Consistency Testing the Opus BT-3100 vs Liitokala Lii-500 18650 Battery Chargers
Вставка
- Опубліковано 5 лип 2020
- There's a common myth circulating various DIY groups and forums. Does the Opus BT-C3100 actually test 10% higher than the Liitokala Lii-500? We'll run some tests on both devices and find out!
WARNING: Lithium batteries are dangerous and can result in fire! This video is NOT intended to be instructional or a "how-to" lesson. I am not a professional. Do not attempt anything you see here without first contacting a certified and/or licensed professional.
Featured Products: (affiliate links)
Opus BT-C3100... amzn.to/38uStCi
Liitokala Lii-500... amzn.to/2O1TwA5
Recommended Stores: (Using these links helps support this channel)
Current Connected... store.currentconnected.com/?r...
Signature Solar... signaturesolar.com/?ref=lithi... ($50 Discount Code "LITHIUMSOLAR50")
Best LFP Source... www.18650batterystore.com/?rf...
SanTan Solar... www.santansolar.com/?ref=lsolar
Battery Hookup... batteryhookup.com/discount/BA...
Batrium BMS... www.batrium.com/
Contact Info:
My business email is lithiumsolardiy@gmail.com. You may contact me for sponsorships, product reviews, business-related questions, or any similar reason. I am not available for personal project questions or consultation. I will not respond to these emails.
NEW Twitter Page... / lithiumsolaryt
Disclaimers and Statements:
► I receive a small commission on purchases made using my affiliated links shared the video description and comments section. The views and opinions expressed here are my own, unbiased, and not influenced by this commission in any way.
► My videos are in no way intended to be instructional "how-to" lessons. I am simply documenting my project for informational purposes. Property damage, personal injury, or death may result, even when following manufacturer's instructions. I cannot be held liable for such damage or injury. It is YOUR OBLIGATION to ensure that you are complying with any local and federal laws as well as code and permit requirements. - Наука та технологія
I have both chargers I have 3 opus and 3 liitokala and I have to say they both have pros and cons and you mentioned that if you put cells in the outer 2 slots if the opus it does 2000ma charge and discharge but in fact it only does 2000ma charge and does a 1000ma discharge
"Discharging current can be selected between 200mA, 300mA, 500mA, 700mA and 1000mA". It appears you are correct :) I've never tried it myself.
@@LithiumSolar I would suggest you compare it to something else, possibly your iCharger you alredy mentioned. Reason is, I am somewhat suspicious because I just got my opus v2.2 and its charging to 4.22 (which means it goes at least 4.25v because it uses 100mA cutoff although that should be within tolerances. Also, it seems that capacity readings are quite high, my new lg HE4s are 2590-2640mAh, sanyo ncr18650GA 3469mAh and all that at 1A discharge. Do i just have good batteries or is charger slightly off?
Excellent! I have 3 x OPUSs and one of them is about 50ma (capacity) lower than the other 2. From 2 1/2 years of experience with my 3 OPUSs testing over 8,000 cells - the bottom line is the measurements are perfectly adequate to test individual cells for mah capacity and based on that to assemble DIY battery packs with very close, similar AH that stay in balance. For what they are (lower priced test instruments), I have full confidence in them for both results and durability :)
I was literally shopping for a battery charger! Nice content :)
Nice review, I would still like to see how your other charger compares!
Very well done and thanks for the info. Great video as always.
Very good comparison and analysis! 👍
Excellent video. Every year or 2 enough new people enter the hobby and start to generate spin about their favorite brands, mostly based on lack of understanding. I have been using the OPUS for 5 years now and I can do tests on 3500mah cells that test within a max of 3mah difference each time, even months later. Over half the tests are 1mah or less difference. Just having dirty contacts to the cells can generate more than 20mah difference over 3500mah. I have a slightly different version of the OPUS 3100 than you, as mine has slightly different firmware. But in all my tests with dozens of prepackaged testers and custom 6 digit capacity checkers, the OPUS has always been at the top. You would have to spend over $3000 to get a more accurate cell tester than the OPUS. Keep it up ;)
Skyrc mc3000, forget about this... Opus😂
Thank you for all your hard work.
