Author Topic: Garmin Edge 800 External Battery Pack (Read 7079 times)

Old Git · « **on:** 29 November, 2011, 08:00:55 pm »

I am getting an external battery pack for a garmin edge 800.
That runs off of 4 x AA. Does anyone know what type of AA
battery (not brand) is best.

JohnT

Biggsy · « **Reply #1 on:** 29 November, 2011, 08:09:46 pm »

I have a question that may help to answer John's question:

Will it cope happily with a range of 4.8V to 6.8V? (6.8V could be the initial voltage of a new lithium pack). If so, lithiums would be the best in terms of weight and cold-weather performance.

NiMH rechargeable would be most economical. The hybrid type of NiMH (eg Eneloop) is more robust and lower in self-discharge than ordinary NiMH. Alkaline should work and be easiest to obtain when oot and aboot.

Feanor · « **Reply #2 on:** 29 November, 2011, 08:10:51 pm »

In my ( non-cycling ) hand-held Garmins I prefer Ni-MH rechargables.

When exhausted, then any-port-in-a-storm AAs.

--
F

Old Git · « **Reply #3 on:** 29 November, 2011, 09:23:10 pm »

THANK YOU BOYH FOR YOUR REPLIES

JohnT

frankly frankie · « **Reply #4 on:** 29 November, 2011, 11:08:59 pm »

Quite simply (I don't know why Biggsy didn't just come right out and say it) Energizer Lithiums are the best.

If you want rechargeable, then you have to go with NiMH which are also very good, but with a 2x weight penalty which with 4 cells is noticeable.

Biggsy · « **Reply #5 on:** 29 November, 2011, 11:24:11 pm »

I'm a big fan of Energizer Lithiums, but I don't think they're best for those doing a lot of long rides on a low budget, even at 7DayShop prices. Thinking of you ~~mad~~ amazing epic audaxers.

bikey-mikey · « **Reply #6 on:** 08 December, 2011, 02:11:00 pm »

I use a Technet 5000 m'amp rechargable, as talked about elsewhere on here - one of these gives me an extra 30 hours on my Garmin 705.,

(I have three so could easily do a Lejog without needing to recharge)

Sure they cost a bit, but they don't weigh much, and they seem to last forever.

As a bonus they have an array of tips, so they can also charge my mobile, my iPod, my Kindle, etc etc

Old Git · « **Reply #7 on:** 09 December, 2011, 08:23:04 am »

Quote from: bikey-mikey on 08 December, 2011, 02:11:00 pm

I use a Technet 5000 m'amp rechargable, as talked about elsewhere on here - one of these gives me an extra 30 hours on my Garmin 705.,

(I have three so could easily do a Lejog without needing to recharge)

Sure they cost a bit, but they don't weigh much, and they seem to last forever.

As a bonus they have an array of tips, so they can also charge my mobile, my iPod, my Kindle, etc etc

Hi,
Would that be one of these?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dual-Port-Universal-Incredible-Blackberry-Christmas/dp/B000NDQ92W

JohnT

bikey-mikey · « **Reply #8 on:** 12 December, 2011, 12:35:34 pm »

Quote from: JohnT on 09 December, 2011, 08:23:04 am

Quote from: bikey-mikey on 08 December, 2011, 02:11:00 pm
I use a Technet 5000 m'amp rechargable, as talked about elsewhere on here - one of these gives me an extra 30 hours on my Garmin 705.,

(I have three so could easily do a Lejog without needing to recharge)

Sure they cost a bit, but they don't weigh much, and they seem to last forever.

As a bonus they have an array of tips, so they can also charge my mobile, my iPod, my Kindle, etc etc

Hi,
Would that be one of these?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dual-Port-Universal-Incredible-Blackberry-Christmas/dp/B000NDQ92W

JohnT

Yep, that's the beasty - some have a spiral wound connecting cable and some a straight harder one, but I have used both successfully.

When you put them on recharge in a hotel room overnight they flash blue on and off, slowly, which I find very sleep inducing

Old Git · « **Reply #9 on:** 12 December, 2011, 06:11:40 pm »

Thanks.... One ordered

Bunker22 · « **Reply #10 on:** 04 February, 2012, 12:44:13 pm »

I have an edge 705. When you use one of the external battery devices do you run the Edge on its own power source initially and then plug in the external source when you anticipate it will run out, or do you plug in the external source from the off?

TIA

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #11 on:** 04 February, 2012, 01:09:07 pm »

I tend to use the external battery and then remove it when I have fewer than 12 hours riding time left. I did it the other way round once and found that for some reason, with a flat internal battery the unit went into charge mode and wouldnt fire up (with the external plugged in). At the time it was about midnight in mid-Wales and it was snowing.

