How  to buy batteries and chargers?

You’ve just entered your hotel room; your cell phone and camera are nearly dead. You take out your battery chargers from your travel bag and try to plug them into the hotel sockets, only to realize they won’t work in the country you’ve just landed in! To avoid being caught in a situation like this, be careful while choosing your battery chargers.

Before you buy batteries and chargers, make a list of all your needs and requirements.

Some electronic equipments require specific chargers, which are generally provided by the manufacturers.

Ensure that the charger is compatible with your battery, while NiMh chargers can work with both NiCad and NiMh batteries, NiCad chargers work only with NiCad batteries. For Li-ion batteries you will have to buy a compatible Li-ion charger.

In case your electronic device uses only alkaline batteries, look for batteries that last longer. Oxy alkaline batteries generally last up to 20% longer than the conventional ones.

If you travel abroad frequently, you must ensure that your battery charger has universal voltage, (dock and go chargers have that feature). A charger which comes packed with international power plugs would be even better.

For cell phones, it is advisable to buy a car charger in addition to your conventional charger, especially if you are always on the move.
It is also important to consider the amount of time that a battery charger takes to charge a battery.  A cheap charger which takes a long time may not even be worth the money you spend on it. 

Before buying a charger you should also check if it has the ability to detect when the batteries are fully charged, so that it can switch off on its own. A battery charger which is not equipped with this feature may eventually shorten the battery life.

You must of course compare prices, but do not base your decision on just the price. You must ensure that the charger has all the features you need before deciding to purchase it.