Xtar VC4 Li-Ion / NiMH battery charger

Product detailed description

The VC4 is a professional processor charger with a three-stage TC/CC/CV charging process and an LCD display. It charges 1-4 Li-ion 3.6/3.7V and Ni-MH cells of any capacity in sizes AAA/R03, AA/R6, 10440, 14500, 14650, 16340, 17500, 17670, 18350, 18550 on the two extreme channels it can charge batteries in sizes R14, R20, 20700, 21700, 22650, 25500, 26650, 32650.

The backlit LCD display of the Xtar VC4 charger shows the current status of the charger: voltage of the batteries being charged, charging current, charge used to charge the cells, indicates any errors and informs about the end of charging. At the same time, the current operating status for the two channels is displayed. Switching between the other two channels is possible using the CH button on the charger cover. The information about the applied charge can be used to measure the capacity of the batteries. To measure the capacity of a battery, discharge it to the appropriate voltage limit (most commonly 2.5V for Li-ion, 0.9V for Ni-MH) and insert it into the VC4 charger. When charging is complete, the display will show the charge value used to charge the battery. It will always be 3-5% higher than the actual battery capacity. This is due to the fact that the battery charging process is never 100% efficient, so a slightly higher charge is required to charge the battery than the actual cell capacity indicates.

The maximum charging current is 1A and is only available for the two outermost channels and only if the middle channels are not used. Batteries in the middle channels are always charged with a current of 0.5A. When charging 3 or 4 batteries, the VC4 charges all batteries with a current of 0.5A.

The Xtar VC4 charger has the function of reactivating deeply discharged cells and cells with 0V voltage. Many chargers on the market cannot charge such batteries. This is where the Xtar VC4 charger comes in handy, which in many cases allows such cells to be "rescued". A deeply discharged battery just needs to be inserted into the VC4 charger, just like in normal charging - the charger detects the discharged cell and tries to reactivate it. Warning! Cells discharged below a certain level will be irreversibly damaged and may not be able to be reactivated. Avoid discharging Li-ion and Ni-MH batteries too deeply - this can significantly reduce their life and capacity or lead to their complete failure.

The Xtar VC4 charger comes with a USB cable. The kit does not include a power supply. To power the charger you only need any charger with a USB cable, for example from your phone or
USB socket, or a computer with a free USB port. The recommended output of the USB power supply is 2.1A (2100mA). It is possible to use a weaker power supply, the VC4 will adapt the charging current to the capabilities of the power supply.

The most important features:

- li-ion battery charging controlled by a three-stage processor TC/CC/CV charging process
- charging Ni-MH batteries using the CC method
- four independent charging channels
- max. charging current 1A
- LCD display informing about cell voltage and charging current
- informs about the current used for charging - possibility to measure the cell capacity (measurement error ± 5%)
- powered by any USB charger with USB port or from a USB port on a computer
- deeply discharged cell reactivation function
- protection: short-circuit, thermal, anti-polarity