Most devices & gadgets are rechargeable nowadays. The only thing I have that still requires batteries is a headlamp but even those are available in rechargeable varieties. House smoke detectors need a battery too.
I’m surprised we haven’t got a standard “flat” battery format yet.
Nothing stops the industry to create a new form factor for a new battery with a different voltage and size. But the things that already work with AA and AAA batteries will still need them.
Wow, why did this old post resurface? Two people just commented on it.
D and C are almost obsolete already.
AA and AAA I have bought things that require them this year so I doubt it will happen in our lifetime.
As for rechargeable it’s twice the effort to find the charger every two years instead of just using the one time batteries.
As for rechargeable it’s twice the effort to find the charger every two years instead of just using the one time batteries.
I’ve actually seen USB to USB-C rechargeable AA batteries for sale. I’ve never tried them so I have no idea personally how good they are but the reviews seem positive. I think that could be the way forward as long as it’s a standard charging cable for the batteries.
They can be good but the voltages don’t always match alkaline cells so you can sometimes burn through them quicker than if you’d use standard alkaline.
These are the way. They usually come with a cable that splits from one USB A to four or more USB C. So you have a spot to charge them normally, but you can also give them a quick charge when you’re out and about with any random cable you have if you can’t find the splitter. And they charge much quicker than using a battery charger.
They seemed 12 times more expensive than the one use batteries. So only makes sense for stuff you use often.
Non-rechargable batteries are the only possible solution for things that draw very, very little power.
Like watches and clocks, smoke detectors, etc.
Things where you replace the battery every 1-10 years. A rechargable battery wouldn’t really make much sense in that context, even if it was possible to make one that lasts that long.Obsolete would imply a better in every way alternative. Kinda think they fall into the technology category of timeless and always useful. It’s hard to think of a safer, cheaper, higher capacity, disposable and more utilitarian form factor. Kinda like asking “will shovels ever become obsolete?”
The main reason that they’re nearly impossible to obsolete is that AA, etc. are just shapes (and voltages).
- Zinc-Carbon AAs have become functionally impossible to find because alkaline cells are better in basically every way.
- Lithium disposables beat alkaline in longevity, but lose in cost
and are only 1.2V. - NiMH are
also1.2V, but are rechargeable; they last longer overall, but are much more expensive and have much worse self-drain while not in use - Li-Ion cells are far too high-voltage for AAs, but they’re also so much higher-density that it’s sometimes worth putting a step-down circuit in the battery to get it to 1.5V. That removes most of the density advantage, but it’s the only way to use rechargeable batteries to power devices that can’t run at 1.2V.
Carbon-Zinc batteries are basically impossible to find, yes. They were pretty much entirely superseded by Zinc Chloride batteries, which are fairly easy to find. They’re often marketed with the phrase “heavy duty” though they’re lower in capacity to alkalines.
Lithium disposables beat alkaline in longevity, but lose in cost and are only 1.2V.
They’re about 1.6V open-circuit, and maintain 1.5V under light load for a large portion of their discharge cycle. They maintain 1.5V much longer than alkaline.
They’re terribly expensive for regular use compared to pretty much any other option though.
9V batteries are absolutely obsolete and only exist still because of smoke detectors and theyre always low on charge even right out of the package. Same with C and D batteries. AAA and AA still have their uses though.
Obsolete but still in use, hmmmmmm
Always the possibility we invent a way to make them smaller, more compact, or higher voltage
None of those things improve the insertable battery. Their size and voltage are what makes them useful. A smaller, higher voltage AA battery is an entirely useless AA battery.
If my PlayStation or Switch controller dies, it becomes a wired controller I’m now tethered to. If my Xbox controller dies, I swap a couple eneloop batteries in and it’s good for another month. Advantage: replaceable rechargeable batteries.
This. I don’t have to wait for something to charge. I just swap and go.
You could also just charge your controller while you’re not playing. OC was about the batteries reaching end-of-life, not simply fully discharging.
Oh, I could just simply become a different person who plans ahead!? But seriously, I’ve also had controllers start not holding a charge, or they’re already dead when I try to turn them on…
I think so, but I think it’s a bad development. Rechargeable devices tend to be non-repairable and ultimately bad for the environment. A, AAA, etc are ultimately just standardized interfaces with standardized form factors and voltage, the actual batteries are available in both one-time-use and rechargeable variants. I think we should keep them around as they enable us to use our devices for a longer time without costly repairs or even disposal of the device itself. This does not apply to very complex and energy intensive devices like smart phones though, as they obviously require more sophisticated and space optimized batteries.
A good percentage of rechargeable cells are standardized too, they’re just not easily accessible. I don’t think it would take much to adjust the design of a thing to accept a replaceable battery in most simple items.
For example, I have a laser pointer that runs on rechargeable lithium batteries, you just unscrew it and put any standard 18650 cell in directly.
I’d much rather see modern rechargeable batteries (Li-ion, maybe Na-ion in the future) in standardized, field-replaceable form factors.
This is already common in flashlights. In my pocket today is a flashlight running on an AA-size 14500 Li-ion. There’s a magnetic pad to recharge the battery with a proprietary cable, but I can also unscrew the tailcap and replace it with a spare, as most people expect from a flashlight. I can use AA in a pinch with reduced performance, though I’ll note supporting both voltage ranges takes extra work on the manufacturer’s part.
Being complex and energy-intensive doesn’t preclude batteries being standardized or field-replaceable. The issue with smartphones is that they have a highly optimized form factor.
I love the implication here that disposable batteries are good for the environment.
I think you got me wrong here. The implication should he that repairability is good for the environment and a standardized form factor enables repairability. It’s not the best solution but still better than everything glued in, but you seem to not agree on that one either, do you?
I sure hope not, the only devices more than a few years old that still function are those with replaceable batteries. Removable batteries make devices simpler, more robust, and longer-lasting. Rechargeable, replaceable, removable, standardized batteries are the sweet spot for sure.
