Energizer USB clip to charge camcorder / DSLR batteries via USB

Energizer's Energi To Go catalog just keeps getting sweeter. After introducing a new range of XPAL battery chargers last month, the company is evidently gearing up to reveal what's likely to be its most convenient and altogether useful product yet. The USB clip you see above is designed to make contact with DSLR and camcorder batteries and provide juice via USB; in other words, it's like a portable, highly mobile DSLR battery charger. OhGizmo points out that you may need one of Energizer's USB-equipped battery packs to charge up the 7.4V cells, but at least we're still talking about a non-proprietary charging connector. Per usual, there's no mention of dollars and cents, but hopefully it'll be rolled out for less than a song here soon.

[Via OhGizmo]

[DanielT @ Jul 1st 2009 10:01AM]

My BFF!

[basroil @ Jul 1st 2009 1:03PM]

Too bad that USB is 5V and ALL DSLR and most camcorder batteries are 7.2V or higher... Device won't work without some sort of voltage booster, which means lower efficiency and much, much slower charge times.

Could work on regular point and shoot/cellphone batteries though, those are usually 3.7V

[Greg @ Jul 1st 2009 10:02AM]

One question: why?

[Jon Doe. @ Jul 1st 2009 11:12AM]

Because its easier then carrying around a 3' cable? Maybe?

[Roger @ Jul 1st 2009 11:20AM]

One question: why not?

[Firr @ Jul 1st 2009 10:03AM]

looks like my 450D batteries wont fit in there

[Josh @ Jul 1st 2009 10:13AM]

this is a great idea

[Templarian @ Jul 1st 2009 10:14AM]

USB cable plus clipping it to a coworker... if only usb had more power.

[htd @ Jul 1st 2009 10:16AM]

this kind of stuff has been in market in china for quite a while, but for US market, you need to make sure it wont burn the house down for those people who try to abuse it

[the4thheat @ Jul 1st 2009 10:18AM]

Doesn't this seem like a great way to wreck your USB ports? My laptop busted a USB port from too much strain being on one of the USB ports, and I just don't think hanging a heavy battery is gonna be very good for the port.

[somewhiteguy @ Jul 1st 2009 10:26AM]

I was thinking the same thing. Guess they're assuming you'll use an extension cable or something... but if I'm carrying around all that, might as well carry the charger for the battery.

[bdav @ Jul 1st 2009 10:30AM]

You would have thought so - maybe they should have a mini-usb socket on the device so you can use a cable instead.

[ghy @ Jul 1st 2009 10:38AM]

I bought one of these in hong kong last year. Except it was only meant for batteries up to 4.8v. So all cellphones pretty much. I've also used mines to charge a bluetooth headset i found off the street. Its a pretty useful device to say the least.

[stromm @ Jul 1st 2009 10:38AM]

Beside the physical strain on the port, what about the fact that this is only a two prong connector which means that there's no "charge control"? What I'm saying is that without the other connectors, the battery will not stop charging when it's full.

[Cheng @ Jul 1st 2009 11:04AM]

Where does it say that it's a direct tap from the USB's 5v line?

Judging from the looks of the clamp, notice the LED and the thickness of the green part, and the fact that it says it's a USB based charger designed to charge 7.4V batteries it strikes me as pretty damned obvious that the charger has some sort of control circuitry and the required circuits to ramp up the standard 5V to the ~8.5V needed to fully charge this battery.

[me @ Jul 1st 2009 10:40AM]

"for less than a song"

God, I hope so. Last time I heard, a song costs $80,000.

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/06/riaa-jury-slaps-2-million-fine-on-jammie-thomas/

[willww @ Jul 2nd 2009 9:14AM]

Yes, this has been in China for AGES now. Socket/USB Universal chargers, you can even buy them on ebay for cheap. Extremely useful if you forget your mobile phone charger.

[solmar @ Jul 1st 2009 11:03AM]

Yep, this kind of adjustable direct-to-battery charger has been sold in China (and hence Asia) for quite a long time (and cheaply, at that), except that they aren't powered by USB, but by a normal power outlet. They are as flimsy as they look, and the adjustable little pincer terminals aren't confidence-inspiring. They also aren't very fast at charging, which may be a good thing, since it means that your batteries are less likely to go kaput. You also have to know where to connect those pincers, since most batteries these days come with more than two connectors.

About the only thing they're good for is if you forgot your normal charger somewhere, or want to charge a spare mobile battery. Otherwise, they're not worth it.

