Update March 6th 2022: The product page where they were selling these batteries has been deleted 3 days after posting the video. They're continuing to sell what appear to be the same exact batteries under new listings which you can find here liitokalahongkong.aliexpress.com/store/217753/search?SearchText=liitokala+105ah
This "brand" makes a lot different batteries, ALL are not as advertised. Generally below capacity by various degrees. Up to 50%! I think they do make cells (18650) but they also buy b grade and faulty products and sell them on. I've not seen one good review /test on these or this brand it's not limited to these cells. * I think maybe the performance people get seems better but they may have over reads/bias giving what appears good results. Cheap battery, cheap tester= unreliable results. ( And Fake planted people to groups and forum to promote businesses and products)
There are groups that purposely put false reports on the internet and are paid to do so. The cost ratio of return on the money is good, so the manufacture pays for the false , positive reports-reviews.
I am a member of a Facebook group, where people buy the Litokalla 100/200ah batteries. From all the members, only one was able to pull full capacity, and they have sold them in hundreds in this group. I have been asked to help a member who's battery didn't work on arrival. The interior was a mess! Terminal corrosion, heavily bloated cells (I mean really bloated), the BMS was the cheapest thing you can think off. The 200ah capacity, was made with 2s 4P 100ah cells. The poor guy couldn't use the cells for nothing. He ended up matching 4 cells that were ok'ish... Then bought a new set of new cells, a BMS and I teached him how to set it up and he is thrilled. But from the initial order, to the time he had a real working battery it passed around 6 months... Really not worth the money. That company is garbage in LifePo4 batteries, even though some work...
True grade A cells have become such incredible value for money only a fool would buy anything else unless your use case is firmly in the hobbiest domain. For everyone else batteries of this calibre are a true game changer, Ive been using mine for my only source of power for 2 years now which gives me the ability to do things like live in complete comfort anywhere in my country and not waste money on ridiculously high rent or power bills for example. No huge debt to achieve it either and will have paid for itself in 3 years with all the money not poured into someone else's pocket!
They certainly look like my EVE 105 cells, and as noted,the number on the QR code for mine all start with 02Y. Of course I paid more for mine since they came from Amy at Luyan, but they also came with all the test data from EVE. All measured spot on with the EVE test reports, about 109 amp hours per cell. I don't know if EVE sells different versions of the same cells, but mine came with M4 threaded from the factory (you can tell, straight and even tap, much better than those tapped by a third party). Of course for 4 I paid right at $250 including shipping (actually $511 for 8, including all the fees and sales tax). Like you say, you get what you pay for, and the vendor you used has a terrible reputation and should be avoided. The ones you received are obviously used cells that were pulled at end of life (80% capacity, or close to it). None of mine are bulged in any way.
Amy at shenzhen Luyaun sold me 16 Eve lf280k and they are all good! Highly recommend! I use them constantly in my off-grid home:) Littokala has a terrible rep. Thank you for confirming.
I've got an idea I think that these are the cells that failed in factory testing that were meant to go in pre-built packs but these failed so instead of scrapping them are recycling them they tried to sell them as brand new
I don't know if QA failures would result in bulged batteries. IMHO it's either overcharge or under-discharge, a sign of them being used, consistent with corrosion and other marks. Probably salvaged batteries from cell phone towers, re-wrapped and perhaps with re-soldered terminals so that nut marks don't show up. At least that's the explanation that seems the simplest to me.
I bought 4 280AH "grade A" batteries from LittoKala in Jan 2021, received them in March 2021...I didn't get much tracking on the Aliexpress site, but at some point a pending shipment showed up in my FedEx app a few weeks before delivery from Jack somebody or other, I forget, and Fed Ex did finally deliver them. These 4 batteries looked good and matched and tested around 276AH so I figured OK, I will get more of these batteries, so ordered 12 more for my project. I received those in about May 2021, tested them and all of them tested with around 240AH. I complained to Aliexpress and asked for a partial refund (I wasn't going to send them back) and got about a 12% refund of the already cheap purchase price. I charge them with solar panels on my south facing balcony and some from the grid and use them to charge my Chevy Volt which is parked out too far to run a cord to it from my 3rd floor apartment. I charge 8 at a time, and then charge the car up with 8 of them and an inverter in the back of the car. I have 4 batteries each in 4 camera breifcases which I can carry in and out. One set to charge the car while the other set is charging on solar. Its been working out well for almost a year now, They still charge and discharge at around 230AH (3 of the packs do anyway). And I get the car charged and avoid buying expensive gasoline at least. They will be repurposed into a van build for living on the road within the next year if I ever get the van I orrdered and I'll have about 12KWh of capacity for the van at least and should get a few more years service out of them hopefully.
Thanks for taking the time. That's about what I expected and still very good value. I bought 8 of the 280s (Non grade A) a few months ago, but they're still in storage atm. They do look fine tho, absolutely skinny. I'm hoping for 250AH but I'm not going to complain at 220 ish. What else is there for the price? Even at 200AH I get over 5KWH for less than a grand (US). How do you beat that?
Yeah I've had this happen so many times. You never ever know what you're going to get with lito kala. I did get a good batch once haha Usually it's one bad cell and the rest are pretty good. Makes my blood boil
There are a lot of sketchy things going on with that store. Another example is all of the 18650 cells they sell. Notice how all of the cells look like big brand names (Samsung, LG, etc) but the Liitokala sticker is creatively stuck over the brand name every single time. Only one reason comes to mind why they would be doing that...
@@LithiumSolar I bought some of their 3400mah 18650s and they all tested legit, although they would never do the 30a discharge they claimed. Jehu did a video on them. That was over 3 years ago now. So maybe they've got greedy now. The old bait and switch. Start off being legit, get a good reputation, and then gradually sell off used cells as new, to make more money.
I have been working a lot with EVs that use the Brammo Li pack and Brammo BMS controller interfaced via CAN bus to the VCM. The car uses a 12V lead acid for accessories and VCM power that manages key off regular battery health checks and keeps the 12V hot via DC/DC converter. I haven’t taken the time to investigate the Brammo, but I suspect an equivalent could be built on my bench for a lot less cost. Idk but I need to investigate.
I love it. Your descriptions are always very informative and you carefully select words and cautiously give your opinions - but with this battery you couldn't hold back - "this battery is a turd." Hmmmmmmm, no confusion about what you think.
I recently bought 12 EVE cells - 8 x 105Ah and 4 x 280Ah - after seeing them for a good deal from a US supplier. Sure, ordering them from China would've been less expensive, but I also got them in a week instead of waiting a couple months.
