Most battery per ounce?

[freebird134]

id say the price listed for the dark energy is high at 133$. I bought mine this spring direct from them at a sport show for 70$, at that price they cant be beat in my opinion. For the ruggedness and durability they really are the cream of the crop

Why is everyone so excited about dark energy? Just the durability? I've never had an issue with a regular charger, so I'm not convinced theT the $ is worth it.

 

[dotman]

id say the price listed for the dark energy is high at 133$. I bought mine this spring direct from them at a sport show for 70$, at that price they cant be beat in my opinion. For the ruggedness and durability they really are the cream of the crop

That price was in Australia.

 

[mfllood3800]

I picked up a RavPower Xtreme Series 26,800 for $60 and it weighs right at 1 lb, (453.5 g, 16, oz,7000 grains, 291.66 penny weight,13.885 ton<assay for you in the UK)
lol

seriously it seems to be a great charger. It took me no time at all to charge it, and I expect based on first tests that I could get 8-10 full cell phone charges from it.

I also have a little 6000 mah case logic charger I paid $20 for that will charge a cell phone about 4-5 times if I put it in airplane mode while charging.

I came close to an Anker and Dark Energy, but in my mind (so far anyway) the RavPower seems to be the best weight to mah to $$ out there.
I will be getting one more before my hunt to leave in truck just in case.

I carry the little 6000 case logic on my day hunts in Utah as it weighs next to nothing, and will charge everything I need for a day or two. It even has a tiny led light for flash light.

 

[mrbillbrown]

Picked up my Anker E7 26,800 mah battery last year for $60. Weighs 1#2oz with padded case and iPhone 6 charging cord. Worked great last season and I expect it to do the same this year. Can't see paying the price for the Dark Energy with only 10,000 mah capacity.

 

[Mi_fiveo]

I'm planning on using one of the Anker 26,800 mah models this year. If I can charge my IPhone ten times I should be all set.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[mrjohn12]

Amazon.com: Battery Pack RAVPower Portable Charger 22000mAh 5.8A Output 3-Port Power Bank (2.4A Input, Triple iSmart 2.0 USB Ports, Li-polymer Battery) Portable Battery Charger For Smartphones Tablets - Black: Cell Phones & Accessories

This is the highest capacity power bank I've ever purchased. It does everything you'd expect and it lasts far longer than I anticipated before requiring a recharge.

I've charged it from solar panels, various wall chargers and they all charge it, albeit at different speeds based on power output from the charging source. On a sunny day with a solar panel outputting 5v/2A, you can charge this full and have enough time to about half-charge a second.

 

[Windpowerpro]

Check out the Posidon from Dark Energy. They are military grade, super tough, light, and can charge just about anything. Best imo.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

 

[Clomp]

I have the larger 26800 anker. It works great.
I also have another variable voltage one that charges my Garmin rino. The rino needs 9v to charge the battery.
Anker used to make the variable one.... But some reason they stopped.

Dog812 - I'm pretty sure that the same USB / 9v variable voltage power bank that Anker sold is now being sold under the XTPower name. Its model number is MP-10000 and you can find it on Amazon for $60. Here's a link: Amazon.com: XTPower MP-10000 External Battery Pack with 10000mAh using dual USB 5V and DC 9V / 12V 2A output for many devices. Wall and Car Charger included.: Cell Phones & Accessories

I seriously considered that power bank for charging my 9v Rino 650t, plus my 5v InReach & 5v digital camera. The reason I passed is due to not being able to charge the XTPower from my solar panel that outputs out 5v/2a max.

 

[Trogon]

For those of you that have been using these, how do they hold up in cold weather? For example, if you are on a 6 day backpack hunt and the cell is in your tent and its below freezing half the time, does it still hold a charge??

 

[Steve O]

Why is everyone so excited about dark energy? Just the durability? I've never had an issue with a regular charger, so I'm not convinced theT the $ is worth it.