Considering the price of the Opus has raised $20 since I bought it years ago, I'm glad competition exists now. Thanks for taking the time and sharing with us!
If you shop around, you can find better deals. They're cheaper on Aliexpress if you're ok going that route. I usually use Amazon even though it's a bit more as I can get them in 2 days and return if they fail within the next month (happened once).
@@LithiumSolar Between the shipping and the extra knockoff/poor QA/return risk I usually stick to Amazon too.
The Littokala has a 4 bit lower DAC than the OPUS. This slightly affects the precision of voltage reads from the cells and the amount of current being delivered to the cells. So I would expect to see a slightly higher variance on the Littokala.
Man I was just curious about this. Thanks I have 10 liitos. And I love them
Interesting comparison. I have Littokala chargers but I really take the capacity numbers as a ball park figure. The important result is if the cell is good enough to use in the application. The number that is also important is the internal cell resistance. Even if a cell tests with high capacity I believe if the cell has an internal high resistance that is an indicator of the cells longevity and performance. Do you have any bench mark numbers that you use when making your packs that would eliminate the use of a cell based on the capacity or resistance results? Thanks, good video.
Totally debunked that myth, Thanks! Can you do a video on the Opus with enhanced air flow vs factory fan air flow?
Thanks for doing this test :)
Fantastic Review/Test thanks for the effort
The difference between the highest and lowest observations is called range in statistics. Variance measures the average sum of squared deviations from the average, which is probably a better metric for this case.
A comparison between the Opus BT-3100 and the Liitokala Lii 600 would be very good. I am indecisive between these two chargers. Greetings!
Great Video as always!!
I don't know where you find the time but thanks for sharing. Standard deviation may need to be applied in you test data but how exact do we need to be. Cheers
I was getting inconsistent results with my liitokala.
Turns out that by installing mixed batteries in the charger,
some batteries were fully charged and would start discharging immediately before the charger had time to warm them up,
Other batteries need to be recharged before testing, so they had more time to warm up.
The warmer batteries deliver a fair bit more current.
So I setup a 120mm fan above the battery compartment of each charger and get much more consistent results now.
Yes a lot of variables to consider still
It's refreshing to see somebody that understands numbers.
Littokala fan here, but that's only because I don't have any Opus 🙂. Good video!
Same here 🤣
Opus is a youtube codec lol
same because i saw that fans can failoure
I couldn't find opus anywhere in my country.
Liitokalas are shit too! They are using cheap components and not reliable at all. I have the Lii-s4 died in just less than 6 months and I even didn't used it regularly. Maybe just 1-2 times a month for my nimh Fujitsu pros and some 18650s.
Thank you for sharing, Any chance of a video on internal resistance as the Liitokala can measure this? I get pretty inconsistent results on mine so perhaps a comparison with a decent internal resistance meter. Many thanks.
Please have a video on this 🙏
@@brianivandertp why? you already decided to buy the liitkaka because of your stupid argument that its much cheaper right 😅
Nice work dude, thanks.
What happens to the energy used to charge the batteries when they are discharged? Is it just wasted, or can you do some kind of regenerative discharge to keep the energy and use it for the next test?
My lipo charger can do this.
I just received the Lii-500 I ordered from Amazon and I'm trying to run some tests on some 18650 batteries I have. One battery I was able to fully charge, but if I try the Fast Test or the Nor Test it shows END without discharging the battery and stops doing anything. So is there
something wrong with the charger that would stop it from discharging the battery or a problem with the battery?
Good video. Keep the good job up!
I have 4 Liitokala testers and the funny thing is that 2 of them are showing the same results and 2 other are consistently showing 2-5% lower results. To make the results even I am usually adding 50 mAh to the results on a charger 3 and 100 mAh on a charger 4. It make the results kind of even for future pack building.
Thanks. So what's the conclusion? Is the Opus any better than the Liitokala ?