I actually just got extremely lucky with a LiitoKala purchase on their short 180ah cells (Actually 158-ish ah) and out of the 64 that I purchased, all of them appear to be grade A or damn close to it. Just mislabeled and clearly re-wrapped from another manufacturer. It really was fortunate that I got what I paid for. (As I knew from the reviews the cells were only 160ah to begin with) LiitoKala appears to buy from a multitude of manufacturers, and is even deconstructing these cells from another product and rewrapping. Some of THEIR vendors appear to be hit and miss. Some are selling them used cells, and some are deconstructing them. Likely from companies that went out of business and had stock on the shelf containing the cells, that wouldn't itself sell as a product. So they are harvesting relatively new cells and re-wrapping them. So, it would appear that virtually NOTHING LiitoKala sells in "New" and is likely at a minimum, harvested re-wrapped cells from other products, and at worst, used up cells being sold as new. Personally, I will NEVER buy from LiitoKala ever again. The cells took almost 3 MONTHS to arrive, arrived with the wrong nuts, was short on bus bars, and was overcharged for shipping and had to dispute to get my money back. My pack is fortunately operating in a TIGHT balance with only a .008 .006 Voltage diff between cells after top balancing. All 64 cells tested on arrival to within .01vdc of each other, and the internal resistance is very low and appears to be at the worst only lightly used. But yeah, a 4000$ roll of the dice for sure. Pure luck that I got decent cells. Many others have not... 1/10 would NOT recommend! Great video, and Thank You for highlighting this company!
I am just sad that so many months went by until you tested them. And more people would have bought them. Not blaming you. You are doing a great service. I just think back to the first LiFe batteries I got that were twice as good as these and still pretty crappy. I wish I'd had your review then. The second were ones you recommended and I have been very happy. Keep it up.
I didn't intend to review them originally. I was going to use them for a build video, but project fell through due to the turd batteries, so they just got stuck on the shelf. But yeah, I really should have gotten something out sooner...
I bought 16 200ah cells form Liitokala official store. I said with the order, please send good cells as I want to buy another 48. The cells are nice and square etc. I did a capacity test on 8 ( 4 then 4) using a victron smart shunt and a 1600 watt victron inverter. And running 5 domestic 240v fridges at once. Lasted 48 hours and delivered 200ah and voltage was still 11.8v ( dropping fast) at the end of the test. I paid delivered AUD 1600 for 16 cells and I consider this good value. They are going into my RV as a 24v system with a daly 250 amp BMS- so far so good.
Same experience on this side. 105Ah seems to be 84Ah. After dispute, Ali paid 33% of the price to me as a compensation for this scam. I am only using the cells at a “silent-generator” in 1 DIY box, with 20Amp charger and 1000Watt sinus inverter. Using this as a 1 kW spare energy source, I can accept this. However LittoKala should be more honorable in selling cells that meet their specs. I will never do business with this company. Regards, Peter.
they also have a lot of other cell formats that look like overspeced and mostly used and or refurbished like the cylidrical ones you can screw together to a long pole. Great idea, but badly executed cause the Ah are missing 20% and the terminals looked used. This has happened for the LiIon they sold first and also the LiFePo4. just another to good to be true story which makes us wonder what if the price would be even higher just 99% of regular grade A ones? Then it would be even harder to detect them, but in this case the brand is quite the opposite delivering of a brand should deliver. sad but true.
The problem with cheap stuff on aliexpress is how random it can be. One person may get good cells while the next person (buying from the same seller) may get crap. Often the seller doesn't even know anything about batteries and just got them for cheap and are reselling them. So asking any questions is useless. You really have to do your homework to find good sellers and also avoid stuff that is "too good to be true". One trick is to look at what other items the seller is selling in their store. You want to find a seller that specializes in selling the kind items you want. Not a seller who lists... Pink cat toys, Car stereos, Door locks, and Lithium batteries. (That is too random and they wont know anything about what they are selling)
Good call, your right these are not grade A battery, just through your examination I could tell, and the test results did not come as a surprise either, and your conclusion is exactly correct.
just fyi: the qr code contains just the URL. Nothing else such as serial numbers or date of manufacturer. the second qr does contain the serial number as shown on the sticker
How do you like the internal resistance meter? I wonder if they match what the iCharger shows for internal resistance. Thanks for the heads up on these grade F cells. 80% is considered end of life for most cells.
It's ok. It's the only one I've used so I don't have much to compare it to. Sometimes the screen acts funky, like it has a slow fresh rate or something. Also, completely forgot the iCharger had an IR readings tab!
Hmm, intresting i have actually purchased 8x of the 320ah cells from littokala recently, received them last month and they tested between 305-312Ah, for the price I was pretty impressed with them, i paid £775 for them not too bad for a 600+Ah a battery pack imo. Also just to add littokala did advise these cells are supposed to be compressed (otherwise they will swell)
Since nobody manufactures 320ah cells, we know that they lied about that. I won't purchase anything from any company that lies. I will pay extra and get exactly what I ordered, not some made up "good enough" (and likely used) garbage. FYI, my 304AH cells do not bulge, they lie about that as well.
I think those weren't bloated. The problem is with the plastic. As the plastic case warms, it expands, causing the cell to look bloated. Place the battery in an environment that is below 60 degrees and it's likely they are flat. I found this to be true when I had mine 'swell' after bringing in from the mail box and unpacking in a cold garage. In the garage, they were either perfectly flat, or even a little concave. But inside over night, they swelled. I put them back into the garage and they again were flat.
They are bloated. Very bloated. And they have gotten worse just sitting on the shelf since I've filmed this video.There is gas inside and they cannot be squeezed back down as they would if it was just warped/expanded plastic.
On your advice, I recently bought 4 - 105Ah cells from 18650 Battery Store. This is my first battery build. They arrived quickly and look perfect. And a capacity test shows 112.7Ah. I sure can't complain about that.
I can't lie tho. I bought a set of these in the summer for testing and they still kick out 95% capacity so I'm quite impressed. Although they get hot at just 20A constant. (0.5C) I did not try the 105Ah ones.. those seem a bit far fetched.
Does the flatness of the layers actually matter? I have also seen the reverse before - lithium ion cells with very flat construction that ended up bloating quickly and curvy ones that worked very well.
Like you, I test, and test, and test again. I bought some of the SPIM08HP 24V24Ah batteries from BH. I rebuilt them to 32Ah batteries by replacing the blank cell holders. Charged them up to 4.15V per cell. Tested them. They came out at 27Ah. Recharged them to 4.20V and retested. Came out at 30Ah when the inverter shut down. If I had a different Voltage setting on the inverter, I'm sure they would have gotten to the 32Ah rating. It pays to buy from someone more honest than on Alibaba.
Do you think their scam is to delay shipping so that it arrives right before the 75 day window, so then you have almost no time to evaluate them before the buyer protection expires?
