La Crosse Technology BC700 Alpha Power Battery Charger

This charger does it all, and better than anything else on the market. It provides an exceptionally controlled and monitored charge utilizing microprocesser technology; measures actual individual battery capacity; rejuvenates ni-cad batteries and identifies those beyond restoration; and, automatically adjusts to a safe trickle charge as batteries reach full capacity.

I considered the BC900 which provides a maximum 1000ma charge rate versus the BC700's 700ma. However, the customer feedback on the BC900 indicated about 10% of customers experienced serious problems, especially fire hazard type failures. It seems to be associated with the 1000ma high-charge rate feature. There were no reports of fire hazard experiences with the BC700 nor were there any feedback scores as low as the BC900. Since I have no need nor desire to charge batteries at that rate, the BC700 seemed to fit the bill.

As a further safety precaution against fire hazards, I have deliberately operated this unit virtually continuously for over a month (yes, in a safe place) between 200ma and 500ma and observed only a slight increase in operating temperature being only mildly warm to the touch. In sum, the unit has operated flawlessly. I can truly recommend it without any reservations.

I am a medium to heavy user of AA & AAA rechargeable cells and also an early adopter - started with 300mah Panny NiCds many years ago - I remember the excitement when 450mah versions were released! :-) Over the years I graduated through the technologies and was using Sanyo NiMH 2500mah cells till I recently discovered Eneloops - they are simply amazing! Now back to the charger review - I have always been an advocate of chargers that have individual charging channels / circuits and can charge 1,2,3 or 4 cells individually. My earlier charger was a Panasonic BQ390-A that still works very well and is very portable. However, faster & adjustable rate charging currents, battery reconditioning, testing etc. drew me to the BC700.

I did not consider the BC900 as the 8 cells bundled with the package were of no use to me (I have enough to last many years) and the 1.8A charging current capability on the BC 900 is something that I would never use.

Amazon was great in it's order processing - as always. I received the charger on schedule. The quick user guide printed on the back of the charger package is a really nice touch. I was eager to test the unit and unpacked and set it up. And that is when I noticed that -ve tab for the AA cell in the 3rd channel was too far behind to connect with the cell. After looking at it closely, I figured that the tab was bent backwards - at least that is what it looked like - very dissapointing for a brand new unit that was packed so well! This is the only reason that I cannot give this Charger a better rating - poor manufacturing processes and very poor quality control!

Having never seen the innards of an intelligent charger, curiosity got the better of me and I decided to try and fix it myself. On dismantling the unit completely and removing the PCB - I discovered that the tab was indeed bent back and had not engaged with the plastic channels on the top of the case that hold these tabs in place when the PCB is inserted. After some delicate work with a needle nose pliers the tab was straight once again and it engaged with the channel.

I must warn others toying with the idea of opening their units - DO NOT TRY IT unless your unit is out of warranty AND you really have a need to AND you are a very capable and advanced electronics hobbyist - putting the BC700 back together is a very complex task - especially aligning the LCD panel contacts with the contacts on the main PCB - if that gets spoilt, the LCD display will be dead and so will the charger!

In my case I managed to put it all back together again and the charger works perfectly now. It is very easy and intuitive to use and does everything that it is supposed to. I prefer the 500mah charge rate and it charges 4 AA Eneloops in a little over 4 hrs.

So this is a happy ending to the story/review. As mentioned earlier, my only concern is with the Manufacturing and QC processes followed by La Crosse - it was indeed very disappointing to see such a basic (and visible) flaw in a brand new unit! It makes one wonder whether there are any other flaws that have not been noticed till now ... I guess time will tell ...

