Health & Personal Care : Eco Battery Wizard

Rating: - Great "charger" for batteries that can't charge
It would be grossly unfair the blame the charger when alkaline batteries go bad, regardless of how much money is spent or the quality of the battery. Every battery is unique and even the best fail from time to time.

Alkaline batteries are not designed to be "recharged" and, in fact, are not. They are reconditioned in order to fully use the battery, its chemistry and chemical content.

Note that any alkaline battery that leaks, pops or behaves in anyway out of the ordinary should be disposed of straight away.

That said, this battery charger works extremely well with all the types of rechargeable batteries it was designed for. The individual monitors for each battery give a clear indication of charge and weakened batteries (those that have been charged too many times and are due to be replaced).

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Rating: - Re-charged disposables may leak
As I sit tapping this out, curious bubbling noises are coming from a plastic bag in which I placed a recently 'charged' set of AA Duracell alkaline batteries. These had been 'charged' in my recently purchased Eco Battery Wizard until one of the cells made a load pop.

The pop was just that - not a big bang but enough to split the plastic film aroung the base of the battery. I decided to remove all four batteries on charge at the same time - the remaining three are fine physically. I was going to try these 're-charged' batteries in my camera flash. This is a good way to see how well a battery lasts. If I had done this and not noticed the leaking cell, I would have damaged an expensive flash gun.

It could be that the Duracell battery I was re-charging was faulty, but these are a premium brand so I would have thought the best to try and revive. I would be wary of this product. If you are prepared to accept a recharged disposable battery is likely to leak it may be OK but for me the damage a leak can cause makes this a gadget I would avoid. I have packed it up for a refund. Amazon deserves a pat on the back for making this so easy.