5.42V is under no load.)

Using individual 800mAH cells may be as simple as jumping the Black & White terminals at the socket.

I recently checked with a battery company about replacements. The engineer I spoke with indicated the part is a thermistor, not a diode, which I thought it was. I think he indicated he had 700 mAH replacement packs (NIMH) available. I'll look for the web link.

Dave

That makes more sense. A PTC thermistor's resistance will increase with current so it can be used to regulate the charging rate.

Do you have a schematic or diagram of how the leads connect?

I don't Dave. However Shiftlock has recently modified his battery pack and added higher mAh batteries. I suspect he can enlighten us to the wiring scheme.

[email protected]

Dave D'Arche

I already asked and got no response.