Thanks for a very informative video. I'm debating whether to buy the Liito vs Opus for my DIY project. Based on price Liito is cheaper by ~20 so obvsly I would initially gravitate towards that one. I'm curious to know you didn't like about the Liito (or liked more on the Opus)?
I don't like the Littokala because it will only run capacity tests at 500mA. The Opus will run tests at 1000mA, which puts a bit more stress on the used cells and helps weed out those that are near failure. This is in addition to the obvious reason of the Opus is much quicker due to twice the discharge rate.
@@LithiumSolar Thank you so much that is very helpful!
Good review!
Opus only charger I use for capacity testing. Not sure why but had to upgrade the fans on both Opus in order to capacity test 4 cells @ 1 amp. Sounds like only a few have had this issue though.
Thanks a lot for this systematic comparison!👍
As I'm not from the US, I don't know either brands, but using a similar one from a German manufacturer (at least labled alike) I found it very useful as well.
My own charger ELV ML 10000 also discharges with 500mA only (fixed, with no exceptions), and it charges with up to 2000mA if using 2 slots only. Using 3 slots reduces the max. to 1500mA, all 4 slots charge with 1000mA only.
Unfortunately I'll have to raise a hardware complaint, since the max. Charge rate dropped to 1500mA at best, just after a couple of weeks usage (or around 50 cells). One of the four internal power circuits must have failed.
Is this a common issue maybe or just bad luck?
My Accupower XL338IQ seems to be very similar to the Liito, except the way you insert cells. The Opus BT-C3100 is in germany also available as Voltcraft IPC-3
So turns out every few seconds the charger stops charging for a moment and measures the float voltage of the cell to determine charge status (which is kind of a must for ni-mh batteries), but i think the capacity meter is timer based and doesn't take that into account . Results are 18.57 % over estimation. ( or a bit less with higher current)
does it automatically change between Li-ion and NiMH? Can't see how to change it..
Still satisfied with my C3100. My two complaints is the noisy fan and the higher temps at loading (my IQ338XL which seems to be very similar to the Liito charge cooler at 1000mA till the end)
i have the opus and i so a large diference between the 500mah and ther 1ah test now that i have a 80mm fan for cooling i can now test at 1amp here is the funny part i used the opus to test then repackr to make the packs perackr said i would get 12ah but im getting closer to 13+ah now when i did the 500mah test repackr was right on the money with the discharge test results i would like to know if the higher discharge rate leads to false positives of capacity the only problem i have with the 500mah test is length of time for the cycle
Hi, about the discharge function (test) why should I charge-discharge and recharge to know the battery capacity ???
if I have a flat battery and charged full ..... it will know anyway how many mhA I have loaded ... don't you agree?
Because how much you put in isn't important, it's how much you can get back *out* that determines usable capacity. Otherwise you will add all the losses to heat and resistance and count yourself rich when in fact a cell may perform much worse in practice. It's relatively easy to keep a pack balanced during charging but if you do that during discharging you are wasting your precious stored power.
Thanks, I think you spot on!!!!
Good video was wondering and maybe it was mentioned in another comment, did you let the batteries stabilize and cool off between runs or not, i suspect the Liitokala doesnt handle the heat as well as the opus, i noticed the opus seems to be a little better built but not sure about this since i dont have the liitokala, i have the Opus 3100 and the Miboxer.
Could you make a comparison of the opus vs the lii-600?
Or which one do you recommend to buy?
Sorry, I don't really work with these chargers or cells anymore unfortunately.
Hi. Not a techie guy but how about nitecore, golisi, astrolux and other brands. Looking for a plug and play type that can protect my batteries for a long time and detect what is needed to charge. Mains with overcharging and safety protection.
you also maybe able to save if you get th non rohs version of the Liitokala charger
In my opinion I like the Opus. I have both and like how much faster the Opus is. Just use the same brand tester on all the cells, so your results are more accurate.
I just found your channel as I was buying the opus 3100. I need a reliable charger for 18650,21700,and 26650 batteries. I'd like a 4 slot charger and IF POSSIBLE that I can choose the current on each slot. What would be the most reliable charger. THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP
On both of my Littokala chargers, slot # 4 will report more capacity than slow #1 (for the same battery).