It’s worth knowing some people are bad experiences cheap stores because it’s better for them to have a few issues with sales but give a refund or replacement as individually testing each one before shipping would raise the price
I've bought various LiFePO4 cells over the years and found that most of them are just garbage. It seems to be an area rife with scams. Bizarrely, the only ones I found to be extremely good were some ridiculously-cheap LiitoKala-branded 6000mAh cells. I didn't expect much from them, but two years later they're still going strong and do appear to deliver close to rated capacity in a 36V pack. Personally, I wouldn't be too bothered about slight bulging or less-than-rated capacity. All I'm interested in is cost-per-Wh and longevity. Unfortunately there's no way to easily test for longevity.
Hi, I'm a paralyzed guy and I have 4, deep cycle, MK Battery M24 SLD G FT, gel batteries at my disposal, each one of them 12V, 73Ah, (used in combination of two, so 24V, to power my wheelchair). So I would like to use them to prolong the duration of my UPS APC BE850G2-GR, which can sustain my consumption only about 10 minutes... HOW SHOULD I PROCEED? Should I buy a pure sine inverter (or how it's called), and attach the batteries to that? Can I use two of these 12V batteries in combination, or even 4, for more backup power? If you have a reference video for such a setup, pls let me know. Thanks in advance.
Imo these cells are all used and refurbished. Thats why I don't bother with AliExpress cells and go straight for local used cells where I pay for what I get. New cells you will only get directly from manufacturers via Alibaba. But you should be careful there as well and go with brands.
That's not true. I ordered cells via AliExpress twice. Once 105 Ah and another time 200 Ah from another seller. Both times brand new, perfectly straight. Maybe I was lucky, but you can definitely get true Grade A cells on AliExpress.
@Roald Koger, well of course it difficult to generalize. But AliExpress, where it is easy just to open a shop, sell some bogus stuff to someone, then the buyer needs to wait 3 months for the items to arrive until he finds out that his product is substandard, then negative reviews start trickle in and the shop disappears again. I have seen that many times, especially with battery sellers. They promise the blue from the sky to get orders, and then the shop is just gone. While on Alibaba, a manufacturer has a reputation. Thats why not every company will engage in end customer business. But it is much more likely to get what you want.
You may want to double check those buss bars, that may be steel plated in copper, and then plated in nickle. Because if I'm not mistaken, I think nickle only sticks to copper, or it sticks best to copper. Something like that.
I really don't know. Cells that test below rated capacity aren't necessarily bad, just used. However, that cell with the terminal that slightly rotates does scare me.
I purchased eight Liitokala 320 Ah cells last year for an RV. They all tested right at 280 Ah. I contacted the vendor and their response was they are perfectly within spec 😆. I wish I could find a reliable source for some good cells.
I have made three large purchases from Amy Peng at Shenzhen Qishou Technology Co., Ltd. on Alibaba, and she has been great to work with and product has been excellent in as described as well as quality. It took me about 12 attempts to finally find a great supplier for LiFePO4 cells.
Hi Had a question regarding charge/discharge rates of lifepo4 cells if I may? Assume single 3.65v 100amp hr lifepo4 cell for easy math. 1c discharge/charge rate is obviously 100amps of that cell…. 0.5c discharge/charge is 50amps….. Etc etc Now what about when they are in 4s configuration… 4s(100amp) pack. 1c discharge rate: Does that mean overall the pack is discharging 100amps (total between the x4 cells, 100/4 = 25 amps per cell (0.25c discharge rate) Or is each cell individual discharging 100amps (4x100=400amp?? Wouldn’t that be 4c discharge?.) Thank you.
When cells are wired in series, the amp rating stays the same and voltage increases. If you have 4 batteries that have a rating of 1C, you get a 12.8V battery rated for 1C when you connect them in series. If you connect all 4 in parallel, then you would have a 3.2V battery with a rating of 4C. I wired my batteries in series, and since amps are continuous throughout the entire circuit, each battery is discharging at 20A or 0.2C.
I got 16 of these, they all tested around 87AH, except one of them that was bloated and only tested at 80AH. I was able to get an $80 discount but I had to show a lot of proof (pictures, videos). Then I had to buy another 4 batteries to complete my 16s because where else I'm I going to get 105ah batteries at 87AH? lol
There are other cheap sellers for the 270-320 ah cells though and even though they are really B cells and dont pull full capacity, its still the cheapest ah/per $ and that is all I really care about. By the time they wear out the next best battery tech will be here and even better so I am not going to pay nearly double for a shred of more life.
I'm not sure what the electrolyte is in these, but if it contains water and is allowed to discharge completely or to a very low state, it can freeze in extreme cold just like a lead acid battery. That might account for the bucked sides, if it was stored in a very cold place. Or perhaps they were used, and the terminals were then carefully cut off and new ones welded on in their place. Don't think it can't be done in India!
Don't feel bad, they sold you bulging cells and kept you waiting. If those were lithium ion cells I would be concerned that they may be unsafe! Communication with the customers is a must too.
I've had mostly okay experiences with liitokala batteries I don't expect them to be perfect. I expect flaws and some cells to be lower capacity. But I'm paying so much less Imagine paying a third of the price but getting cells 80% as good as original. It's not perfect, but the price seems good for now And in all fairness, most 18650s they sell are accurate in my experience
Agreed, I wish they werent so doggedly lying about there cells. It would be fine if they said , heres are a set of used non matched cells really cheap, probably used, we guarantee nothing.
Bought exactly the same cells. Tested all of them individually and got 87 to 89Ah. Still unaccaptable. Started a dispute on Ali... and now waiting for a partial refund.
That's a big part of the problem right there. They're not held accountable. It shouldn't be a partial refund. It should be a 100% refund AND they pay for return shipping!
@@LithiumSolar I think it is okay, if the refund more than matches the loss of capacity. My cells perform if they were labled 85Ah. They output nearly the same amount of Energy at 1C and 2C.
@@J0hn1o1o I disagree. A cell that's 105Ah from the factory but is now testing at 85Ah is at 81% of its state-of-health. Almost all manufacturers of these cells list 80% SOC as the "end of life" specification and recommend their battery stop being used after that point. So your 81% cell is pretty much dead before you even started using it. I completely understand that it still works and you CAN use it; however, they sold you a product 1% from dead and called it "new". No way a partial refund is acceptable in my book...
@@LithiumSolar that is completely true. But I think those cells physically never were 105Ah. Maybe they were designed to be 90Ah. If those cells were near their EOL I would expect a heat up during high C-Rate discharge, which they didn't show. But I will have an eye on degradation.
