Handhelds and alkaline batteries

Casey Wilson wrote:

Quote all the 'documents' you want -- my real-life experience proves to
me that NiMH are by far superior to alkaline batteries.

That's like saying aluminum is far superior to steel. In reality it depends on
the situation.


Expensive, yes.
Worth it, you bet! They're what will go in my handheld and I'm willing to
trust my family's safety to them.

I'm not trying to say NiMH are worthless. In fact in the situations you
describe they are an excellent choice. However for something that is only used
briefly at very rare intervals, such as a hand held Tx that is carried for the
sole purpose of back up for when the panel radio dies, non rechargeable
batteries are the way to go. Stick them in the radio today, and 18 months from
now when I need it, I can be confident that they are still going to work.

As a side note; when it comes to rechargeable batteries, I don't know why every
one dismisses NiCd's so quickly. In many applications I think they are arguably
as well suited as NiMH. They are cheaper, have a greater number of cycles
before they die, and the memory effect which is no longer as bad as some would
have you believe, is rather easily managed with the right charger and by using 2
battery packs.


--
Chris Woodhouse
Oklahoma City

"They that can give up essential liberty
to obtain a little temporary safety
deserve neither liberty nor safety."
-- Benjamin Franklin, 1759 Historical Review of Pennsylvania