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Media (Apple) Businesses Media Apple

Build Your Own iPod Battery 318

OmniVector writes "With various complaints about the iPod battery's life, and its mere 10-8 hours of charge many of us are left looking for a way to keep the tunes kicking a little longer. Drew Perry has come up with a novel solution which can only run you a few bucks for an extra 10 hours of battery life out of a box of playing cards and a everyday batteries. Not bad for that long car trip where you just don't have a firewire charger handy."
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Build Your Own iPod Battery

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  • by Anonymous Coward on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:11AM (#8421682)
    Why would I cary around such an ugly thing? I'd rather just buy a 2nd iPod.
  • by tsunamifirestorm ( 729508 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:12AM (#8421685) Homepage
    explaining your stack of batteries when it shows up on the x-ray at an airport. ;)
    • Re:good luck... (Score:5, Informative)

      by torpor ( 458 ) <ibisum.gmail@com> on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:21AM (#8421713) Homepage Journal
      batteries are a known quantum in the world of travel security. scanners are designed to know what they are and how they're used.

      contrary to popular belief, batteries do not look like explosive devices.

      this diy-playing-card-battery-charger might raise a few eyebrows for its 'concealment' factor, but then, you don't have to use a playing-card box. you could just as easily use something else that actually looks like a plastic case designed for carrying batteries.

      this is a clever hack, anyway. the schematics are where the value is - whats the bet it won't be long before you can get these plastic cases in the akihabra back-streets, selling as 'cheap firewire-device rechargers' or whatever ...
      • by baryon351 ( 626717 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:27AM (#8421728)
        contrary to popular belief, batteries do not look like explosive devices.

        Excellent! I'll make an explosive device that looks like a battery then.

        Foolproof!
      • Re:good luck... (Score:4, Interesting)

        by WIAKywbfatw ( 307557 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:56AM (#8421796) Journal
        Contrary to popular belief, airport security personnel aren't exactly smart.

        Two recent examples for you:

        1. A passenger from Germany who was stopped and detained for having wires protruding from her jacket. It was nothing more than an ordinary electric jacket as used by bikers for the last twenty-odd years but that didn't stop the security guys from treating the passenger like a terrorist.

        An example of them getting it wrong by going overboard.

        2. A Sudanese man who was stopped at Heathrow with five live bullets in his coat. The man had just travelled from Washington DC, and the fact that someone was carrying live ammunition onto an aircraft was totally missed by the security in DC. So, security at Washington is so tight that you can get munitions onto a transatlantic aircraft without being spotted.

        An example of them getting it wrong by making basic mistakes.

        Remember, these are the people who insist on everything going through an x-ray machine, even materials that are highly sensitive to rays and easily damaged, because they know best and because the machines are "harmless".
        • Re:good luck... (Score:5, Interesting)

          by torpor ( 458 ) <ibisum.gmail@com> on Sunday February 29, 2004 @08:12AM (#8421927) Homepage Journal
          Anecdotal evidence at best. Answer me this question smartie:

          How many thousands and millions of times did Airport Security Personnel accurately spot and identify a battery/electronic posession of a passenger and determine that it was in fact safe?

          Just because you've 'heard of this in the news' doesn't mean that your analytical powers are sufficient to accurately determine reality in a scenario you've had no direct experience with. You're not looking at the entire scene here: count the success as well as the failure and then compare.

          Personally, I've known quite a few very intelligent security people, and had no problems with them whatsoever.

          Your two anecdotes prove your argument, though. Sharp...

          Remember, these are the people who insist on everything going through an x-ray machine, even materials that are highly sensitive to rays and easily damaged, because they know best and because the machines are "harmless".

          "I'll ignore the fact that most 'x-ray machines' installed at major airports are in fact far more than 'x-ray devices' and do more than just 'x-ray' things, and imply that because those passengers (such as myself) are so smart, they're bringing super-sensitive materials with them through the airport security screeners, who are all sooooo stoooopid ..."
        • Re:good luck... (Score:5, Interesting)

          by Wuffle ( 651894 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @09:15AM (#8422060) Homepage
          On a flight from LA to San Francisco I recently took all i was taking was my rucksack as hand luggage, in it was my digital camera, a 12-pack of Duracell batteries with only eight still in the packet, four being in my camera, and my iPod and a few other bits and bobs.