I have a pair of so-called 30AH LiOn battery packs. One is labelled EcoWorthy and the other ToBattery. They work - which is the best I can say. The voltage plummets when I put a 4a load on them despite their being rated for 60A each or 120A since I have them in parallel. For batteries that were $150 each that was a poor showing but they're still better than the 35ah lead-acid batteries I was using. Having said that, the lead acid batteries didn't shut down in cold weather. Swings and roundabouts. I also have some Litokala 18650 cells that I have not yet tested nor used. Had them a year or two so far, I have some SkyWolfEye 18650 cells with a fictional 5800mah capacity. In testing I reckon they're about 2600mah each.
Hello thanks forbthe video. How dollar per kwh ? Justbto compare with real new batteries from good manufacturer, is it still cheaper to order these over rated batteries ?
If it were me, I wouldn't let that buyer protection expire. If it expires, even if the batteries show up eventually, you can't submit any complaints if the cells are dead/bloated/etc.
I don't know what you mean. It's not later. I ordered on July 31st. They shipped a few days later, which would have been August and the date on them is August.
I ordered something (quite rare/unique) from China at beginning of July (or maybe late June?) 2019. Should have arrived in August, or early September. Finally arrived in late October. My conclusion? My order was in all likelihood waiting among all the thousands of containers out in the sea, not able to enter the overcrowded LA area ports.
Thank you so much for these super helpful videos! I'm trying to learn as much as possible, as I am starting construction myself on my off-grid tiny home in VT. Would you happen to do a video on a hybrid system setup with LiFePO4 batteries? I'm striking out left and right to find an electrician who could help install a system for me later this year. A long shot, but I figured I would ask. Thanks again for the cool content!
Your brave to still be buying off of Alliexpress I buy from Alibaba rarely, they are far better, but more and more companies here in the U.S. are offering a better product at a good price! And a week or less shipping! You might want to look at the LiFePo4 server batteries!
That seems to be a common theme I'm hearing from a few places. Makes you wonder if they're purposely including a bad one, mixing them in hoping customers don't notice...
The chinese are selling used batteries. I made the mistake to buy 2 (li-ion 10s2p) for an electric scooter and one of them showed up at about 32v charge (it should have been at 36-37 like the other one). It never charged to full 42v, 40 at best, and it does drain faster.
Bought a set off Shenzhen Luyuan Technology Co on alibaba, has a good rep and so far very honest and responsive. You do pay more for that, but not terribly much more. 8x set of real EVE 280Ah, 780$ plus ship, you get what you were promised.
I bought 16 Liito Kalas, advertised at 60Ah, for $25 each. Knowing that Chinese companies almost always exaggerate their battery capacities, I tested them individually, and found they were all at about 50Ah. Physically, they appear to be in perfect condition. I'm still devising a way to do a stress test on them. I want to see what the voltage drop is at sudden high amps. But they run my mini fridge and 5000btu air conditioner with barely a twitch. It seems I won the gamble this time.
Ok, I was listening to this in the shower - and (spoiler alert) when you said "...this battery is a turd..." I couldn't stop laughing!! When I got out my wife was like, "What in the world were you laughing at in there!??" so I had to go back and find it and play it for her, too!! So yeah, a good time was had by all!! Lol. Seriously, it hit me just right and I've been chuckling ever since!! HAAA!!! Oh, and I appreciate the technical aspects of the vid as well - thanks for keeping us up to date!! =0)
Scratched off QR codes suggests not Grade A and quite possibly not new. I know they might just be doing their own inventory tracking system but ehh... I think these might be factory seconds or maybe even used.
I think Jehu recommend them a while back and the reputation stuck. I have an 18650 charger from them on his recommendation. To be fair though, I just bought an 8s pack off of a similar AliExpress site, and even at 50ah they'd be cheaper than anything I can buy here in the UK if you factor in having to drive to pick them up (most won't ship batteries because of the regs).
Never had experience with this format, but I use many Liitokala 21700 batteries and 21700/18650 chargers - so far so good, especially for the price. Cannot say much about their life time, or performance under high current, but for my low-current applications they seem to put out more Ah's then their indicated capacity. Btw. Liitokala means 'flying fish' ... in Finnish language. What were they smoking?!
Way back when I was young you could get regular zinc carbon cells (AA,C,D etc) made by the "Flying Bomb" battery company in China. Seems like the name should be reused for these lithium cells :D
Update March 6th 2022: The product page where they were selling these batteries has been deleted 3 days after posting the video. They're continuing to sell what appear to be the same exact batteries under new listings which you can find here liitokalahongkong.aliexpress.com/store/217753/search?SearchText=liitokala+105ah
exactly
They don't?
This "brand" makes a lot different batteries, ALL are not as advertised.
Generally below capacity by various degrees. Up to 50%!
I think they do make cells (18650) but they also buy b grade and faulty products and sell them on.
I've not seen one good review /test on these or this brand it's not limited to these cells.
* I think maybe the performance people get seems better but they may have over reads/bias giving what appears good results.
Cheap battery, cheap tester= unreliable results. ( And Fake planted people to groups and forum to promote businesses and products)
There are groups that purposely put false reports on the internet and are paid to do so. The cost ratio of return on the money is good, so the manufacture pays for the false , positive reports-reviews.
I am a member of a Facebook group, where people buy the Litokalla 100/200ah batteries. From all the members, only one was able to pull full capacity, and they have sold them in hundreds in this group.
I have been asked to help a member who's battery didn't work on arrival. The interior was a mess!
Terminal corrosion, heavily bloated cells (I mean really bloated), the BMS was the cheapest thing you can think off. The 200ah capacity, was made with 2s 4P 100ah cells. The poor guy couldn't use the cells for nothing. He ended up matching 4 cells that were ok'ish... Then bought a new set of new cells, a BMS and I teached him how to set it up and he is thrilled. But from the initial order, to the time he had a real working battery it passed around 6 months... Really not worth the money. That company is garbage in LifePo4 batteries, even though some work...
True grade A cells have become such incredible value for money only a fool would buy anything else unless your use case is firmly in the hobbiest domain. For everyone else batteries of this calibre are a true game changer, Ive been using mine for my only source of power for 2 years now which gives me the ability to do things like live in complete comfort anywhere in my country and not waste money on ridiculously high rent or power bills for example. No huge debt to achieve it either and will have paid for itself in 3 years with all the money not poured into someone else's pocket!
I'm so sorry, but I'm watching your video and when you said you're short two nuts I had to laugh.
LOL!!
An awful lota men today have the same issue…they lost them somewhere in the years of modern school nowdays.
How about “turd”
@Tamiasciurus .. was that a real sentence…. Do you speak English… ???…..wow.
Lol, I did also! For some reason I thought it was hilarious!
