AAA Lithium vs AAA Alkaline vs AAA NIMH?

[Huck50]

Which pair of these AAA's would you use in your pen type laser pointer @ 5mW.....? 3.7volt Lithiums,3.5 volt Alkalines,or 3.2 volt rechargeable NIMH and why? Thanks,Huck50

 

[pschlosser]

I use AAA NiMH batteries in many of my pen lasers, because I am too cheap to run those on disposables. But I've experimented with a single 10440. I don't have an LPM to measure, but I cannot really see the different between the two. But I suspect there is greater output power with the single 10440 versus two NiMH.

 

[ENX]

In my pens, I have used the rechargeable 1.2v AAAs, but have noticed a little more power from standard 1.5v disposables. Some green modules are only rated for 3 volts, so a single 10440 would be too much and could damage the driver or diode. If you have a 3v module, you can use a diode in line with the battery to reduce the voltage. Some higher powered green modules specify 3.7 - 4.2v. These are fine to use 10440.

The li-ions are 10440 and run 3.7 to 4.2 volts, Alkaline AAA are 1.5 volts each, and most AAA NIMH rechargeable batteries are 1.2 volts each.

If the pen says 2 X AAA and is only 5mW, you should go with 2 AAA Alkaline batteries at 1.5v each.