Steve Campbell
Elite Veteran
Location: Baton Rouge, LA
| It is a battery maintenance device. To call it simply a charger would be like calling Hillary Douchebag Klinton a liberal- IOW, a gross understatement. Those that have A4s swear by them; others swear at them, due to the fact that they are very difficult to obtain.
Short version is that this device will do anything to a battery that needs doing. It's one major drawback is a limit of one amp output. This means that if you want to quick-charge a big battery, or several batteries at once (the A4 will process four batteries at a time) it's going to take a while. In today's atmosphere of hurry up, do it NOW, etc., the instant gratification types whose numbers seem to grow daily are not happy with an Alpha 4.
In fact, if you only have one or two models, and feel the need to charge your batteries at the field- either because the "big dogs" do it, or you fly more than 3-4 flights per model per session- then an A4 is probably not the thing for you. I have used mine in the field on the rare occasion when I needed a quick charge, and it worked just fine. But it doesn't do it as quickly as other chargers, and that annoys some people.
Other than to say I don't think it is such a great idea, I won't go into the ins and outs of quick-charging rx batteries. But a lot of folks demand this, and one of the less-capable one or two port chargers, such as the Sirius or Super Nova, are just the ticket for them. These are good products that work as advertised. They just don't have the incredible flexibility of the Alpha 4.
I always take at least two models to the field. Along with a transmitter, and flight box battery and glow igniter that need periodic charging, I personally want something which will handle all of that at once. I've been using the A4 for over five years, and I haven't seen anything yet that comes close to it's overall excellence and broad flexibility.
Yeah, it's expensive ($250). And you must get in line for one. But, with the exception of rapid quick-charging, it's the only (and last) battery "charger" you'll ever need. I do know some guys who have an A4 at home and use one of the "quickies" at the field. If I felt the need to do a lot of quick-charging, I would get a Sirius myself. But I'm kinder to my batteries...
Steve |