The statistical term you are looking for is range. Variance would be the sum of the squared difference divided by n-1.
Should have measured the Charged Cell voltages with some other DVM . The voltage vary from machine to machine. None of my Liitokala Lii-500 charge higher then 4.18v..
Very thorough
Hi what about xtar vc8 plus ...im using litokala and this xtar ....these days ....sometimes the difference is about 30mah with same cell....and some other times its 200mah....i dont know which one i have to follow 😇
Why can’t I used the fast test mode why do I have to uses the nor test for testing capacity?
The fast test mode reports the capacity back from the charge cycle. You'll want to use nor test as it measures capacity during the discharge cycle. You don't have to, but it's a more accurate and standard method of measuring battery capacities.
Thank you sir.
I don’t get how those 2 different chargers can test so close, I’m getting up to 170mah difference between 2 Opus testing against each other under same charge and discharge rates on same 18650’s
I'd love to know how others get them so far apart...
did you happen to test the opus "variance" at 1000mA discharge current? would be nice to know if it is in the same range as the 500mA discharge
No, because only the Opus can discharge at 1000mA. The Lii-500 can only discharge at 500mA.
@@LithiumSolar thanks, i did geht that from the video, was just interested in the variance of the mesurenents of the Opus @1000mA
IMHO it's hard to go wrong with either of these chargers - I have both and the only real problem I have had with either is the Opus comes with that totally crappy power supply that really doesn't power the unit adequately especially when doing discharges at higher the 500mA with four cells. That crappy little 12V 3A PS just isn't enough to handle the load. I threw a regular 12V 5A regulated PS on it and it's been rock solid ever since. Mind you I have had this happen with TWO BT-C3100's so the power supply issue wasn't a fluke. The two Lii-500's on the other hand have always been reliable that way - no issues at all with the PS that comes with it.
Other than that, I would say neither of these chargers is a bad choice - they both generally do what they are supposed to do.
Great video! I've been trying to decide which charger to buy, and I'm leaning toward the Opus. By the way, 'varience' is spelled 'vari a nce'. Thanks for the video.
Ooops and thanks :)
If you test @ 1000mA how is the capacaty defrent to 500mA if that can be the reasen ?
Capacity should be lowered as discharge current is increased, see any battery spec sheet. The % change should be exactly what is written on the cell's spec sheet, these aren't exactly lab grade testers but they are clearly impressively accurate and precise.
Important to notice that you only tested *one* of each product, there is of course the possibility that those people that reported a big difference have units that are broken or out of spec.
funny you do this test. after i had thousands of cells tested with the zanflare C4 chargers, now those have more than 10% higher results than the opus or liitokaala. lol. I ended up retesting all of the cells in my next powerwall with the megacell charger at 1000 mAh just for consistency. cells that were 2600 mAh rated, tested at 2800+ some even 2900+ mAh on the zanflare chargers, are now at 2700 average on the megacell charger (few at 2600+, majority at 2700+ and a few at 2800+). (gray modem LG cells)
Which one of the chargers can charge a super flat battery! or do they need a kick start on both?
Why would you want that
with out extra cooling many opus can not discharge at 1 amp either mine was 1 of them the unit would always crash out so had to test at 500mah very anoying as that ment i cycle would not be done when i arrived home from work after putting a run on befor i went to work
Good video! Great myth busting :D
Lii-500s is the current model and I love mine. yours is quite different!
That model is fairly new and still only 500mA discharge unfortunately.
Have you noticed slot 1 and 4 test about 3% to 4% higher capacity than 2 and 3 when using identical cells that are new from the same batch? I've had over 20 groups of 4 come out that way. 20/20
I've had the Lii500 for a few years, and it does what I need. I think the 500ma discharge is a sensible limit for the available passive cooling of the charger. If it's discharging a full complement of fully charged cells, then the unit will be dissipating around 10 Watts, which is a lot in the small space available. This dissipated heat will artificially warm the cells, so cell internal heating is kept down to a minimum with only a 500ma discharge.
