Rechargeable batteries have come a long way since the ancient times of using Ni-Cad (nickel cadmium) batteries. Actually some are still being manufactured and used today. Since then we’ve moved onto lithium ion (Li-ion) after a period of Ni-Mh batteries. Lithium ion batteries still have a good way to go in terms of improvement although there are already new advancements in battery chemistry such as Li-po batteries.
Not too long ago 5.0 amp hour lithium ion batteries were announced and made their debut here in the USA. While we bask in the 5.0 ambience, those in europe can enjoy even higher capacities of 6.0 ah. Metabo is one of those that has made larger capacity batteries than 5.o with thier new 6.2 amp hour batteries. They offer several larger sizes with “fat” pack batteries of 5.5 and 6.2 ah and a compact yet high capacity 3.1 ah battery. We all knew 6.0 amp hour capacity batteries where coming but what makes these new batteries interesting are the new LiHD designation.
These new LiHD batteries are said to have 67% more power, 87% longer run time and 100% longer service life because according to Metabo, these new batteries run longer and thus require recharging less often. There’s more than just adding extra capacity as these new battery packs also have a completely new electromechanical design with stronger conductors, leading to an increase in the accessible power output which results in more usable energy. The increased service life besides less frequent recharging is also due to lower heat build up as the batteries are used. I’ve seen this technology on other high capacity batteries such as Bosch’s 5.0 ah batteries with “coolpack” design and Milwaukee’s XC 5.0 ah batteries which both offer lower operating temperatures with reduced heat build up compared to previous smaller capacity batteries.
The increased runtime (increased amp hour capacity) is due to the use of higher quality materials such as silver and copper in combination with stronger conductors which this permits a more efficient energy flow and and increase in active cell material. Users don’t have to worry about a new battery platform with new tools designed exclusively for the new batteries as the new LiHD batteries are 100% compatible with the current Metabo 18V tools. These new 18V LiHD batteries also come in a 36V flavor as well.
My thoughts: at first I viewed the new LiHD as a whole new battery chemistry, although the more I dug deeper I couldn’t find any info to prove it was a new battery chemistry, or the next leap in batttery technology. Instead it looks to be nothing more than the current Lithium Ion battery technology that we’re currently using at the moment with higher capacities along with a few improvements such as Metabo’s proprietary battery technology built into the housing. The improvements seem same as other manufaturer’s high capacity batteries such as those from Bosch and Milwaukee. I view the new LiHD designation as their own name to to separate themselves from the rest such as how Bosch use “EC”, DeWalt use “XR” (here in the USA), and Milwaukee use the term “Fuel” to make their brushless products stand out from the rest. Another better comparison is how they call HDTV’s after the resolution was improved upon the aging VGA format on TV to HD high definition or how SD memory cards started out as SD cards, then when the capacities got bigger, they slapped the SDHC label on them which stood for SD high capacity, and now SDXC which stands for SD extra capacity. So we can look ath these new batteries as lithium ion HD, not high definition but high density. On the positive side, these new LiHD higher capacity batteries will open up new grounds for more demanding power hungry power tools that simply were not possible before due lower battery capacities.
A big thanks to Tool Craze Facebook follower known as Bernd Bernd for bringing this to my attention!
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