          My bag got flagged by the security staff and so first I was ordered to sit down in some waiting area type place while they swabbed my bag (I presume for trace explosives or something) and put it through the scanner again.

          I was then given a pat-down body search, my shoes had to be taken off, put through the scanner and then swabbed, my bag was then taken away by one of the staff and I was told to wait while they tested that the batteries were actually batteries or something. I wasn't told, just ordered to sit and wait.

          So after 30mins of my time wasted they decided to let me go on my merry way. What really got on my nerves is that there were no 'please' or 'thankyous' uttered by any of them, I felt as if I had done something wrong or was being treated badly just for having batteries in my bag.
          • Re:good luck... (Score:5, Informative)

            by ericspinder ( 146776 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @11:09AM (#8422408) Journal
            I had a simuliar problem with 4 AA batteries, loose at the bottom, of my laptop case. They all lined up neatly in a side pocket. This got me flagged, they even showed me what it looks like. They were really professional about it and it only "cost" me 5 minutes and the two-inch mini screwdriver I also had in the bag (which was not flagged by the x-ray machine operator).

            I would suggest that anyone carrying extra batteries for a personal device, put them into the change cup.

            I've said it before, and I'll say it again...
            What highjacked those planes was not box cutters, but fear, weak doors and historial compliance to anyone. The Heroes of Flight 93 showed what really happens in the "new reality".

            • Re:good luck... (Score:5, Informative)

              by fiftyfly ( 516990 ) <mike@edey.org> on Monday March 01, 2004 @02:25AM (#8427036) Homepage
              I would suggest that anyone carrying extra batteries for a personal device, put them into the change cup.

              When I fly I carry all kinds of change, several AA's, tokens, pens & what not. To get around having to haul all this stuff out for inspection all the time (esp for connecting flights) I usually carry a ziplock bag or two and stuff anything that might remotely go into the change box. One item, no fussing & my pockets are lighter.

          • Re:good luck... (Score:3, Insightful)

            by iocat ( 572367 )
            Wow, on a flight recently from LA to SFO the same thing happened to me! Oh, and on a flight from San Diego to OAK. Oh, and a flight from SEA to OAK. And SFO to DTW! Man, it was like I WAS BEING RANDOMLY SELECTED FOR THE INCREASED SECURITY SCREENING! This happens to hundreds of people every day, sometimes randomly, sometimes psuedo-randomly (like if you have a one way ticket, or swarthy skin and a beard, like me). This wasn't some dumb screener being afraid of your batteries, it was total standard procedure.
          • Re:good luck... (Score:3, Informative)

            by azuretek ( 708981 )
            I recently took a flight and I had 4 laptops, 5 batteries, 1 camera, gameboy, gameboy games, and tons of other elctronic gizmos on my carry ons. I put them all through the xray machine and they didn't even ask me about them. Funny thing though, I had all the batteries stacked up inside a zipper on one of the carry ons and they didn't even ask about it. In fact they didn't even bother me or ask about why I had all these things on me, for all they know I could have stole them from people in the airport. The o

        • Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to Anytown America airport. Security today was brought to you by the lowest bidder.
    • Re:good luck... (Score:5, Interesting)

      by JaredOfEuropa ( 526365 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:56AM (#8421797) Journal
      explaining your stack of batteries when it shows up on the x-ray at an airport. ;)
      They seem to be able to tell batteries and bombs apart on the X-ray (at least I hope so). I had no trouble with security when I took a dive-light through... basically a flashlight encased in a big, heavy, watertight aluminum casing... the thing looks exactly like a pipe bomb. They asked me to open it up and show the innards, which I couldn't, since it's all sealed tight. They asked me to turn it on, and again I couln't comply: you're supposed to remove the bulb from these things when moving them.

      Then they just waved me through.
      • Re:good luck... (Score:3, Interesting)

        by Anonymous Coward
        I'm an X-ray tech. Batteries and bombs look completely different.

        Bomb material is generally much less dense than battery contents, for example. Plastic explosives have signature densities, and are displayed using a red tone on the monitor. It's funny, because meat has a desnity very close to that of plastic explosive, so it's highlighted red as well.