I think it's better to limit discharge heating to manageable levels by limiting discharge current, rather than discharge at higher levels, but triggering the overheat circuitry at random intervals.
My Liitokala Lii500 also charges my cells to exactly 4.20V, so maybe the Opus doesn't measure the cell voltage as accurately as the Lii500?
I was wondering if you get slot 1 on the Lii500 give slightly lower capacities than the other slots ( 1 - 2% ), this test suggests a similar behaviour?
@@MrKarlPrince
I've not noticed a difference between the different slots, but it might be something I'll test, as I seem building more 18650 packs these days.
@@MrKarlPrince The Lii-500S shows a difference between slots 1 & 4 vs 2 & 3. The outside slots test about 3% higher than the inside slots (very rough estimation)
Thanks !!!
The problem was with opus from 2016 and 2017 versions. Its fixed in new er models
Bought opus after using litokalla for a few months, one of the things that frustrates me about litokalla is overcharging to 4.22-4.23V (while charger thinks it's 4.15-4.2V). Another reason why I bought the opus is the option to choose 3.7V charge for storage purposes.
Hi. i want to buy a battery charger but couldn't decide. Which one would you recommend?
@@elecdroid3666 just buy the two, Opus first then other later
Cannot stand pulling cells out of slot one on my Lii-500S at 4.22 or even 4.23. The other slots are 0.01V less but still overcharged.
It would be called range.
Nice video :)
Great video for comparison. Thanks for helping me decide which one I should buy. Liitokala because it's cheaper 😁
then goodluck on your liitokaka and your nonsense argument 😒
Nitecore ums4 or Liitokala lii-500?
Your a saint god bless you i LovE Batt erRe’s
We also need to test the individual slots of the charger. They might differ between each other.
can you charge lifepo4 batteries with these?
No
Yes you can with Opus.
Opus is twice as expensive now too $30 vs $15
And I thought they automatically detect polarity of a cell
If you put all 4 cells in the litto than plug it in you only have to set normal/1000 once
I will try that 😁
I have owned both I prefer the l.k. over the opus only because the fans make squealing sounds. Only time I ever use my opuses is to charge another great video
That is a downside. I've replaced a few fans in mine throughout their lives...
Unfortunately neither of these chargers will accommodate a 21700 size battery. The Lii-PD4 will accommodate a 21700 and a 32700 battery
I can't find what the discharge current of the Lii-PD4 is anywhere. I'm guessing it's the same 500mA as the Lii-500. Regardless, no thanks...
For future viewers I want to clarify that 21700 cells DO fit the Opus. I have Samsung 40T's, & 50E's, Molicel P42A's, Lishen LR2170LA 's, LR2170SF's, LR2170SD's, Tesla/Panasonic 4800mAh 21700's, BAK N2170CG's and a few others, all flat top, and every one of them fit without a problem. What won't fit are protected 21700's.
I just received my Liitokala Lii-500 units and put in some reclaimed modem cells. I then ran the NOR TEST in the same manner utilizing the 700mA charge and 500mA discharge setting. The cells were all generally between 3.3V-3.7V when I put them in. They first charged to 4.2V then began the discharge cycle and when that was complete it went into the recharge portion of the test. However, it annotated END once the cells reached about nominal voltage of 3.6-3.7V. The capacities all seem to be somewhat normal and they all went up to 4.2V prior to the discharge. I am curious as to why this may be. On the cells that have completed the NOR TEST I then set it the charger to CHARGE and they charge up to 4.2V. Which then END is displayed. I am a bit at a loss and any insight would be appreciated. This has occurred on all 5 separate charges and on about 20 of 24 cells that I have cycled thus far. Thanks for your time
Cells tend to bounce their voltage as soon as the load is removed. If the load is replaced then the voltage would quickly return to cut off voltage, or even below.
currently the litokala is 1/2 sometimes 1/3 the price compared to the opus right now.
so i got a bunch of litokalas. got thousands maybe 10s of thousands of cells to test. hopefully goes well :P
Good luck! It's a decent charger, just remember it only discharges at 500mA even though it has a 1000mA setting (a bit misleading).