I got my unit during a daily deal. I had been looking at this and it's big brother for the testing and refresh capabilities, I was not disappointed. If for nothing more than to refresh the battery this unit is well worth the money. It continually charges and discharges until the battery no longer gains amperage. I have "retired" a lot of batteries after getting this unit and I get less complaints from the family that the batteries don't hold up. After years of buying batteries its hard to tell which ones still maintain charge and which ones don't. BC700 to the rescue, it refreshes and lets me determine when to pitch the battery. Great product!
PS It also lets you know who is the really good rechargeable on the market. I have bought some "cheaper" rechargeable and discovered they don't measure up to the amp rating on the package, this helps me not purchase that brand again thinking I was saving money.

Trying to decide between this La Crosse model BC-700, or La Crosse model BC-900? It sounds logical that the higher model La Crosse BC-900 would be the newest model than this BC-700, but that is not true. In truth, this BC-700 is the newest model, and the BC-900 is an older model. Found this out after much Internet research. (I guess this BC-700 is named "700" because it has three charging option rates of 200, 500 and 700 MAH, and its maximum charging rate is "700" MAH. In contrast the older BC-900 has five charging rates, including these three 200, 500, 700 MAH, and has two more charging rates of 1000 and 1800 MAH.)

(Also, first Amazon review of this newer BC-700 is dated August 2007, of its about 30 Amazon reviews. Whereas, the first Amazon review of older BC-900 is dated February 2005, of its about 400 Amazon reviews.)

I decided to buy this latest and newest La Crosse BC-700, instead of the older La Crosse BC-900. This BC-700 charger is working very well and stays very cool and does not overheat, and my NiMH batteries stays cool while charging at the slow default 200 MAH rate.

While researching Eneloop batteries, I saw this La Crosse BC-700, and the BC-900 battery chargers (and also the Maha MH-C9000 battery charger). I initially ordered the La Crosse BC-900 because BC-900 sounded logical to be newer, and this BC-700 sounded logical to be the older. But after much Internet research, I found out that this BC-700 was newer, and the BC-900 was older, and I had time to cancel the older BC-900. Also, I found out that the older BC-900 has people writing about previous problems with burning or near-accidents, probably caused by the high end charge rates of 1000 MAH and 1800 MAH of the older BC-900. Also, the older BC-900 problems of newer and older hardware firmware v.32, v.33, v.34 internal chips, and other problems. I believe La Crosse engineers had good and safety reasons to make this newer BC-700, and eliminating the higher 1000 MAH and 1800 MAH charge rates of the older BC-900. I have stopped using my old "fast" chargers (such as my Energizer PS4 1-hour "fast" charger), and will only charge my new Eneloop batteries using the Eneloop slow chargers, or the low charging rate of this newer La Cross BC-700. (The current BC-900 version is v.35, and I believe the mentioned BC-900 problems are now resolved and are history, and no longer an issue with the current version BC-900. But I still prefer this newer BC-700.)

FYI, when I plug in the AC adapter to this BC-700, the following numbers appear in each of the 4 LCD windows slots (and disappears after a few seconds):
Slot #1: 84.
Slot #2: 83.
Slot #3: 700. (Probably stands for BC-"700".)
Slot #4: 36. (Maybe this is the firmware chip version "3.6" ?)

Right now I like using this BC-700 regular "Charge" at 200 MAH mode. And I like using the "Test" mode to label and sort out my good and bad NiMH batteries. Also, I do not need the "free" items of the older BC-900 of the "free" carry case, nor the "free" NiMH batteries (since I converted to the Eneloop NiMh batteries).

Update Oct 2008:
My BC-700 is still working well and keeps cool and does not overheat, at my preferred default 200 MAH charge rate, for maximum NiMH battery life. I recommend this BC-700 which is the newest model and chip version, instead of the older BC-900.

I was tired of the POS Wal-Mart chargers and thought this might be the reason for my short charge life in my digital camera. Decided to invest in a really good quality charger and batteries (Eneloops).
I'm pretty sure its a good charger but I find it has so many options and settings that I'm lost. I actually READ THE MANUAL!!! If I can learn how to set it for a manual recharge that may be all I need. It appears to be of good quality and features.