        Batteries, made of lead are displayed black. They block x-rays very well--there's no mistaking batteries for any explosive material; unless they packed so
  • by joshua404 ( 590829 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:14AM (#8421690)
    ...by dissecting your iPod, why not buy this [belkin.com] ?
  • Nice (Score:3, Interesting)

    by iswm ( 727826 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:14AM (#8421691) Homepage
    That's pretty slick. Now just stick the batteries in something nice and shinny that will go beter with iPod's sexy design, and we're cooking with fire.
    • Re:Nice (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Bushcat ( 615449 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @07:07AM (#8421815)
      No it's not, it's terrible. The running costs are immense, and it's unbalanced.

      In the first picture, there are a GP and a Varta 9V battery in parallel, with at least two cells, at least one of which is rechargable. So, 9 + (2 x 1.2) = 11.4 V.

      In the second picture, there are two Varta 9V primary batteries in parallel, placed in series with two 1.5V Duracell alkalines. So, 9 + (2 x 1.5) = 12 V.

      We can assume the difference in non-load voltage is not relevant. But when we consider the power available:

      The capacity of each PP9 Varta is at most 450 mAh. (Rechargables are 110 mAh to 150 mAh). Taking the best case in parallel, therefore, 900 mAh. The rechargable AA's are about 1350 to 2300 mAh. If primary AA's are used, then figure on 2400 mAh.

      So for an all-primary solution, the AA cells have 2.5 times the life of the PP9 cells. Basically, this design eats PP9 cells and there's no real way of telling which batteries/cells are running out at any given moment.

      If one's going to go for a primary cell solution, then it would be better to have, say, 3 x 2CR5 in series or 3 x CR-P2 in series. But obviously a rechargable pack is the optimal solution because it's way cheaper in the long run. Buy them all together, Use them together, recharge them together. Check out packs used for digital cameras.

      • Re:Nice (Score:5, Interesting)

        by JustKidding ( 591117 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @08:44AM (#8421993)
        Not only that, but the two 9V batteries are going to discharge through one another, because of the internal resistance in the batteries. Current can flow through a battery (which is why you can connect them in series), and therefore at least one of them is going to go flat, even when it's not in use.

        The two AA's are pretty pointless, as the iPod was rated 8 - 30V, suggesting they just used a 78l05 or similar power stabiliser (min. input voltage = output + 3V). 3.5" HDD usually only need 5V, any extra voltage is just going to get you some extra dissipated heat, and no extra playing time, because the power stabiliser has to dissipate anything above 8V.

        For fsck sake, find yourself an EE 101 book or something.

        • Re:Nice (Score:5, Insightful)

          by dnoyeb ( 547705 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @09:46AM (#8422138) Homepage Journal
          IIRC, internally the CPUs and memory chips will operate at either ~3V or ~5.5V, so the voltage will be stepped down in either case.

          two 9V batteries will not be discharging through one another. One of them can not go flat, they are in parallel, if one goes flat, THEN the other will discharge through it, in effect, charging it(if it were rechargeable). But the effect is negligable, they will reach equilibriun.

          I would go personally with a bunch of AA batteries since they tend to have longer life under load. 9V seems to be passe for devices which have human interaction.

          6 AA in series would do the trick, and you can likely get a package to hold them at Radio Shack.

          And I would say he has passed EE101, it was a good freshman level attempt. On paper it works :D
      • by egork ( 449605 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @09:52AM (#8422159) Homepage Journal
        I know I am just a geeky physisist by education :-), can anybody tell me what in the world was the reason to use two 9V and two 1,5V cells and connect them in a funny way, when one could just take eight AAA cells. 8x1,5V=12V bingo!

        That will be even cheaper. And would last longer. And will fit into cardbox as well. And ...
      • by TheSHAD0W ( 258774 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @09:57AM (#8422175) Homepage
        Batteries in parallel (like those 9Vs) are bad, mixing battery types in series (such as AA and 9V in series), or even in brand (different brands of AA batteries) is very bad. If you're going to build this project, use 8 AA batteries in a simple series, unless you like having a pocket full of battery acid.
  • advantages (Score:4, Funny)

    by tsunamifirestorm ( 729508 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:16AM (#8421695) Homepage
    Advantages
    Not compatible with iPod mini.
    straight quote.
  • by Anonymous Coward on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:19AM (#8421705)
    We want solar iPod now!
    • You're assuming that because it's a mobile device people actually go outside with it.... you realize this is Slashdot??
    • Re:Infinite battery (Score:3, Interesting)

      by Quasar1999 ( 520073 )
      Solar iPod? You'd need about $150 in solar cells just to make the damn thing spin it's HD up. And then there's the logistics problem of the device not having enough surface area, so you'd need to put a huge adapter on it (goodbye small and portable)...

