GP32 power indicator

[Nara]

I got my GP today and put in fully loaded 1,2v 1300mah batteries.. and the power indicator is red.
Is it red because the batteries are not enough? or is it just showing that it´s powered? :unsure:

 

[Degenerate]

It's a distinct possibilty, if you can get hold of some, try using some 2200mAh NiMH batteries. I'll be using them when I (eventually) get my GP32. Whenever I put 1.2v batteries in my minidisc player it'd die after about an hour, compared to 12+ with standard alkaline batteries. It's a shame there arn't any 1.5v lithium rechargeables, the lithium battery in my MD lasts a good 32 hours.

 

[giffel]

its always red. there is no battery status indication like with the gba.

 

[Degenerate]

Even so, 1.2v batteries will damage the equipment over a period (well, a long, long time ), perhaps it's best to invest in some heavy duty ones

 

[Nara]

okay, thanks.. i´ve got a gba too.. and thought the GP would use a 2 color LED too
bought 4 1800mah batteries in case 1300mah wasn´t enough.

 

[Vanguard]

This is a simplified explanation:

The mAh (milliAmp-hours) rating is how much energy the battery holds before going dead.

The Voltage is how much energy is being put out at any one time.

With alkaline batteries, the voltage drops steadily as the mAh is drained, until the voltage isn't enough to power the device anymore. The battery might still be useable for other things that require less voltage (When a digital device "runs out of batteries" try putting the "dead" alkaline batteries in a flashlight...it won't be as bright as it would be with new batteries, but it will still work)

With NiMH batteries, the voltage remains mostly constant as the mAh is drained, until the MAh is almost depleted. Then the voltage drops relatively suddenly, and the voltage isn't enough to power the device anymore.

Undervoltage (2.4v total instead of 3v in the case of the GP32) won't damage electronics over time. Overvoltage could possibly damage equipment, but it would be pretty difficult to supply the GP32 with too many volts with batteries.

I use 1800mAh NiMH batteries, and I'm very happy with the battery life I get. Using 1300mAh batteries will work fine with your GP32, but they will go dead faster.

 

[Degenerate]

Thanks for correcting me Vanguard, I guess I was mislead by the sites I read (supprisingly they were selling the higher capacity rechargeables).

Overvoltage could possibly damage equipment, but it would be pretty difficult to supply the GP32 with too many volts with batteries.

I was wondering about that.. would it do a huge amount of damage if you supplied 3.6v instead of 3v? If it didn't, you could possibly run a GP32 off of lithium rechargeables, which last longer (and cost more).

 

[Vanguard]

Hmm...

Well, it's hard to say without testing it, and I wouldn't want to test it on my GP32. : )

It really depends on the specific components used and their power rating. 3.6v isn't really that much more than 3, so it should be ok...but it's something I wouldn't risk for the minimal gain you'd get from Li-ion batteries (Which are in many ways worse than NiMH anyway)

This is coming from a guy who did risk flashing the bios. : )

It came out fine.

I have some Electrical Engineering friends, I'll see if I can beat some answers out of them.

 

[Degenerate]

Hmm... well it was just an idea, I had noticed that my Li-ion battery for my mobile phone lasts nearly twice as long as the NiMH version, but I'm guessing that has no relevance here as both are 3.6v. Any more details you can dig up will obviously be useful, though

 

[Octavius]

i use some shitty rechargable batteries.. but they do the job and i dont have to BUY more! i dont think that they can mess you system up.

 

[Meonlyeviler]

I just bought some sunpak ones (1800 mah, 1.25v) from http://shop.store.yahoo.com/kb-electronics/ , they're probally pretty crappy, but for the price who cares

 

[Axeman]

Damn cheap - I gotta say! Shame it's in the US. The cheapest I've had (for high capacity anyway) is www.7dayshop.com in the UK. about a fiver for 4 2000MaH AAs! Luvely!