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What battery charger do you recommend?

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jimdavis577 said:
I have the new Toolkit M8D ... its awesome .... touchscreen , and all

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The specs on that charger are great for the money. Hopefully its decent quality and lasts. The battery destruction feature is pretty cool.

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I find it a bit humorous that they are touting it as the world first touch screen charger, which its not. The evolution of LiPo chargers with touch screen interfaces began in the early 2010s. Notable milestones in this progression include:
  • iMaxRC X200: Introduced around 2013, the X200 was among the pioneers in incorporating a touch screen interface. It featured a single charging port with a maximum output of 10 amps, setting a precedent for user-friendly charger designs.
  • Team Orion Advantage Touch Series: In 2012, Team Orion launched the Advantage Touch 50W AC/DC charger, notable for its color touch screen and modern design. This innovation was followed by the Advantage Touch V2 in 2014, which enhanced usability and functionality. Subsequent models, such as the Advantage Touch Duo and Advantage Touch Duo V-Max, offered dual charging ports and support for LiHV batteries, catering to the evolving needs of RC enthusiasts.
  • SkyRC Models: During the same period, SkyRC introduced chargers like the T6200 and T6755, which also featured touch screen interfaces, contributing to the trend of more accessible and efficient charging solutions.
These early touch screen chargers set the stage for subsequent models, such as the ToolkitRC M8D, which boasts a 3.5-inch IPS LCD capacitive touch screen and advanced features.


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For the money, I believe the HOTA D6 Pro is still the best starter charger out there. Especially if needing a charger that runs on AC as well as DC.

If you're good with running a DC PSU and you want power, then I'd look at either iChargers or Revolectrix chargers.
 
I started back into the hobby a little over a year ago... bought my 1st charger a gens_ace_imars_III_pro 100watt charger (non gtech) and it worked very well, decided I liked the idea of a dual ac/dc charger and found a deal on ali for the gens_ace_d300_gtech_dual charger for $104 and it has far exceeded my expectations. 300/700watt (ac/dc) I use a big 8000mah 3s in the park to charge my smaller batteries. I also have a xt60 to battery clamps to hook up to my car battery if needed. I've read it does not have the fastest discharge rate but honestly I have never noticed it to be slow. Maybe I do not know enough but have been very happy with both chargers.
 
To any future Hobbyist reading this wondering which entry level charger to buy... The HOTA D6 Pro has slightly better specs and is a bit cheaper than the Gens_Ace Imars D300 so do yourself a favor and buy the HOTA D6 Pro. The D300 is fine but dont pay more for less.
 
True Newb said:
Since it appears that is no longer offered, can you or someone else make a suggestion on a decent LiPo charger that will quick charge my 2S Mudboss batteries as well as do larger batteries in the future? I'm getting confused looking at all of the different ones out there. No .. I don't want to spend $200 on one. Just something that works at a good price. :)
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Only one I recommend ... https://a.co/d/8HJpP8i
 
RustyUs said:
Hota's D6 & H6 Pro chargers
It seems like every couple of years I upgrade my chargers for whatever reasons. Most of the time it's because of wanting more power or a feature on the new generation of chargers out there. I didn't want to go all out, and spend the money on the iCharger that I have been eyeballing for years.

My past chargers were somewhat slow when it came to that constant voltage part of a balance charge when cells are aging at different rates. It would take, what seemed like, forever to balance charge some LiPo packs. That's when I started researching what makes the higher end chargers so much better. The main reason I chose the Hota D6 was the balance current spec on the charger (1600mA x2) is as much as 5x greater than what I have been using.

I started using the Hota D6 at the beginning of the year.

1596496237009.png


I opted for the DC only version, 'cause I already had a 12V server power supply converted when one of my other charger's internal power supply decided to crap out on me. The only gripe I have about the D6 is the internal resistance readings are only available while charging.