They certainly look like my EVE 105 cells, and as noted,the number on the QR code for mine all start with 02Y. Of course I paid more for mine since they came from Amy at Luyan, but they also came with all the test data from EVE. All measured spot on with the EVE test reports, about 109 amp hours per cell. I don't know if EVE sells different versions of the same cells, but mine came with M4 threaded from the factory (you can tell, straight and even tap, much better than those tapped by a third party). Of course for 4 I paid right at $250 including shipping (actually $511 for 8, including all the fees and sales tax). Like you say, you get what you pay for, and the vendor you used has a terrible reputation and should be avoided. The ones you received are obviously used cells that were pulled at end of life (80% capacity, or close to it). None of mine are bulged in any way.
Amy at shenzhen Luyaun sold me 16 Eve lf280k and they are all good! Highly recommend! I use them constantly in my off-grid home:) Littokala has a terrible rep. Thank you for confirming.
Spot on testing. 80AH is unacceptable. Thanks for sharing
I've got an idea I think that these are the cells that failed in factory testing that were meant to go in pre-built packs but these failed so instead of scrapping them are recycling them they tried to sell them as brand new
I don't know if QA failures would result in bulged batteries. IMHO it's either overcharge or under-discharge, a sign of them being used, consistent with corrosion and other marks. Probably salvaged batteries from cell phone towers, re-wrapped and perhaps with re-soldered terminals so that nut marks don't show up. At least that's the explanation that seems the simplest to me.
Thanks for you and all the other youtubers taking the hit for us!
Thanks for sharing this info.
I had exactly the same experience with Liitokala: bloated cells, scratched off QR codes, fumbled contacts...
I bought 4 280AH "grade A" batteries from LittoKala in Jan 2021, received them in March 2021...I didn't get much tracking on the Aliexpress site, but at some point a pending shipment showed up in my FedEx app a few weeks before delivery from Jack somebody or other, I forget, and Fed Ex did finally deliver them. These 4 batteries looked good and matched and tested around 276AH so I figured OK, I will get more of these batteries, so ordered 12 more for my project. I received those in about May 2021, tested them and all of them tested with around 240AH. I complained to Aliexpress and asked for a partial refund (I wasn't going to send them back) and got about a 12% refund of the already cheap purchase price. I charge them with solar panels on my south facing balcony and some from the grid and use them to charge my Chevy Volt which is parked out too far to run a cord to it from my 3rd floor apartment. I charge 8 at a time, and then charge the car up with 8 of them and an inverter in the back of the car. I have 4 batteries each in 4 camera breifcases which I can carry in and out. One set to charge the car while the other set is charging on solar. Its been working out well for almost a year now, They still charge and discharge at around 230AH (3 of the packs do anyway). And I get the car charged and avoid buying expensive gasoline at least. They will be repurposed into a van build for living on the road within the next year if I ever get the van I orrdered and I'll have about 12KWh of capacity for the van at least and should get a few more years service out of them hopefully.
Thanks for taking the time. That's about what I expected and still very good value. I bought 8 of the 280s (Non grade A) a few months ago, but they're still in storage atm. They do look fine tho, absolutely skinny. I'm hoping for 250AH but I'm not going to complain at 220 ish. What else is there for the price? Even at 200AH I get over 5KWH for less than a grand (US).
How do you beat that?
Yeah I've had this happen so many times. You never ever know what you're going to get with lito kala. I did get a good batch once haha
Usually it's one bad cell and the rest are pretty good. Makes my blood boil
There are a lot of sketchy things going on with that store. Another example is all of the 18650 cells they sell. Notice how all of the cells look like big brand names (Samsung, LG, etc) but the Liitokala sticker is creatively stuck over the brand name every single time. Only one reason comes to mind why they would be doing that...
@@LithiumSolar just want to say a big thanks to you and Will
@@LithiumSolar I bought some of their 3400mah 18650s and they all tested legit, although they would never do the 30a discharge they claimed. Jehu did a video on them. That was over 3 years ago now. So maybe they've got greedy now. The old bait and switch. Start off being legit, get a good reputation, and then gradually sell off used cells as new, to make more money.
farken oath mate........
I have been working a lot with EVs that use the Brammo Li pack and Brammo BMS controller interfaced via CAN bus to the VCM. The car uses a 12V lead acid for accessories and VCM power that manages key off regular battery health checks and keeps the 12V hot via DC/DC converter. I haven’t taken the time to investigate the Brammo, but I suspect an equivalent could be built on my bench for a lot less cost. Idk but I need to investigate.
I love it. Your descriptions are always very informative and you carefully select words and cautiously give your opinions - but with this battery you couldn't hold back - "this battery is a turd." Hmmmmmmm, no confusion about what you think.
I recently bought 12 EVE cells - 8 x 105Ah and 4 x 280Ah - after seeing them for a good deal from a US supplier. Sure, ordering them from China would've been less expensive, but I also got them in a week instead of waiting a couple months.
I actually just got extremely lucky with a LiitoKala purchase on their short 180ah cells (Actually 158-ish ah) and out of the 64 that I purchased, all of them appear to be grade A or damn close to it. Just mislabeled and clearly re-wrapped from another manufacturer.
It really was fortunate that I got what I paid for. (As I knew from the reviews the cells were only 160ah to begin with)
LiitoKala appears to buy from a multitude of manufacturers, and is even deconstructing these cells from another product and rewrapping. Some of THEIR vendors appear to be hit and miss. Some are selling them used cells, and some are deconstructing them. Likely from companies that went out of business and had stock on the shelf containing the cells, that wouldn't itself sell as a product. So they are harvesting relatively new cells and re-wrapping them.
So, it would appear that virtually NOTHING LiitoKala sells in "New" and is likely at a minimum, harvested re-wrapped cells from other products, and at worst, used up cells being sold as new.
Personally, I will NEVER buy from LiitoKala ever again. The cells took almost 3 MONTHS to arrive, arrived with the wrong nuts, was short on bus bars, and was overcharged for shipping and had to dispute to get my money back.
My pack is fortunately operating in a TIGHT balance with only a .008 .006 Voltage diff between cells after top balancing.
All 64 cells tested on arrival to within .01vdc of each other, and the internal resistance is very low and appears to be at the worst only lightly used.
But yeah, a 4000$ roll of the dice for sure. Pure luck that I got decent cells. Many others have not... 1/10 would NOT recommend!
Great video, and Thank You for highlighting this company!
I am just sad that so many months went by until you tested them. And more people would have bought them. Not blaming you. You are doing a great service. I just think back to the first LiFe batteries I got that were twice as good as these and still pretty crappy. I wish I'd had your review then. The second were ones you recommended and I have been very happy. Keep it up.
I didn't intend to review them originally. I was going to use them for a build video, but project fell through due to the turd batteries, so they just got stuck on the shelf. But yeah, I really should have gotten something out sooner...
