Quote:
Originally Posted by gabi
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If it sounds too good to be true...
The listing doesn't specify what type lithium chemistry it is. LiFePO4 is the latest and greatest version of lithium cell I'm aware of, highly resistant to overheating with all it's attendant disastrous consequences. My guess is, if the pack were LiFePO4 they would proudly tell you. They don't say, so I'm guessing it uses an older version of Li cell which is more hazardous.
The seller also doesn't give a critical specification, which is the AH capacity of the battery. So going by its weight, which is provided...
At 1.81 lb. it's just about 1/9 the weight of the
LiFePO4 pack I have on order. So I'd assume it has about 1/9 the AH capacity of what I've ordered, and in this application AH is the key. 1/9 of my pack's 40AH is not much and wouldn't get my car to my office. It's between 1/2 and 1/3 the cost of my pack, with likely 1/9 the capacity. Is that a good deal?
My pack also has a "protection circuit module" built into the case; kind of a baby BMS (Battery Management System), which is priced about $150 purchased separately. Once you start reading into lithiums you learn that the individual cells must be managed separately; you can't just repeatedly charge the whole pack using a single + and - cable and ignore the individual cells, if you want the pack to last. Check your cell phone battery, it likely has multiple contacts to manage the individual cell's charge behavior. Or check your Prius or Insight battery (OK, OK, I don't have one either). Has a separate tap for each cell for charge management purposes.
Ya get what ya pay for, but only if you pay attention to what you're getting. If you don't pay attention, you get less than what you pay for, IMHO.