      I tried this idea already... thought I could make millions... instead I wasted $150... ugh.
  • by Anonymous Coward on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:20AM (#8421708)
    placing two cells in parallel can mean that one will discharge through the other - a stack of 6 or 8 AA cells in series would be better
    • by neirboj ( 567806 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:47AM (#8421779) Homepage

      Theoretically, if two batteries rated for the same voltage are connected positive-to-positive and negative-to-negative, no current will flow between them. In practice there may be a small difference in the potential at the positive terminal of one with respect to the other which would result in some current drain. At some point however the differential would vanish due to the discharging and current would cease to flow.

      I propose that batteries in parallel are fine as long as you replace them simultaneously.

      • by Anonymous Coward on Sunday February 29, 2004 @07:03AM (#8421811)
        Sorry, but your statement that "the current would cease to flow" is not correct. There will be a current around the loop; the potential drop of this current through the (small) internal resistance of the batteries is what causes the voltage to even out. But that current can be very large causing a lot of heating of the batteries.

        You are correct, however, that effect is not too bad if the batteries are closely matched (i.e. bought from the same package at the same time and always used together so they discharge equally).
    • Ehh...yeah...and I noticed he's got different brands of batteries and even chargeables, standard, and alkaline batteries all mixed together. That's quite a little cocktail of things that can go wrong. Once that dry cell nine volt dies and the alkaline hasn't yet, the circuit isn't so hot any more...or maybe it is hot, in a bad way.

      Just get 10 NiMH AAA batteries and wire them in series. They're 1.2 volts, so you'll get 12 to start off. It'll end up being about 1.75"x1.875"x.75" if you don't use holders, otherwise you can use two 4-cell holders and one 2-cell holder in a small box, which would make it a lot easier to pull out the batteries for recharging. This gets you about 600 extra milliamps, I have no idea what the iPod drains. If you used AAs instead, that would get you up to 1800ma. But 10 AAs are a little heavier.

      Might as well go for the 12 volt lantern battery!
  • Card box? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by darketernal ( 196596 ) <joshk@@@triplehelix...org> on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:22AM (#8421718) Homepage
    Seems to me that should the battery deal go wrong, the card box is very conducive to fire.. fire on batteries... box go boom?

    That's me being paranoid, but I recently heard of a colo facility destroyed - burned to the ground - by exploding batteries.
    • Re:Card box? (Score:3, Insightful)

      by W2k ( 540424 )
      The batteries that destroyed the CoLo would have been the heavy-duty supersized ones that go in UPS'es and the like. Those really are dangerous if you handle them incorrectly. The ordinary batteries you can buy at the grocery store, however, almost never explode, especially not the non-rechargeable kinds. Besides, if you are carrying this box in your pocket, and a battery explodes, you will have more important things to worry about than whether the box catches fire or not...
  • by Kehl ( 663202 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:27AM (#8421730) Homepage
    THIS IS NOT SAFE!

    There are 2 x 1.5 volt cells in series
    And 2 x 9 volt cells in parallel

    I know for certain this causes heat problems during charging or discharging because of the charge inbalance between the cells.
    This could lead to explosions in extreem cases.

    If you need to build one, I would suggest removing one of the 9 volt cells or adding 2 more 1.5 volt cells in parallel

  • by Xyde ( 415798 ) <slashdot@ p u rrrr.net> on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:31AM (#8421736)
    As I do, if you've ever taken it apart you'll notice there is quite a bit of space left in there. The battery is quite thin. I've often wondered if you could just buy another battery from say www.ipodbattery.com and install it internally, coupled in parallel with the original one. (same voltage, twice the capacity) Any EE's could verify if this would work?
  • Alternatively... (Score:5, Informative)

    by cioxx ( 456323 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:31AM (#8421738) Homepage
    Buy a 40-hour iPod battery for $100 bucks.