I bought 16 200ah cells form Liitokala official store. I said with the order, please send good cells as I want to buy another 48. The cells are nice and square etc. I did a capacity test on 8 ( 4 then 4) using a victron smart shunt and a 1600 watt victron inverter. And running 5 domestic 240v fridges at once. Lasted 48 hours and delivered 200ah and voltage was still 11.8v ( dropping fast) at the end of the test. I paid delivered AUD 1600 for 16 cells and I consider this good value. They are going into my RV as a 24v system with a daly 250 amp BMS- so far so good.
Same experience on this side. 105Ah seems to be 84Ah. After dispute, Ali paid 33% of the price to me as a compensation for this scam. I am only using the cells at a “silent-generator” in 1 DIY box, with 20Amp charger and 1000Watt sinus inverter. Using this as a 1 kW spare energy source, I can accept this. However LittoKala should be more honorable in selling cells that meet their specs. I will never do business with this company. Regards, Peter.
they also have a lot of other cell formats that look like overspeced and mostly used and or refurbished like the cylidrical ones you can screw together to a long pole.
Great idea, but badly executed cause the Ah are missing 20% and the terminals looked used. This has happened for the LiIon they sold first and also the LiFePo4.
just another to good to be true story which makes us wonder what if the price would be even higher just 99% of regular grade A ones?
Then it would be even harder to detect them, but in this case the brand is quite the opposite delivering of a brand should deliver. sad but true.
great review. Thanks for the time and especially telling us the cost and seller of the batteries.
The problem with cheap stuff on aliexpress is how random it can be. One person may get good cells while the next person (buying from the same seller) may get crap.
Often the seller doesn't even know anything about batteries and just got them for cheap and are reselling them. So asking any questions is useless. You really have to do your homework to find good sellers and also avoid stuff that is "too good to be true". One trick is to look at what other items the seller is selling in their store. You want to find a seller that specializes in selling the kind items you want. Not a seller who lists... Pink cat toys, Car stereos, Door locks, and Lithium batteries. (That is too random and they wont know anything about what they are selling)
You summed it up well. “This battery is a turd.”
Good call, your right these are not grade A battery, just through your examination I could tell, and the test results did not come as a surprise either, and your conclusion is exactly correct.
just fyi: the qr code contains just the URL. Nothing else such as serial numbers or date of manufacturer.
the second qr does contain the serial number as shown on the sticker
Interesting, good to know. Any idea why it would be scratched out?
@@LithiumSolar remarket or convert to another tracking system is my best guess.
How do you like the internal resistance meter? I wonder if they match what the iCharger shows for internal resistance. Thanks for the heads up on these grade F cells. 80% is considered end of life for most cells.
It's ok. It's the only one I've used so I don't have much to compare it to. Sometimes the screen acts funky, like it has a slow fresh rate or something. Also, completely forgot the iCharger had an IR readings tab!
Thanks for testings them and the information over the product.
Hmm, intresting i have actually purchased 8x of the 320ah cells from littokala recently, received them last month and they tested between 305-312Ah, for the price I was pretty impressed with them, i paid £775 for them not too bad for a 600+Ah a battery pack imo.
Also just to add littokala did advise these cells are supposed to be compressed (otherwise they will swell)
Since nobody manufactures 320ah cells, we know that they lied about that. I won't purchase anything from any company that lies. I will pay extra and get exactly what I ordered, not some made up "good enough" (and likely used) garbage. FYI, my 304AH cells do not bulge, they lie about that as well.
"these cells are supposed to be compressed (otherwise they will swell)" ??? Never heard that bullshit before! 🤣
I fell for the litokala Bs once too.
Same thing, bloated cells, with marker pen numbers written on them. Scratches etc
I can confirm capacity near to 80AH (78-86), bought in official aliexpress store @11.11, delivered into Ukraine
I think those weren't bloated. The problem is with the plastic. As the plastic case warms, it expands, causing the cell to look bloated. Place the battery in an environment that is below 60 degrees and it's likely they are flat. I found this to be true when I had mine 'swell' after bringing in from the mail box and unpacking in a cold garage. In the garage, they were either perfectly flat, or even a little concave. But inside over night, they swelled. I put them back into the garage and they again were flat.
They are bloated. Very bloated. And they have gotten worse just sitting on the shelf since I've filmed this video.There is gas inside and they cannot be squeezed back down as they would if it was just warped/expanded plastic.
On your advice, I recently bought 4 - 105Ah cells from 18650 Battery Store. This is my first battery build. They arrived quickly and look perfect. And a capacity test shows 112.7Ah. I sure can't complain about that.
Very, very good video! Great level of detail in your testing and presentation
Thanks for the heads up. I've been looking into these.
I can't lie tho. I bought a set of these in the summer for testing and they still kick out 95% capacity so I'm quite impressed.
Although they get hot at just 20A constant. (0.5C)
I did not try the 105Ah ones.. those seem a bit far fetched.
Does the flatness of the layers actually matter? I have also seen the reverse before - lithium ion cells with very flat construction that ended up bloating quickly and curvy ones that worked very well.
No you are correct lots of liers and scammers on AliExpress and Alibaba I’ve had problems on both
Like you, I test, and test, and test again. I bought some of the SPIM08HP 24V24Ah batteries from BH. I rebuilt them to 32Ah batteries by replacing the blank cell holders. Charged them up to 4.15V per cell. Tested them. They came out at 27Ah. Recharged them to 4.20V and retested. Came out at 30Ah when the inverter shut down. If I had a different Voltage setting on the inverter, I'm sure they would have gotten to the 32Ah rating. It pays to buy from someone more honest than on Alibaba.
Excellent that you raise consumer awareness. I have bought enough bad cells not to just go by the price. 🤨
i purchase loads of lito 26650 18650 for retail & test ‘em all before shipping out & am impressed with their quality so far
Do you think their scam is to delay shipping so that it arrives right before the 75 day window, so then you have almost no time to evaluate them before the buyer protection expires?
I think you just covered it, you get what “you pay for!”
It’s worth knowing some people are bad experiences cheap stores because it’s better for them to have a few issues with sales but give a refund or replacement as individually testing each one before shipping would raise the price
I've bought various LiFePO4 cells over the years and found that most of them are just garbage. It seems to be an area rife with scams. Bizarrely, the only ones I found to be extremely good were some ridiculously-cheap LiitoKala-branded 6000mAh cells. I didn't expect much from them, but two years later they're still going strong and do appear to deliver close to rated capacity in a 36V pack. Personally, I wouldn't be too bothered about slight bulging or less-than-rated capacity. All I'm interested in is cost-per-Wh and longevity. Unfortunately there's no way to easily test for longevity.
3:51 "But I'm actually short two nuts.." LOL😜
Don't even get me started....! LOL!!
3:12 what about the QR code on the left?
Thanks for calling this out!