The other point to make is that if night-riding, the external can do funny things to the back light settings I have found, so I tend to have the light set on all the time but low and be comfortable in the knowledge that the ext battery can provide for this for many hours

bikey-mikey · « **Reply #12 on:** 04 February, 2012, 05:12:30 pm »

My 705 went a bit funny a couple of times, including dropping its backlight when I was in the middle of nowhere several hours into darkness, so I had to buy a new unit - I chose the 800...

Of course the 705 has not gone wrong for a moment since, (and the backlight, errr came back...) and as I was doing DIYxGPS and didn't want to go through the "oh sh*t, I've f*ck*d that ride up" phase, I chose to run BOTH of the units on my handlebars at the same time...

I kept the 705 on charge all the day, until the 800 was saying that it's battery was just about gone, then switched over, which has worked on about five occasions...

Incidentally, the two units are chalk and cheese, and record different distances, climbing, speeds etc, and though not a lot different, it is still enough to make me realise that my old line of "I've got a gps so my distance must be right" was complete innocent b*ll*x

Feline · « **Reply #13 on:** 04 February, 2012, 05:30:20 pm »

I have occasionally had to turn the backlight back on when turning external power on/off on the 705, this is really not a problem on the settings menu if you can actually see what you are doing to turn it back on again. Once had to deploy my head torch for this purpose. It is worth memorisng the key presses to go into settings and turn up the backlight so you can do it in the dark

To be fair I have used it for hundreds of hours and this has only happened a few times.

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #14 on:** 04 February, 2012, 07:24:23 pm »

You don't need to go into settings.

Just hit the power button and it brings up a slider that you control with the joystick.

Feline · « **Reply #15 on:** 04 February, 2012, 07:30:54 pm »

Quote from: Hot Flatus on 04 February, 2012, 07:24:23 pm

You don't need to go into settings.

Just hit the power button and it brings up a slider that you control with the joystick.

Ah thanks, I knew there was a shortcut somewhere but CBA to find the manual

Bunker22 · « **Reply #16 on:** 05 February, 2012, 10:24:58 am »

Funny... I have had my 705 on the external iEP380 battery pack for the last 24 hours to see how long it runs for. After reading the above posts I thought I would see if the backlight function worked still... it didn't!!. I unplugged the battery and the 705 still would not allow the display to brighten. I turned the 705 off, restarted it and the backlight worked, plugged in the battery pack...and the backlight still works now!!

Don't know whats going on now!!

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #17 on:** 05 February, 2012, 10:30:00 am »

Nor do I, but after using ext batteries for 3 years I've got used to the idiosyncrasies. Only once (BCM 2010) has it really thrown me where it kept causing the 705 to crash. Just as well I knew the way.

αdαmsκι · « **Reply #18 on:** 05 February, 2012, 10:47:17 am »

Quote from: Hot Flatus on 05 February, 2012, 10:30:00 am

Only once (BCM 2010) has it really thrown me where it kept causing the 705 to crash. Just as well I knew the way.

Probably caused by the DARKNESS.

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #19 on:** 05 February, 2012, 11:23:04 am »

It was quite a way before the DARKNESS. In fact it was heading south near Waunfaur at the same point as we came across Tewdric, LWaB and a few others heading north

bikey-mikey · « **Reply #20 on:** 06 February, 2012, 08:27:13 pm »

Quote from: Hot Flatus on 04 February, 2012, 07:24:23 pm

You don't need to go into settings.

Just hit the power button and it brings up a slider that you control with the joystick.

That's how I am used to doing it, however viewing with my front light, I got the slider menu, toggled it up to full light with the joystick, selected it, and still got no light - this happened once before, many moons ago, pre-audax even, BUT after a full charge and being turned off for a while, it all came back to normal..

MattH · « **Reply #21 on:** 08 February, 2012, 11:54:31 am »

Quote from: bunker22 on 04 February, 2012, 12:44:13 pm

I have an edge 705. When you use one of the external battery devices do you run the Edge on its own power source initially and then plug in the external source when you anticipate it will run out, or do you plug in the external source from the off?

Its best to start off using the external pack - otherwise you'll be using the external pack to both power the unit and charge the batteries. That charging is an inefficient use of your available power; rather than just doing a single conversion from chemical to electrical, you do chemical (external pack)-electrical-chemical(internal battery)-electrical (assuming you then use the internal battery again once it is charged). Every conversion throws away energy, so you want to minimise them.

I used to try to only charge in dry weather (difficult on Welsh rides!), but have discovered that with the 705 mounted horizontally on either my stem or tribars the power socket is actually pretty well protected and doesn't get damp, let alone wet, so am now happy powering externally all the time.