ChargeCore AA and AAA Lithium-ion rechargeable batteries (off-grid review)
ChargeCore AA and AAA Lithium-ion rechargeable batteries are handy and could save you buying bulk batteries this Christmas.
They come in packs of four AA or AAA at $29.95 and have a USB-A to 2 x USB-C charging cable. It would have been nice to see a 4-head cable, but that is not a dealbreaker.
Our review can only be brief because there is no easy way to test charge times, discharge times, and the number of recharge cycles, so we have to rely heavily on Laser Co’s specs.
Capacity – Pass
One of the first things we noticed is that the capacity in milliamp hours (mAh) seems relatively low compared to single-use Alkaline batteries.
| ChargeCore mAh | Typical AA and AAA |
| AA 1332 Product Page | 2000-3000 |
| AAA 390 Product Page | 750-1200 |
On a straight mAh capacity, expect these to last about half as long as single-use Alkaline batteries.
Charge time – Pass+
The AA charges at 5V/.5A/2.5W and the AAA charges at 5V/.1A/.5W.
Recharge time AAA/AA is about 1.5/3 hours.
Full recharge cycles – Exceed
Laser claims up to 1000 complete charge cycles before these expire. Lithium-ion batteries have a typical recharge cycle of 500, at which point they have about 80% capacity and further reduced capacity as you charge them further.
Safety – Pass
A Battery management processor prevents overcharging, deep discharge, overheating, and short circuits. These receive our recommendation, provided you take care while charging, charge in a fire-retardant space, and don’t leave any Lithium-ion battery charging when full.
Value – Exceed
Considering the difference in capacity and that you will get somewhere between 500 and 1000 full charges, the costs compared to Coles AA and AAA, excluding energy costs, are:
| Cycles | 500 | 1000 |
| Rechargeable AAA mAh | 390 | |
| Rechargeable AA mAh | 1332 | |
| Single Use AAA mAh | 1000 | |
| Single Use AA mAh | 2500 | |
| Amortised Cost per recharge @ $7.50 each | 0.02 | 0.01 |
| AAA rechargeable total mAh produced | 195000 | 390000 |
| AA rechargeable total mAh produced | 666000 | 1332000 |
| AAA single-use batteries to produce mAh | 195 | 390 |
| Cost Coles generic Alkaline @ 60 cents each | $117.00 | $234.00 |
| AA single-use batteries to produce mAh | 266 | 533 |
| Cost Coles generic Alkaline @ 60 cents each | $159.84 | $319.68 |
By my reckoning, $29.95 per 4 AAA or AA is exceptional value versus single-use batteries. If you use more expensive single-use batteries, the economies are even better.
CyberShack’s view: ChargeCore AA and AAA Lithium-ion rechargeable batteries make good economic and ecological sense.
Even at 500 recharge cycles, this is good value.
We won’t formally rate these as we have no benchmarks.
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