    That's Right. 40 [batterytech.com]
  • by line.at.infinity ( 707997 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:33AM (#8421744) Homepage Journal
    Instead of using NiMH or Alkaline AA battery pairs, Li-ion batteries are fantastic too. A comparison [steves-digicams.com] with 2xAA batteries and CR-V3 batteries show that CR-V3 battery charges last longer and have a longer lifespan.

  • How about this? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by nametaken ( 610866 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:35AM (#8421752)
    Wouldn't it be better to use the rechargable batteries you can buy at BestBuy or Target instead of burning up those AAs and 9vs for 10 hrs of play time?
  • by Anonymous Coward on Sunday February 29, 2004 @06:39AM (#8421763)
    6 pin Firewire pin assignment (& others) [zytrax.com]

    Need to know which ones are the power pins, right? ;)

    Anonymous Joe
  • Comment removed (Score:5, Interesting)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @07:08AM (#8421818)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion
  • by panurge ( 573432 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @07:10AM (#8421823)
    And, as someone who has had extensive experience with batteries, I agree. Never parallel battery cells unless you know how to design the necessary support electronics to prevent one discharging into the other (it can be done but it is complicated and there is always some voltage loss.)

    Instead, either use two 4-way AA cell holders in series with non-rechargeable cells(for a total of 12V), which are available from most electronics distributors, or a combination of 2 and 4 way holders to allow the use of 10 NiCd or NiMH AA or AAA cells - also for a total of 12V since these cells run about 1.2V each. With a diode and a resistor you can trickle charge this arrangement through a car lighter plug, since car batteries run around 14.5V. It's a kludge but a feasible kludge.

    I wonder if anyone has looked at modifying the works of a Freeplay radio (wind up dynamo) to act as a charger for small appliances like iPods?

  • by lotd ( 663784 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @07:19AM (#8421839)
    If you can afford an ipod, I am sure you can afford one of these (if you really want longer battery life):

    Backup battery pack [belkin.com]

    LotD

    • I would not recommend this for a second. In my experience these are really only good for a few hours. These appear power the ipod directly instead of charging the internal battery and powering the ipod like the design shown here. I guess this is so they can get away with 4AAs (6V) ass opposed to the 12ish volts over the normal charge line.

      The problem is that as soon as the batteries start to wear (2 out of 4 on the chargers battery charge meter) the ipod crashes. I've noticed my ipod acts funky on l
  • by ziggy_zero ( 462010 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @07:24AM (#8421845)
    ...in his iTunes music library he has the artist of the song "Stuck in the Middle with You" as Bob Dylan....fishy...
  • Since I found it difficult to research how to upgrade and repair such electronic devices, I have setup pages with links to HOWTOs for portable music players [tuxmobil.org], laptops and notebooks [tuxmobil.org] as well as PDAs [tuxmobil.org]. BTW: there is a also a selecion of Linux tools to connect to portable MP3 players [tuxmobil.org].
  • Awful design (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday February 29, 2004 @07:34AM (#8421863)
    1) Different battery types will lead to different discharge rates... in other words, when a battery is flat, you have to take them all out and test individually.

    2) The circuit is hardly clever or novel; no lights to tell you when the batteries are reading the end of their useful life.

    3) Gluing plastic on cardboard.... does this pass for elegent or clever? If so, let me show you some really "clever" things I've done with a fanbelt at 3 AM to keep my car going.

    4) is this was /. has sunk to? I mean, there's got to be funnier or cleverer stuff than this out there.
  • Car battery (Score:3, Insightful)

    by OPTiX_iNC ( 691070 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @07:42AM (#8421877) Homepage Journal
    If you are going to do all that, why not put a car battery in a backpack and put a voltage regulator on it? The best point of the iPod is that it is sleek and slender, now what have you just done when you 'add' a battery?
  • by grantedparole ( 95617 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @08:43AM (#8421992)
    You could make this battery pack rechargable and have an even 12V output using two 9.6V Maha Powerex
    batteries and two regular NiMH batteries.
  • Battery Mod (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday February 29, 2004 @10:54AM (#8422347)
    One thing i have yet to see anyone use... if its rated for 8 - 30 volts use 2 7.2v RC racing packs in series those things were designed for Horrendous discharge rates ive used them on older notebooks with great success i figure an ipod would run for upwards of 40 hours on a pair of good sanyos
  • by SiMac ( 409541 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @11:55AM (#8422659) Homepage
    I built it with a Firewire cable with a female end that I cut in half and taped to a 9V clip, then I attached the 9V clip to an 8 battery pack. It didn't need any soldering, and it should last about 20 hours. I've determined that it can be stored in either a cornflakes box or a neoprene case; a hard case would probably work too. It's pretty cool.

