Many of us have made the transition to rechargeable batteries from regular alkaline ones already. It is always nice to be able to get a fully discharged battery going again without having to buy a new one. Unfortunately, finding a high-quality rechargeable battery that delivers its advertised voltage and holds a full charge after months of use is not easy. Even many battery chargers leave a lot to be desired. The Linogy Auto-Release AA/AAA Battery Charger aims to change that. It charges a wide variety of rechargeable batteries and uses an energy-efficient E-ink display to show how much you have reduced your CO2 emissions. The good folks behind it were kind enough to send us a kit to test. Let’s see what was included:
Our kit came with 8 AA and 4 AAA batteries. These are not normal batteries. They hold a charge longer and deliver 1.5 V of power. The battery charger is the best-looking one we have tested so far. It is quite sleek and has a smart display that shows how many batteries you have charged and the emissions you have reduced. There are 8 slots, but the first one doubles as a power checker. Our kit came with 4 x AAA to AA converters, so you can use the smaller batteries in it without having to worry about them dropping into the bottom section.
The Linogy battery charger is pretty easy to use: just connect a 5V/3A wall adapter to the back of it to get started. We used an Innergie C10 Duo adapter to power this. Once you put your batteries inside, you will be able to see the charging status via 8 lights. If your battery can’t be charged or is experiencing something abnormal, you will see a red light. Otherwise, after your battery is checked, you will see a blinking light that indicates charging.
What sets this charger apart from the rest is its auto-release mechanism. You don’t have to worry about your batteries being overcharged or staying in their bays for too long. Once the charging process is complete, they are automatically dropped into the bottom compartment. You can also hold the release button for 3 seconds to activate this mechanism. If you have to remove a battery or two before all are charged, you can do so by hand.
Once your batteries are charged, they are registered on the E-ink screen unless you interrupt the charging process beforehand. You also get a QR code that you can scan to see how many alkaline batteries you have replaced in your browser. We tested this charger with Eneloop, Panasonic, and other rechargeable batteries and had no issues. Batteries do get warm during the charging process, but we did not notice anything abnormal after checking them with our FLIR camera.
What’s neat about the Linogy batteries is that they deliver 1.5 volts and last longer. Our batteries charged in about 1.5 hours, but they were not fully discharged. We decided to completely drain a couple with a flashlight and then recharge them. That took 3 hours from start to finish. The larger ones have 3,600 mWh of capacity and an intelligent chip for safety. One of the biggest problems with regular rechargeable batteries is that they are good only for a few cycles. These are supposed to last for 1200 full charge cycles. We have only been testing them for 10 days, so we didn’t get a chance to test them past 15 cycles. The included AAA to AA converter worked like a charm with batteries from other brands.
The Linogy 8-Bay Battery Charger looks like a sleek gadget on its own. It has a compartment with room for 40 batteries, which means you can use it for charging, testing, and storage. It works with a USB-C connection, so you don’t have to plug it in directly. It has various safety protections, including overvoltage and reverse connection protection. We tried putting in a non-rechargeable battery and reverse-connecting Linogy batteries. In both cases, the charger alerted us to make a change.
Overall, we found the Linogy Battery Charger to be one of the most versatile ones around. It can charge plenty of rechargeable batteries, and you are not limited to one brand or type. It gives you feedback if your batteries are dead or shouldn’t be charged. It works with USB-C adapters to charge AAA batteries. The batteries themselves look very well made. They didn’t get too warm during our tests and charged fairly quickly. The auto-release function is a plus, as it saves you from having to remove 8 charged batteries manually. If you are looking to upgrade your limited battery charger to a versatile one capable of charging, testing, and holding many batteries, you should give this gadget a look.
