[Jim Retzner]

While shopping this afternoon I came upon rechargable AAA batteries. There was a battery charger on the same rack as well. Could these be used in a HandSring Visor PDA?

[mephastopholes]

hmmm..not sure...you might find these to be of interest, however: http://www.handspring.com/support/ts_battery.jhtml & http://www.maksystems.com/visor/index.html (scroll down to "about the batteries")... so although it might not be recommended by the manufacturer, it definetly seems possible

[Steph]

The Visor (like current Palms) can utilize NiCd, NiMH, and rechargeable Alkelines, provided you charge the batteries in an external charger.

Caveats with NiCd and NiMH batteries are, they provide a lower initial voltage (1.2 volts per cell instead of 1.5 volts) and their discharge curve is such that they can go from fully useful, to flat dead, so fast that you may not get much warning. In other words, unless you are very aware of your battery levels, you have a risk of running out of power and losing data.

Certainly though you can use these types of batteries. Rechargeable Alkelines act just like normal alkelines to the Visor. Using 3rd party software you can 'tell' the Visor which kind of batteries you're using, so it will adjust it's warnings accordingly.

You can use the mods from the website mentioned above, (the maksystems.com one) to have the Visor recharge it's rechargeable Alkelines in the cradle, but that will void your warranty.

If you go with NiCd or NiMH it would be a good idea to keep a second pair of fully charged batteries with you, so you can swap them out 'in the field' if necessary. For that matter, folks ought to keep a second pair handy anyways.

--Stephanie

I've been using rechargeable Alkelines since August 2000, when I first started using the Visor Deluxe. It is true that they drop out quickly at the end, so when it starts getting low, I have a replacement set of normal Alkelines ready. I keep a second set of rechargeable Alkelines fully charged in the charger, so when I get home I swap the dead for the new and place the normal Alkelines back in their waiting place.

I haven't had any known ill effects when using rechargeable Alkelines and the cost factor is attractive.

Eric

[mikithecrackhead]

I just purchased the ICU digital handspring power accessory kit
at Comp USA
NiMH batteries...
charging it is a bit of a chore, trying to clip it on just right.
but it came with the car adapter so i could charge it @home and on the road. I just wish it would be a little easier to clip on.