[Anthony Thomas @ Jul 1st 2009 11:17AM]

DealExtreme - your local "sells everything" emporium has these things for a few dollars. I sure hope Energizer don't feel like charging (ha) the earth for these.

[paulindy @ Jul 1st 2009 11:27AM]

This looks exactly like a cell phone battery charger i bought a while back:

http://dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.15264

it works - for cell phone batteries, i haven't tried it on anything else

[Cheng @ Jul 1st 2009 11:55AM]

wait a minute.......


The Enegizer charger depicted here is the EXACT same charger DX sells for $2!
Same shape, same color, same key chain, same adjustable prongs.. so who's copying who? cheap china shop that have been selling this charger since August 2008 or Enegizer which has just announced it? :p

On a side note, since this charger is available at DX for $2, including free world wide shipping, what do you think Enegizer is gonna sell it for? $20 plus shipping and handling?

[Scarhawk @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:42AM]

$2 does not seem like enough to cover the cost of any decent battery charger circuit inside. Most likely a cheap linear regulator, if that. Wouldn't be surprised to find a resistor and a zener diode in there.

[Magallanes @ Jul 1st 2009 11:31AM]

om nom nom

[MeisterDon @ Jul 1st 2009 11:59AM]

I think it's quite useful. When you're out on a run and your battery is nearly dead, plug it into your laptop when you're on a break and you're good to go for the day, or you can just buy a second battery and never worry about it.

[compternerd @ Jul 10th 2009 10:20AM]

These devices have been around for months, this particular one may be new.
I found one on ebay 3-4 months ago, but it also had a SD memory card reader
at the other end as well. That unit was kinda clunky though.

[FT @ Jul 1st 2009 2:12PM]

Pretty neat idea.

Is it just me, that the clips resembles eerily to a snake, where its jaw opens, with 2 venomous fangs sticking out? (from the left pic)

[shahsuni @ Jul 2nd 2009 12:58PM]

This does really look interesting

[Unknown @ Jul 1st 2009 2:55PM]

I'm wondering if this is the real news.

[tekdroid @ Jul 1st 2009 3:23PM]

http://www.gearlog.com/2009/06/energizer_unveils_energi_to_go.php
"As you've certainly discovered, mobile electronics can go through a lot of power and there's not always an outlet around when you need one."
-----------
That's why sane manufacturers make devices that take removable batteries - which often sell for less than overpriced, bulky accessories.

[*brotha @ Jul 1st 2009 7:27PM]

alot of people in china use this, it can be quite convenient due to being able to charge more than one phone. They also usually cost less then 1$ so thats not a bad deal compared to a conventional charger at home.

[cd vierge @ Sep 14th 2009 8:43AM]

Last month, I purchased a Sony DCR-SR100 hard disc digital camcorder. After a few weeks of use, I decided on two things:

1) I needed a larger battery to take advantage of the 7 hours of HQ recording the camera is capable of, and

2) I needed an external charger for the batteries so I would not have to plug the camera in, unused, for hours at a time while the battery charged.

I selected the largest available "P" series battery, and purchased both the battery and this charger through Amazon.

The charger is well made, compact, and features a power prong that folds sideways into the body, which is excellent for portability. I found that the charger and a spare battery fit perfectly into the side compartment of the camera bag I purchased with my camcorder.

Being able to charge one battery while using the other in the camera has freed me from the downtime and inconvenience I had experienced prior.

The problem I have with this charger is a poor choice on Sony's part with regards to charge indication. The instruction manual has a chart for each P Series battery, and lists the approximate "normal" charge time and "full" charge time. The difference seems to be that the "normal" charge is mostly -- but not fully -- charged.

The manual states that when you insert a battery and plug the charger in, the indicator light will come on. When "normal" charging is complete, the indicator light goes off. The kicker is that to achieve a "full" charge, the manual says to leave the battery charging for about an hour after the indicator light has turned off. There is no additional visual cue to tell you when or if a "full" charge has been achieved. You essentially have to guess when the battery is fully charged.

I would rather have seen a product with multiple indicator lights, or at least with "flash codes" for the single indicator light so you have a way of distinguishing if the battery is currently charging, and if the charge is "mostly done," or complete and full.

That being said, the unit does get the job done and free you to film while your backup is charging. The battery is usable after the charge light goes off, even if it does not have the maximum life. If you are in the habit of charging your battery overnight, then you can probably be assured that the battery will have a full charge in the morning, even if the charger won't tell you. Other than what some may consider to be a nit-picking gripe, I have no complaints.