rechargeable batteries for Wii controllers

kevin65

I bought some replacement rechargeable AAA batteries to replace the old ones in my kids Wii controllers but they won't work. The only difference in the original ones are 600 mAh and the new ones are 850 mAh.

There is 600 mAh AAA rechargeable batteries in the DECT phone so I tried these in the Wii controller and they work fine. The new batteries work fine in the DECT handset. I'm confused.

Avns1s

Is there anything on them that prevents the contacts making a good connection. All the wii is aware of is the voltage. It cannot determine the capacity of the batteries.

kevin65

All contacts seem fine as the batteries from the DECT phone worked fine, the light went on the in Wii docking indicating that it was charging and the controller itself switched on fine. With the 850 mAh batteries, neither works.

Avns1s

What I was thinking was that very occasionally, you might find the shoulder of the battery might be just a tad (fraction of a mm) higher than normal and perhaps this is keeping the contact of the wii controller off the actual terminal of the battery. If it's not something like that, I am stumped!!

Star Lord

I know that when the Wii first came out, people had lots of problems with batteries under 2500 mAh. I use some of the Duracell 2500 rechargables myself and they work great.

kevin65

Thanks for the feedback guys. It might be some sort of battery size issue affecting proper contact alright. I have a digital callipers so I'll check if there is any difference in size. I guess I could just put the new batteries into the DECT handsets and use the batteries from them in the Wii controllers.

I really don't see how the mAh rating could affect anything. To me it's like changing a 50Ah car battery for a 55Ah or 60Ah battery. The only difference is one holds more energy than the other and will last longer.

Banjo

The Wiimote takes AAs... that could be your issue
In general NiMH batteries (rechargeables) deliver a lower voltage than standard Alkaline batteries; Some devices are more sensitive to this than others and cheap rechargeables tend to be less forgiving. If you have a non-Nintendo supplied Wiimote, that complicates things even more (since most people reporting "this battery works in my wiimote" are not talking about your wiimote!). I've never had any issues with Duracell (1700 mAh i think), Hahnel (2850 mAh) or Sanyo (2100 or so). Think I had some Ross ones in there too at some point.

Incidentally, all rechargeables have a tendency to lose charge over time even when not in use - if you find you keep picking up your WiiMote after a few idle weeks and finding you have 1 charge led left, get yourself some Eneloops - they're rechargeable batteries that hold their charge for fricking ages, deliver reasonable power, are competitively priced and even match the Wii colour scheme

kevin65

Banjo wrote: »

The Wiimote takes AAs... that could be your issue
In general NiMH batteries (rechargeables) deliver a lower voltage than standard Alkaline batteries; Some devices are more sensitive to this than others and cheap rechargeables tend to be less forgiving. If you have a non-Nintendo supplied Wiimote, that complicates things even more (since most people reporting "this battery works in my wiimote" are not talking about your wiimote!). I've never had any issues with Duracell (1700 mAh i think), Hahnel (2850 mAh) or Sanyo (2100 or so). Think I had some Ross ones in there too at some point.

Incidentally, all rechargeables have a tendency to lose charge over time even when not in use - if you find you keep picking up your WiiMote after a few idle weeks and finding you have 1 charge led left, get yourself some Eneloops - they're rechargeable batteries that hold their charge for fricking ages, deliver reasonable power, are competitively priced and even match the Wii colour scheme

Yes, wii remotes take AA size batteries but the rechargeable battery pack takes AAA size batteries, they sit inside AA size sleeves in the pack that fits in back of controller.

Talisman

We've been using cheap rechargeable batteries from 7dayshop.com for years without issue. The AA size are 2900 mAh and the AAA are 1100 mAh.

kevin65

I checked the size of the batteries I bought and there is a slight difference at the positive side, the casing is a little higher, so this might be the problem. Bloody Argos :-(

I'll try the 7dayshop.com for replacements, thanks.

Charlie19

Iam back using AA Duracell because the smaller AAA batteries stopped taking a charge. What AAA Batteries could I buy too take the charge. Normal Batteries don't last any time.

Banjo

I use these in my Wiimote :
http://www.amazon.co.uk/1x8-Sanyo-Eneloop-Mignon-2000/dp/B00406W0RQ/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1332327244&sr=8-3
and also as my spares for my camera - they aren't the most powerful batteries out there but they last longer than alkaline AAs and they don't lose as much of their charge over time as regular rechargeables when sitting idle. If you play your Wii every day then this is maybe not so important to you but I'm an irregular user of the wiimote and I don't want to leave it constantly sitting on a charging stand. They do them in AAA as well, by the way.