Possible Battery solution?

smittles2003@yahoo.com · Thu Mar 30, 2006 7:03 pm

okay...first off, im planning on making an N64p (my first portable) some time soon..(proably over the summer sometime..need to learn lots still)

I've been reading the forums and I've got Ben's book so i think I can do it...anyway, I was searching buy.com for batteries, and i found http://www.buy.com/prod/Lenmar_PRO_2025 ... 07976.html these...

it said they had 2500 mah (1.2 volts)...i assume that's per battery...
does anyone know if that's an accurate figure? That just seems like a whole lot for a AA battery, even if it is rechargable...they've got a pack of 20 batteries for about 20 bucks...

If all this is right, would this be an easy way to get both the 3.3 v needed for the 64 and still have enough left over for the screen and other part of the 64? If so, you might even be able to make inter-changable battery packs..(charge one while playing the other...)

Not sure, just wondering if someone could let me know if this could be a good way to go for powering it...

Thanks!

Smittles2003

daguuy · Post by **daguuy** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 7:19 pm

yes, those are 2500mah 1.2v per battery. NiMH have pretty high capacity. 20 of those for $21 is really good. you'd need 6 of those to get the right volatage, 12 for 2x the battery life if you don't mind size and weight. here's my guide, you can also get to it from my site

smittles2003@yahoo.com · Thu Mar 30, 2006 7:34 pm

thanks a lot...but i was just wondering how you would charge them without having to take them all completely out of the portable and use an existing charger...i know there must be an easier way, i just dont know what could be done to get them all charging...

If anyone has any ideas, id appreciate it...

Thanks!

smittles2003@yahoo.com

daguuy · Post by **daguuy** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 7:41 pm

a 7.2v NiMH battery charger should work.

smittles2003@yahoo.com · Thu Mar 30, 2006 9:06 pm

If you used the 7.2 v charger, would you have to take the batteries out, or is there some way to just hook them all up at once...(still kind of new to all of this...)

Thanks!

smittles2003

daguuy · Post by **daguuy** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 9:20 pm

since it's a 7.2v charger, you would charge a 7.2v series of batteries (6 AAs) so you would just charge them all at the same time

smittles2003@yahoo.com · Thu Mar 30, 2006 9:23 pm

o..ok thanks a lot...

if you did double the number to get 2x the battery life, would you need to have 2 chargers? and, i know this is still been a work in progress, but could you play the 64 when it was plugged in? even if it didnt charge, would that damage the batteries/64/anything else?

just wondering...

Thanks!

Smittles2003

daguuy · Post by **daguuy** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 9:36 pm

fisrt off, with 12 batteries, you'd wire 2 series of 6 in parrallal so that it's still 7.2v. now that that's out of the way, i think you should be able to charge all of them at once. chargers charge at a higher voltage than the batteries are so if you charge and play at the same time it might fry the screen if the voltage is high enough. i wouldn't recomend it.

smittles2003@yahoo.com · Thu Mar 30, 2006 9:46 pm

i was just looking at one of the posts and saw that Jay had just used two seperate battery packs (or sets of AAs would work too, i assume) so he could play off of one pack and charge the other...I think that would be a very good idea that I might try and do...

With this set-up, tho, could you switch which battery pack you were playing off of without disrupting gameplay? If you couldn't switch directly, what about a lower-power 3rd battery that would simply give the system enough power until you switched to the other full power supply... just a thought...

daguuy · Post by **daguuy** » Thu Mar 30, 2006 9:49 pm

you could probably use a huge capacitor and flip a switch really fast or maybe use diodes and a cap to make it do that

smittles2003@yahoo.com · Thu Mar 30, 2006 9:53 pm

ok...thx..

i'm not sure exactly of what all you mean (still very new at this), but I think i might look into this once I start actually building it...

thanks
smittles2003

vskid · Post by **vskid** » Fri Mar 31, 2006 4:01 pm

I think I know how to switch between batteries during play. Wire the packs in parallel with a switch for each pack, then turn on the good pack first and then turn off the dead one. I'm sure you could figure a way to charge (mabye a plug for each pack in parallel with the switch to charge the batt. not in use). It should work, someone want to tell me?