Opus charger not available in our country😢😢😢
Definitely Opus vs iCharger please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My Question: Did you use a punchbag shortly before carrying out this test as you right knuckle looked red.
No.
@@LithiumSolar Thanks for the reply. I should have said I really enjoyed the video and went on to eBay and Amazon to buy the 'Opus BT-3100' Cheers 🍻
Seems they are both good enough for testing used cells... I only have an Opus and it has always seemed good enough for me.
Yep, completely agree. The only thing I would note as a big differentiating factor is whether you want 1000mA or are fine with 500mA.
@@LithiumSolar Good point. Also thank you for doing the test to confirm the Opus is reasonably accurate.
Good enough but don't mix brands. Stick with one brand to get a better consistency.
Can the 500 take a 21700 cell?
No
@@LithiumSolar Damn that sucks is it way to long?
Cool video. I use the Liito only cuz it's alot cheaper.
My actual questions
1.can i use cells which have 1.4v after salvaging from laptop batteries.
2. Cells which get hot/not too hot upon charging with 1A using Tp4056.
3.What should be the min and max capacity difference between original and measured capacity.
Thank you!
If u could make a video or refer someone who has already done it it will be very helpful
Thank you!
1. You can use them, but you have to be careful with them - a lot more batteries may be faulty or get hot during charged (usually they have higher internal resistance) than from a pool of those with good voltage.
2. No. Warming up strongly at charging/discharging is a symptom of high resistance or failure. The hotter the cell is, the faster it wears out. One battery like this can quickly die and spoil the whole package.
I'm using such batteries, for example, in weak flashlights.
3. I don't understand the question. The more used the battery, the lower it's capacity.
Have someone actually looked at a bunch of Opus chargers from different sources and compared them to "itself"? I think that would be more fruitful... But anyway, thanks for the vid :)
They are both cheap chargers and have their issues. I never realised the Liito discharge limit until after I purchased so that was my main grievance on that unit, however, the Opus is clearly not built sufficiently for 1A discharge hence the requirement to do fan modifications for it to survive and function properly, so you could argue maybe Liito did it right for the design and price point in the first place :)
The important thing to remember is all these charges are good enough to give you a guide for matching your cells as long as you use the same charger for all the cells your wanting to match. E.G if you measure 100 cells on the Opus and it did say all the cells are 100mA more than they really are, it doesn't matter because they're all consistent for matching and building.
For me its all mute, because the Megacellcharger will be the only charger I use going forward for its superior features like database tracking history of all my cells etc.
You are totally wrong! the reason why the opus have fan is to lower the temperature of its components probably a resistors because it can discharge 1A as oppose to the 500mah of liitokaa. another thing is the overall build of the opus is much more tight and compact compare to the liits. and adding a fan is a smart thing and not just a gimmick.
@@ibringthelastwords1358 I'm not sure if you misunderstood what I was saying way back then or whether I didn't write it very well.
I wasn't criticising the Opus for having a fan, I was merely pointing out that many Opus owners have had to repair or modify them when using them for mass battery testing. I don't think the any of these 4 cell chargers were originally designed for the amount of work Powerwalls builders are putting them through on account that they are only 4 cell devices.
Either way, I wish everyone good luck with their builds. I am somewhat disappointed I never finished my project for various reasons and am left with a lot of kit and cells to dispose of one day 😩
Programable electronic DC load or Cadex and be done with it.
I am astonished that no one here is yet about the poor handling of the Liitokala. I would never have thought that using and exposing me, especially the 18650 batteries, would be so annoying.
Poor handling of the Liitokala? Did I do something wrong?
@@LithiumSolar no, not you. I mean the operation with liiotokala
Could the power supply be a cause for the differences people get?
Possibility. These often come with garbage power supplies. I typically go buy a brand name power supply for them but I haven't noticed any "increase in accuracy"
littokala you can see the mR.
Opus shows resistance too.
Pretty sure lilto kala pays youtubers for favorable reviews. Only way to justify all the love from the diy/battery "experts"
No idea. I would sure hope that's not the case. I purchased this one myself, wasn't paid nor was it sponsored.
