What is the difference between nimh and mah batteries

NiMH and mAh are both terms that are most frequently used with batteries, specifically rechargeable batteries. Rechargeable batteries have become an excellent an economical alternative to using standard single use batteries, as they can be recharged up to times before needing replacement. As oppose to single use batteries, which are useless once depleted and just add to the landfills. There are many types of rechargeable batteries. One of these types is the NiMH batteries, which stands for nickel—metal hydride battery.

An area where you should be concerned is the charger that you would use with your batteries. Different types of batteries are charged in different manners, so it is not advisable to use a NiCd battery charger to charge NiMH batteries and vice versa. You should always see to it that you have the right kind of charger for your battery. In this regard also, mAH is not a major concern since chargers are capable of charging any battery capacity.

Something you need to pay attention to though is pairing batteries together. Most chargers charge batteries in pairs because they are also commonly used in pairs. It is advisable that you keep batteries pairings constant so that they both are always in the same state.

Avoid pairing batteries that do not have the same capacity mAH with a mAH as this will result in one battery being spent faster than the other one and can lead to damage. Common uses: Some popular applications of NiCAD batteries are toys, emergency lighting, medical equipment, commercial and industrial products, electric razors, two-way radios, power tools, and more.

NiMH batteries are a much more modern phenomenon. Research and development began at the Battelle-Geneva Research Center in , and was satisfactorily completed in They can be charged up to times and last longer than alkaline or NiCd batteries. One set of relatively inexpensive NiMH rechargeable batteries can save you from buying thousands if throwaway alkaline batteries. The mAh capacity rating refers to the storage capacity available for a particular battery.

A battery with a capacity rating of mAh could deliver a current of mA for one hour. Higher mAh ratings for the same battery type will generally mean longer run times. This does not apply when comparing different types of batteries. This means that you may not be able to predict how long your electronic device will run just by looking at the capacity rating of a battery.

When powering high drain electronic devices like digital cameras, computer peripherals, or portable music players, an alkaline battery will only deliver a small fraction of its rated capacity. But when it comes to actually powering an electronic device like a digital camera, the NiMH batteries will often run the device for three or four times a long.

Alkaline batteries have a high rated capacity, but they can only deliver their full capacity if the power is used slowly.