EEVblog #751 - How To Debunk A Product (The Batteriser)

[Wytnucls]

They cannot ship anything until they find some excuses for a reduced output (~200mA) for their AA sleeve. Even then, that would come at a huge cost, with little prospect of further orders, bankrupting Batteroo Inc anyway. So I think they will fold shortly, holding on to as much cash as legally possible.
What I find the most bizarre in this business, is that a venture capital firm thought it was a good idea to fund such an evidently flawed product.

[Muttley Snickers]

I ate the chips......

[EEVblog]

The tin foil hat version is that they deliberately made sure the name was similar to Energizer AND they showed Energizer brand batteries in their demos to make sure they would be sued which gives them the out without the obvious fraud.

Why bother in the first place, then?  That would make no sense...

Exactly. As usual, tin foil hat ideas are just that.

No, they were planning on making money, otherwise they wouldn't have started this ridiculous venture in the first place.  I'm with those that think they were hoping to sell the whole concept and company to some sucker by whipping up a bunch of hoopla and making more money than they spent generating said hoopla.

Batteroo was formed just after Bob got the arse from his former employer. He was obviously looking for a new company to build. And almost always, people like this dream about flipping the company for a huge pay day.

It's just not likely to work out that way for them.... 

No company would dare touch them. Almost certainly failed patents and losing their trademark. The only out is to change their name, ship a "working" product and get that magical Walmart/K-Mart order before the VC's pull the plug on funding. But even then a prospective company looking to buy would want to see continued sales figures. The killer is those patents though, they relied on those for the company to be worth something.

[Galenbo]

If I really wanted to I could sue Bob right now for libel for stating to a national newspaper ... that I am paid by Duracell...

Your other boss, Energizer, already sues them :-)

[Godzil]

I ate the chips......

Hey, this is a popcorn place. Find another forum for chips eaters!   

You misunderstood, he is the one that ate the production of the 1.5A chip that bater-ooly is waiting from the China distributor!

[miguelvp]

I wonder how the new ECO Usbcell LiPo USB rechargeable battery at CES is going to affect their campaign.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/3020072/hardware/the-eco-usbcell-is-the-slickest-rechargeable-aa-battery-youve-ever-seen.html

4 batteries for $20, although at best buy they are about $30 for the 4 pack.

Didn't look at the specs in detail yet, but they are real and already available.

AA specs pulled from Best Buy page
500 charging cyles.
1040 milliampere hours
UL Listed
1.5 volts
Charging time 2 hours. (probably to 90%)

[drussell]

Didn't look at the specs in detail yet, but they are real and already available.
...
1040 milliampere hours

So, that's less than half of the capacity of a typical low-grade NiMH AA cell.... 

Good ones are more like 2500-3000 mAh per cell.  Not exactly high capacity when you give up a good portion of your cell volume for a USB type A connector and charging circuitry.  A novel idea, perhaps, but not really a very good capacity spec. for the "ease of charging" tradeoff.

[miguelvp]

Yup, no match for an Eneloop

the AAA is about 450 mAh which is at the low end of NiMH as well.

The only thing I can see is that this is convenient as you stated because you don't have to hunt for your charger, just plug it on some USB port.

They are quoting 500 charges but is a LiPo so I wonder if they are being conservative?

But apparently they did make an impact at CES (well by the media present there)

[drussell]

But apparently they did make an impact at CES (well by the media present there)

You mean that "media", those same kind of folks who blindly hyped the Batteriser as the greatest thing since sliced bread without a second though or any kind of critical analysis or even rational thinking whatsoever? 

I will admit that this product is at least, what, 8X better thought out than a Batteriser but, to put it bluntly, the media wonders why people (well, at least those with a smidgen more awareness than the average Joe) don't trust pretty much anything they say without some kind of pause and retrospective or critical anaylsys... 

[free_electron]

They do have a lot of guts to promote their product with medicial / life support devices like "heart monitors" and "emergency equipment" 

Given how many devices say "This is NOT for use in life-saving medical equipment and may not be used in such." as a CYA measure, I'm amazed they'd make that claim. If you promote something for use in medical devices the FDA is going to want to have a chat with you. And if it ever fails...