Hi, I'm a paralyzed guy and I have 4, deep cycle, MK Battery M24 SLD G FT, gel batteries at my disposal, each one of them 12V, 73Ah, (used in combination of two, so 24V, to power my wheelchair). So I would like to use them to prolong the duration of my UPS APC BE850G2-GR, which can sustain my consumption only about 10 minutes... HOW SHOULD I PROCEED? Should I buy a pure sine inverter (or how it's called), and attach the batteries to that? Can I use two of these 12V batteries in combination, or even 4, for more backup power? If you have a reference video for such a setup, pls let me know. Thanks in advance.
Imo these cells are all used and refurbished. Thats why I don't bother with AliExpress cells and go straight for local used cells where I pay for what I get. New cells you will only get directly from manufacturers via Alibaba. But you should be careful there as well and go with brands.
That's not true. I ordered cells via AliExpress twice. Once 105 Ah and another time 200 Ah from another seller. Both times brand new, perfectly straight. Maybe I was lucky, but you can definitely get true Grade A cells on AliExpress.
@Roald Koger, well of course it difficult to generalize. But AliExpress, where it is easy just to open a shop, sell some bogus stuff to someone, then the buyer needs to wait 3 months for the items to arrive until he finds out that his product is substandard, then negative reviews start trickle in and the shop disappears again. I have seen that many times, especially with battery sellers. They promise the blue from the sky to get orders, and then the shop is just gone. While on Alibaba, a manufacturer has a reputation. Thats why not every company will engage in end customer business. But it is much more likely to get what you want.
You may want to double check those buss bars, that may be steel plated in copper, and then plated in nickle.
Because if I'm not mistaken, I think nickle only sticks to copper, or it sticks best to copper.
Something like that.
Thanks, Mark. Great advice.
Thanks for your clip it helps us what's best and what's not ,more people are going off grid these days
Big question! Are they safe to use long/short term or its just dangerous junk waiting to bite you?
I really don't know. Cells that test below rated capacity aren't necessarily bad, just used. However, that cell with the terminal that slightly rotates does scare me.
Hello! Is it possible to buy brand new prismatic LiFePo4 cells in small quantities anywhere, or all of the cells are just used salvage?
Thank you for the report. You just saved me a lot of money.
I purchased eight Liitokala 320 Ah cells last year for an RV. They all tested right at 280 Ah. I contacted the vendor and their response was they are perfectly within spec 😆. I wish I could find a reliable source for some good cells.
I have made three large purchases from Amy Peng at Shenzhen Qishou Technology Co., Ltd. on Alibaba, and she has been great to work with and product has been excellent in as described as well as quality. It took me about 12 attempts to finally find a great supplier for LiFePO4 cells.
What is a reasonable maximum continuous load for these (or "real") 100Ah+ cells if you want them to last a few years (say 500 cycles)?
Hi
Had a question regarding charge/discharge rates of lifepo4 cells if I may?
Assume single 3.65v 100amp hr lifepo4 cell for easy math.
1c discharge/charge rate is obviously 100amps of that cell….
0.5c discharge/charge is 50amps…..
Etc etc
Now what about when they are in 4s configuration…
4s(100amp) pack.
1c discharge rate: Does that mean overall the pack is discharging 100amps (total between the x4 cells, 100/4 = 25 amps per cell (0.25c discharge rate)
Or is each cell individual discharging 100amps (4x100=400amp?? Wouldn’t that be 4c discharge?.)
Thank you.
When cells are wired in series, the amp rating stays the same and voltage increases. If you have 4 batteries that have a rating of 1C, you get a 12.8V battery rated for 1C when you connect them in series. If you connect all 4 in parallel, then you would have a 3.2V battery with a rating of 4C. I wired my batteries in series, and since amps are continuous throughout the entire circuit, each battery is discharging at 20A or 0.2C.
@@LithiumSolar thank you. Seems logical
I got 16 of these, they all tested around 87AH, except one of them that was bloated and only tested at 80AH. I was able to get an $80 discount but I had to show a lot of proof (pictures, videos). Then I had to buy another 4 batteries to complete my 16s because where else I'm I going to get 105ah batteries at 87AH? lol
Thanks for pointing the discrepancies out.
Does anyone know what the app running on the tablet is, and whether it's connected to the bms directly, or how it's monitoring the activity?
I have an entire video dedicated to that topic :) ua-cam.com/video/wKTXJidnfl4/v-deo.html
There are other cheap sellers for the 270-320 ah cells though and even though they are really B cells and dont pull full capacity, its still the cheapest ah/per $ and that is all I really care about. By the time they wear out the next best battery tech will be here and even better so I am not going to pay nearly double for a shred of more life.
I'm not sure what the electrolyte is in these, but if it contains water and is allowed to discharge completely or to a very low state, it can freeze in extreme cold just like a lead acid battery. That might account for the bucked sides, if it was stored in a very cold place.
Or perhaps they were used, and the terminals were then carefully cut off and new ones welded on in their place. Don't think it can't be done in India!
I want to see what's inside the cells.
So do I, but I don't want to deal with the hazardous mess it will create by opening one
Wat you use for charging and where can I get it
Don't feel bad, they sold you bulging cells and kept you waiting. If those were lithium ion cells I would be concerned that they may be unsafe! Communication with the customers is a must too.
1:14 You bought the cells in July '21, that were manufactured in August '21?
I ordered them on July 31st. That's the last day in July. Technically they were shipped in August... So yes, they do have August stickers on them.
You earned a thumbs up for “This battery is a turd.”
IT'S A TURD!!! That made my day, thanks.
Not sure how else to describe it! Ha.
your review worked. they took down the advert. your link goes nowhere
I've had mostly okay experiences with liitokala batteries
I don't expect them to be perfect. I expect flaws and some cells to be lower capacity. But I'm paying so much less
Imagine paying a third of the price but getting cells 80% as good as original.
It's not perfect, but the price seems good for now
And in all fairness, most 18650s they sell are accurate in my experience
Agreed, I wish they werent so doggedly lying about there cells.
It would be fine if they said , heres are a set of used non matched cells really cheap, probably used, we guarantee nothing.
What about Shenzhen Qishou (QSO) cells from Alibaba? The same scam?
The 280 amp I ordered from the same store, had one bad cell, one really bad cell. No customer satisfaction, they never replied to me.
It seems a lot of people are getting one bad battery with their orders. Very strange, almost like it's on purpose...
I can help but admire a plain talking tech guy.
Bought exactly the same cells. Tested all of them individually and got 87 to 89Ah. Still unaccaptable.
Started a dispute on Ali... and now waiting for a partial refund.
That's a big part of the problem right there. They're not held accountable. It shouldn't be a partial refund. It should be a 100% refund AND they pay for return shipping!