    I thought of going the 9V route, but then it occurred to me that it's kinda pointless to have two 9Vs - 9Vs don't hold that much charge; their main benefit is that they're small. They're actually 6 tiny (and therefore inefficient) 1.5V cells in parallel. So there is no purpose in having two.
  • by telstar ( 236404 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @11:57AM (#8422668)
    Anyone else notice that this guy's latest blog entry [drewperry.co.uk] talks about his dead iPod? Connect the dots....
  • by scottme ( 584888 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @12:18PM (#8422776)
    I don't see anywhere in the article which pins on the firewire socket one has to connect to pos & neg from the batteries. I'd want to be real sure I got that right before plugging a gizmo like this into my iPod.

    On second thoughts, I suppose all it takes to discover this is a multimeter and the Apple charger.

    Still, it would be a nice addition to the article if he would explain that.
  • by skywolf ( 757605 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @01:24PM (#8423123)
    To be blunt, this design isn't so bright... Sure, it produces a reasonable voltage, but it's not a good idea to mix different types / sizes of battery in this way. If batteries are mixed in parallel like the PP3 batteries in this circuit, large currents may flow from one of the batteries to the other - it's unlikely both batteries would output exactly the same voltage. If batteries of different sizes are mixed in series, one type may discharge before the other. The discharged cell may potentially be reversed - i.e. current will flow through it backwards. Either of these situations may cause the batteries to vent gas, overheat, or if safeguards fail they may even potentially explode. This is the sort of thing that you may get away with for some of the time, and you may not see any problems immediately - but in the long term you may well burn your house down. This advice comes from experience. If you short a rechargeable battery you can draw extremely high currents (even 10s of amps) and start fires very quickly. I once melted a long piece of plastic insulation very quickly when two contacts touched at the end of a battery lead. The battery got very hot - I burned my fingers trying to disconnect it. Treat batteries with respect. I'd be willing to wager that electronics kills many more people through fire than electrocution.
  • by TheLink ( 130905 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @01:53PM (#8423299) Journal
    "12 volts. Since that isnt a common value for Batteries".

    Doh what part of 8 x 1.5 or 10 x 1.2(NiCads) doesn't he get?

    And his solution is to mix different types of batteries together.
  • Belkin Battery Pack (Score:5, Interesting)

    by anamexis ( 753041 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @02:17PM (#8423434)
    I'm still waiting for plans for a homemade Belkin battery pack.
    The difference?
    The belkin packs [belkin.com], as you may have noticed, use only 4x1.5V. They don't charge the iPod battery, they power the iPod, getting 15-20 more hours of playtime, a better solution to me. This is probably done by jumping a pin in the proprietary dock connector of the iPod.
    If someone could figure out which pin to jump or otherwise how to make this, it would be a wonderful solution.
  • It's a plus (Score:3, Insightful)

    by dema ( 103780 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @02:29PM (#8423504) Homepage
    While this doesn't seem like an incredibly safe thing to do, it's certainly nice to see someone actually doing something about his battery instead of just bitching. [ipodsdirtysecret.com]
  • by NanoGator ( 522640 ) on Sunday February 29, 2004 @04:35PM (#8424189) Homepage Journal
    ... I'm gonna have it play TV_Themes__MacGuyver.MP3.
  • by Sparr0 ( 451780 ) <sparr0@gmail.com> on Sunday February 29, 2004 @04:55PM (#8424287) Homepage Journal
    Those batteries are going to be eaten like candy... It would be much smarter to put together a lithium ion polymer pack and just recharge it... Stick 6 1Ah LI-P cells in the same amount of space, (2*3 arrangement) and you get your nice nominal ~11V with a hell of a lot more duration (2Ah) than alkalines, and a lot less cost. The cells will run you maybe $15 each, and will last for hundreds of charges.

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