1300 mA continuous and 4500 transient ?!?!? with a booster ? what do they suck from that battery ? and what is the coil current in that thing ?  somoebody has been eating mushrooms ( or rather, smoked them )

[miguelvp]

But apparently they did make an impact at CES (well by the media present there)

You mean that "media", those same kind of folks who blindly hyped the Batteriser as the greatest thing since sliced bread without a second though or any kind of critical analysis or even rational thinking whatsoever? 

I will admit that this product is at least, what, 8X better thought out than a Batteriser but, to put it bluntly, the media wonders why people (well, at least those with a smidgen more awareness than the average Joe) don't trust pretty much anything they say without some kind of pause and retrospective or critical anaylsys... 

Exactly why I mentioned in parenthesis that it was the media hyping it

Eneloops can be charge 500 cycles as well and some versions way more than that.

I guess this is the price to pay for the free internet press, real reporting is dying a slow death.

[crispy_tofu]

If I really wanted to I could sue Bob right now for libel for stating to a national newspaper (and continually via their official Facebook page, and also their "fan page") that I am paid by Duracell.

Maybe they work for Duracell, what with this battery on their home page that looks vaguely familiar...

[EEVblog]

You mean that "media", those same kind of folks who blindly hyped the Batteriser as the greatest thing since sliced bread without a second though or any kind of critical analysis or even rational thinking whatsoever? 

Did a single one of the media mention that the fixed 1.5V renders every products battery gauge useless?

[drussell]

Did a single one of the media mention that the fixed 1.5V renders every products battery gauge useless?

Not that I saw, anyway...  The vast majority of media coverage read like a regurgitated press release.  The local news here even did what I would call a "newsvertisement" that sounded just like a Batteroo video! 

That's the main reason I started to really follow this whole debacle.  I couldn't believe they would blindly spout this kind of garbage without a second thought and present it as NEWS!  I still can't wait for them all to have to eat their words.

The Sydney Morning Herald article is really one of the only ones that was even a little bit critical of their claims.

[Kalvin]

You mean that "media", those same kind of folks who blindly hyped the Batteriser as the greatest thing since sliced bread without a second though or any kind of critical analysis or even rational thinking whatsoever? 

Did a single one of the media mention that the fixed 1.5V renders every products battery gauge useless?

No, the journalists stopped thinking at the very moment they saw the battery gauge jumping from "empty" to "full" when the batteriser was used with an empty battery, and they really didn't understand what they actually saw and its implications. Similarly, the Batteroo is desperately looking for an investor with more money than understanding.

[mikeselectricstuff]

They do have a lot of guts to promote their product with medicial / life support devices like "heart monitors" and "emergency equipment" 

Given how many devices say "This is NOT for use in life-saving medical equipment and may not be used in such." as a CYA measure, I'm amazed they'd make that claim. If you promote something for use in medical devices the FDA is going to want to have a chat with you. And if it ever fails...

.especially as even if it shipped, and worked, it would render any battery level indicator in the equipment useless - not a good idea when it's doing something important.

[mikerj]

Anyone else see a resemblance?  Dave should be careful, he's upsetting the Batterator...

[Marcel_X]

Anyone else see a resemblance?  Dave should be careful, he's upsetting the Batterator...

Haha, well found ;-)
Or is it the Terminiser? Probably a more appropriate name 

[Howardlong]

Or is it the Terminiser? Probably a more appropriate name 

I'll Be Backeriser?

[mikerj]

Whatever the name, it's out there.  It can't be bargained with, it can't be reasoned with.  It doesn't feel pity or remorse or fear and it absolutely will not stop.

Not for a few weeks anyway.

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[Brumby]

I keep looking at this stuff - and this idea keeps bumping around in my head ... A fresh new name: Batterloser.

[SL4P]

This extended story reminds me of a certain 20th century play...
Perhaps we should rename Batteriser to 'Godot', and the Roopahvar brothers fit nicely into the main characters.

[EEVblog]

Has anyone in the IGG comments or Facebook page even mentioned the failure of the patent or Energizer Trademark dispute yet?
Even if Batteroo had the units ready to ship, and wanted to ship, they probably can't due to the Trademark dispute.
I'm surprised they haven't come out with a "we are being attacked by "big battery", here is the proof, they are tying our hands, so things are on hold until it can be sorted out" notice.
Not only is the "big battery" Trademark dispute marketing gold, it's the perfect opportunity to buy themselves as much time as they need.