What is so bad about it?
The fluctuations are absolutely negligible. What's left is the price for each device, I payed $15 for my LiitoKala 500 engineer. 😂
I agree the fluctuations are negligible. Keep in mind though that the LiitoKala 500 will only test at 500mA whereas the Opus tests at 1000mA.
@@LithiumSolar I don't test anything, I throw shit away and buy new ones. They are cheap enough and I have loads of them so . . . Testing is for poor people who have to make due with what they have maybe? Although, I know someone who is in dire straits but he has a very cheap Chinese charger. I mean people like him generally don't even think about testing. 😎
I just bought the opus.
The method I would have used is: set 2 batch of 4 cells, and for each batch, give them a refresh cycle (3 charge-discharge) in one charger, then mesure capacity of the 4 cells 3 times and calculate average. After that, same process in the other charger.
Anyway, I don't clearly see the interest in comparing results of 2 chargers if you don't know the true capacity of your cells mesured by a reputable method and reference charger, and without testing the accuracy of each charger for voltage and current with a reputable and precise multimeter. This is the way to know if any charger comply with cells manufacturer's recommandations and is abble or not to do a proper and reliable CC-CV charge cycle. And having the measurement difference between each slot of any charger compared to a reference source is the way to apply correction to each inexact measurement to obtain trusty capacity measurement, whatever the model or the slot of the charger if of course the charger is capable of a minimal and sufficient replicability.
Shouldn’t you test the cells as close to the average draw in whatever they’re used in? Picking an arbitrary 1A value is silly if you don’t draw more than, say, 350mA in your application.
Not necessarily. Technically-speaking, the industry standard is 0.2C which would be 560mA. I prefer to test mine at 1A as it helps weed out the weak cells which then go to the recycling center. Even if my application is only 350mA, I don't want weak cells in it.
Somebody just linked me this video in response to "over estimates capacity" comment I made.
I'm sorry bro but you dont measure an instrument by comparing it to another instrument with the same topology and internal manufacturer.
I hooked up a BT-3100 to 2 fluke external meters and an external wat meter. and the results are 17.02% over estimation of the charging capacity.
First of all, replying with "bro" pretty much discredits your entire comment. Ignoring that part, the purpose of this video was specifically to compare the two chargers because the common complaint is "Opus tests higher than Littokala" not a more-generalized "over-estimates capacity". So even if I were to believe what you're saying, which I don't really, perhaps you should be saying that the Opus, Litokala, Megacell, Zanflare, etc ALL over-estimate instead of singling out the Opus, yes? Lol
@@LithiumSolar Oh Im sorry, i'll admit i didnt fully look at this video, I was in the middle of a conversation with somebody elsewere and pretty much copy pasted my reply I made to him here because he linked me this video in our conversation.
@@LithiumSolar Ill also add that regarding comparison between the two chargers your video is flawless and very comprehensive
Your premise was incorrect, the 10% higher observations came from testing cells on a Liitokala at 500/500ma and an Opus as 1000/1000ma. Sounds like you need to do another video test ;-)
But he tested them at both at 500...
That is not a valid comparison having one charger at 500mA and one charger at 1000mA. There are a LOT of people who don't understand that the Liitokala does not discharge at 1000mA and is probably how this all started.
First of all you can't do 500/500ma on the Littokala, as was pointed out in this video. So that may be where some of your confusion is coming from. Secondly, charge and discharge curves of most any chemistry of cells changes dramatically at different charge/discharge rates. Perhaps do some research at Battery University.com about battery basics.
@@LithiumSolar It is a valid comparison in terms of how people compare them. When you test at the maximum discharge rate the Liito will almost always give you a lower rating. People know that the max discharge on the Liito is 500ma but they still insist on using it because the Opus reads "high", costs more and will overheat if you place it on a flat surface. You don't use an Opus at 500ma because that isn't stressing the cell enough to weed out bad cells. Since you can't test a Liito at 1000ma there is no way to compare them.
😃