I liked Hota's D6 so much, I sold my old faithful Hitec charger and purchased the Hota H6 Pro. They can be found for $79.99 at times on Banggood.

1596497293063.png


The H6 Pro has a bit more power than the D6. It will be used solely for my 4S charging needs, and the D6 dual port will be taking care of my 2S family of LiPo packs. The only complaint I have for the H6 Pro is there is no "kickstand" to adjust the screen angle. This would be a great job for a 3D printer owner to take on. I went with a tiny phone stand I found on Amazon...
1596498923526.png

I cut 21.3mm off the arm to get the correct angle for the H6 Pro to match that of the D6 charger screen.


20200723_172547.jpg



20200803_151410.jpg
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So I have a question about the Hota D6 pro. I picked one up per all the recommendations on this post. So I have used it a few times now and it will only charge all of my batteries to about 75% per my battery checker. My other charger will charge to 95% or slightly higher. Is there a setting I’m missing on the D6?

Thanks
 
Speaking about chargers. G_E_N_S just released their new D300 and D1000 "Plus" chargers. I'm assuming they're just regular models but the Plus has Bluetooth functions with their mobile app and I am assuming a updated firmware/software in the system. Pretty cool. And only 129.99 (for the D300 atleast), imho, the best budget charger ANYONE can ask for these days with the features and wattage per channel, and with Bluetooth functionality!!!

I'm late to the party on this one due to life but it released earlier this week. So far no reviews on the YouTubes yet. Wonder why, as gens is a huge company. With the Bluetooth functionality, Id assume it would work more better and be more useful with the gens GTech packs but should be able to work with non gens batteries as well with just showing the current charge state/cycles/voltage and IRs.
 
DavidB1126 said:
Speaking about chargers. G_E_N_S just released their new D300 and D1000 "Plus" chargers. I'm assuming they're just regular models but the Plus has Bluetooth functions with their mobile app and I am assuming a updated firmware/software in the system. Pretty cool. And only 129.99 (for the D300 atleast), imho, the best budget charger ANYONE can ask for these days with the features and wattage per channel, and with Bluetooth functionality!!!

I'm late to the party on this one due to life but it released earlier this week. So far no reviews on the YouTubes yet. Wonder why, as gens is a huge company. With the Bluetooth functionality, Id assume it would work more better and be more useful with the gens GTech packs but should be able to work with non gens batteries as well with just showing the current charge state/cycles/voltage and IRs.
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I was about to recommend the new d300 Plus as well, 2 years on my d300 and it's still awesome
 
Yes sir
I got mine on prime day for just 100 bucks earlier this year. Awesome charger for the price. No one can beat it. Especially for the wattage and features it has.
22SSragtop said:
I was about to recommend the new d300 Plus as well, 2 years on my d300 and it's still awesome
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DavidB1126 said:
Don't pay attention to the percentage. Voltage is more important. What is the voltage at? If at 4.2v per cell, you're good to go.
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The voltage have been with specs for all of the batteries I have charged. It just seems strange that one charger will charge to 95 plus and the Hota caps at 75%. Seems like you’re going to get 20% less runtime to me. But I’ll be the first to admit I don’t know anything about lipo batteries.
 
David is correct. The percentage isn't accurate. Once the voltage is achieved, its full. The runtime won't differ.

I haven't paid much attention to the % on my hota, but on a prior charger, I noticed the same thing. On that charger, I could tell it the battery was, say 5000mah. So it would charge it to 4.2v, and say it was at 75%. Thats because the charger is unaware theres still some juice in the battery and that's not accounted for in the % representation. Thats my assumption anyway. Maybe some chargers have better software that gets it closer to accurate. Maybe theres more information required to be entered by the user for the % to be more accurate. I dont care enough to read the directions and find out. All I know for sure is 4.2v per cell is full on a standard lipo.

If you doubt that, test the runtime to lipo cutoff on the charger that says 95 vs the charger that says 75. I'd be willing to bet the runtime is the same.
 

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