@@LithiumSolar I think it is okay, if the refund more than matches the loss of capacity. My cells perform if they were labled 85Ah. They output nearly the same amount of Energy at 1C and 2C.
@@J0hn1o1o I disagree. A cell that's 105Ah from the factory but is now testing at 85Ah is at 81% of its state-of-health. Almost all manufacturers of these cells list 80% SOC as the "end of life" specification and recommend their battery stop being used after that point. So your 81% cell is pretty much dead before you even started using it. I completely understand that it still works and you CAN use it; however, they sold you a product 1% from dead and called it "new". No way a partial refund is acceptable in my book...
@@LithiumSolar that is completely true. But I think those cells physically never were 105Ah. Maybe they were designed to be 90Ah. If those cells were near their EOL I would expect a heat up during high C-Rate discharge, which they didn't show. But I will have an eye on degradation.
WHAT BATTERY DO YU RECCOMEND
Did the cells arrive bloated?
Yes, they arrived exactly as shown in the beginning of the video. I didn't charge them until after the "physical overview" part.
I have a pair of so-called 30AH LiOn battery packs. One is labelled EcoWorthy and the other ToBattery. They work - which is the best I can say. The voltage plummets when I put a 4a load on them despite their being rated for 60A each or 120A since I have them in parallel. For batteries that were $150 each that was a poor showing but they're still better than the 35ah lead-acid batteries I was using. Having said that, the lead acid batteries didn't shut down in cold weather. Swings and roundabouts.
I also have some Litokala 18650 cells that I have not yet tested nor used. Had them a year or two so far,
I have some SkyWolfEye 18650 cells with a fictional 5800mah capacity. In testing I reckon they're about 2600mah each.
I had the same cells pulled 80ah too. They are misleading but when cheap are good value.
Thanks for getting the word out
Hello thanks forbthe video. How dollar per kwh ? Justbto compare with real new batteries from good manufacturer, is it still cheaper to order these over rated batteries ?
That is exactly what happened to me . Same e mail and no tracking. Said we’re still in shipment
If it were me, I wouldn't let that buyer protection expire. If it expires, even if the batteries show up eventually, you can't submit any complaints if the cells are dead/bloated/etc.
i bought them, expected to be grade b or smth like that. Checked capacity, opened a dispute and got 85Ah for ~130€. Its okay for me.
Thanks Liito Kala is the worst on Ali Express !
How is the date stamp later than the order and shipping date?
I don't know what you mean. It's not later. I ordered on July 31st. They shipped a few days later, which would have been August and the date on them is August.
I ordered something (quite rare/unique) from China at beginning of July (or maybe late June?) 2019. Should have arrived in August, or early September. Finally arrived in late October. My conclusion? My order was in all likelihood waiting among all the thousands of containers out in the sea, not able to enter the overcrowded LA area ports.
What price it was bought? May be even for 80Ah its cheaper than most other.
Even if it's cheaper than others, a 100Ah battery testing at 80Ah is end of life/garbage.
So, where to buy good cells then?
Thank you so much for these super helpful videos! I'm trying to learn as much as possible, as I am starting construction myself on my off-grid tiny home in VT. Would you happen to do a video on a hybrid system setup with LiFePO4 batteries? I'm striking out left and right to find an electrician who could help install a system for me later this year. A long shot, but I figured I would ask. Thanks again for the cool content!
Hi, can you provide the names of all the equipment used in this testing. I'm just getting into this and would like to learn more. Thank you!
I have a video on that here ua-cam.com/video/wKTXJidnfl4/v-deo.html
Nice job testing. People don’t understand what they are getting when they see a lithium battery that’s half the price of name brand ones
Your brave to still be buying off of Alliexpress I buy from Alibaba rarely, they are far better, but more and more companies here in the U.S. are offering a better product at a good price! And a week or less shipping!
You might want to look at the LiFePo4 server batteries!
Happened to me as well. 3 good cells and one half-assed one.
That seems to be a common theme I'm hearing from a few places. Makes you wonder if they're purposely including a bad one, mixing them in hoping customers don't notice...
The chinese are selling used batteries. I made the mistake to buy 2 (li-ion 10s2p) for an electric scooter and one of them showed up at about 32v charge (it should have been at 36-37 like the other one). It never charged to full 42v, 40 at best, and it does drain faster.
why would you order a second time ??
Yup 80a is what I got too when I tested mine.
i understand their not great quality but whats the alternative and how much more would they cost?
Bought a set off Shenzhen Luyuan Technology Co on alibaba, has a good rep and so far very honest and responsive. You do pay more for that, but not terribly much more.
8x set of real EVE 280Ah, 780$ plus ship, you get what you were promised.
I bought 16 Liito Kalas, advertised at 60Ah, for $25 each. Knowing that Chinese companies almost always exaggerate their battery capacities, I tested them individually, and found they were all at about 50Ah. Physically, they appear to be in perfect condition. I'm still devising a way to do a stress test on them. I want to see what the voltage drop is at sudden high amps. But they run my mini fridge and 5000btu air conditioner with barely a twitch. It seems I won the gamble this time.
sounds like u dodged a bullet....lol
Thank you, your learning for all of us.
Ok, I was listening to this in the shower - and (spoiler alert) when you said "...this battery is a turd..." I couldn't stop laughing!! When I got out my wife was like, "What in the world were you laughing at in there!??" so I had to go back and find it and play it for her, too!! So yeah, a good time was had by all!! Lol. Seriously, it hit me just right and I've been chuckling ever since!! HAAA!!! Oh, and I appreciate the technical aspects of the vid as well - thanks for keeping us up to date!! =0)
Hey, I call them as I see them... LOL
Scratched off QR codes suggests not Grade A and quite possibly not new. I know they might just be doing their own inventory tracking system but ehh... I think these might be factory seconds or maybe even used.
I think Jehu recommend them a while back and the reputation stuck. I have an 18650 charger from them on his recommendation.
To be fair though, I just bought an 8s pack off of a similar AliExpress site, and even at 50ah they'd be cheaper than anything I can buy here in the UK if you factor in having to drive to pick them up (most won't ship batteries because of the regs).
Never had experience with this format, but I use many Liitokala 21700 batteries and 21700/18650 chargers - so far so good, especially for the price. Cannot say much about their life time, or performance under high current, but for my low-current applications they seem to put out more Ah's then their indicated capacity.
Btw. Liitokala means 'flying fish' ... in Finnish language. What were they smoking?!
Way back when I was young you could get regular zinc carbon cells (AA,C,D etc) made by the "Flying Bomb" battery company in China. Seems like the name should be reused for these lithium cells :D
Kind of makes you wonder what cells they're throwing into the preassembled batteries...
Exact same cells if I had to guess...