Because the Gritty Bowmen think highly of them.

 

[Steve O]

I'm going a different route this year with bare 18650 battery cells. Currently using a high quality Panasonic 3400mAh that weighs in at 1.61 ounces per cell.
Also have a single cell charger/pack for dual purpose use. With the cable its 1.77 ounces.
3 cells gives me 10,200mAh @ 4.83 oz
Charger w/cable @ 1.77 oz
Total 6.6 oz = 1,545 mAh per oz.
And that number will only go up with added cells if I want more power.

The biggest thing for me is using cells that are tested and proven out by a third party and are known to be reliable. Luckily the vaping community puts in a lot of testing on 18650 cells and has done the work on capacity and discharge curves. We really have no idea what kind of cells these companies are putting in their battery packs. They could be quality, they could be crap. Who knows?

This system as a whole, is a little clumsy and not waterproof like some. (A mute point for me because all electronics go in a dry sack) But I think the ability to add or subtract capacity, plus the fact if one cell fails I got more as backup.
Time will tell I guess, I may go back to a battery pack at some point.

Chucklehead--that sounds like a great idea. You got any pics or links to the charger/cord setup?

 

[Chucklehead]

Chucklehead--that sounds like a great idea. You got any pics or links to the charger/cord setup?

Its an amazon charger. Pretty sure its a Klarus CH1. Just type that in and you should find it. I think it was like $10.

 

[PantherCity]

Its an amazon charger. Pretty sure its a Klarus CH1. Just type that in and you should find it. I think it was like $10.

I'm interested in this too. To be clear, you can use the charger to both charge the 18560 and discharge the 18650 into a cell phone or GPS unit?

 

[PantherCity]

I'm interested in this too. To be clear, you can use the charger to both charge the 18560 and discharge the 18650 into a cell phone or GPS unit?

Also could you use the charger as a powerbank and throw in a couple CR123's and charge up a phone in a pinch? I always carry a couple extra Cr123's because my head lamp and flashlight use them. They last a long time and are very light.

 

[Chucklehead]

I'm interested in this too. To be clear, you can use the charger to both charge the 18560 and discharge the 18650 into a cell phone or GPS unit?

Yes its dual use. Charge and Discharge. I wanted one that offered both.

 

[Chucklehead]

Also could you use the charger as a powerbank and throw in a couple CR123's and charge up a phone in a pinch? I always carry a couple extra Cr123's because my head lamp and flashlight use them. They last a long time and are very light.

I haven't tried that personally. Not sure if a Cr123 would fit or not. There might be a charger out there that does that though.
Look into the Klarus K1 or K2. It was meant to handle the CR123 and AA, AAA Etc. It seems to have all the features. Might be worth a try.

 

[ndbwhunter]

Thanks for the information Chucklehead! I'm going to check into that. Have you tested it out yet? How many times can you charge a phone with one 18650?

 

[Chucklehead]

Thanks for the information Chucklehead! I'm going to check into that. Have you tested it out yet? How many times can you charge a phone with one 18650?

Seems like I can get by phone boosted to 100% with a bit of power left when my phone is almost completely dead.
I have a samsung S4 with a 9.88wh battery.
Figured one 18650 would get me one full charge. Lots of variables in this though.

 

[Clomp]

The biggest thing for me is using cells that are tested and proven out by a third party and are known to be reliable. Luckily the vaping community puts in a lot of testing on 18650 cells and has done the work on capacity and discharge curves. We really have no idea what kind of cells these companies are putting in their battery packs. They could be quality, they could be crap. Who knows?

You may want to check out the very detailed technical reports that HKJ publishes on Li-Ion cells and other USB gear. His reports really separate fact from fiction regarding whether the manufacturer's claims are true.

I've purchased 4 types of Li-Ion batteries and three chargers based on HKJ's reports. Hope they're as useful to you as they've been to me.
Flashlight information