1. As an AA/AAA NiMH battery charger, or
2. As an USB charger for USB-powered devices.
In battery-charger mode, the unit is a smart charger that accepts 1-4 AA/AAA cells in any combinations. The charger can be powered by either 100-240V universal AC input, or 12V DC input. This means you can also operate it from your vehicle's cigarette lighter adapter. Note that the car adapter is included in the
The charging current is 550mA for each AA/AAA cell. So it takes about 4 hours to full charge up the included 2000mAh low-self-discharge cells (which are the Duracell-equivalent of Sanyo eneloop). I consider this a good compromise between shorter charging time and longer battery lifespan. Once charging is done, the current is reduced to 25mA (actually 0-50mA pulsed at 50% duty cycle) in trickle charge mode.
One really nice feature of this charger is that it has four individual battery status indicator lights. The status light for each cell turns RED when charging, GREEN when the cell is fully charged. It will even blink if you accidentally inserted an alkaline cell.
In USB charger mode, the unit generates a regulated 5-volt supply at its USB socket. You can then connect an USB-powered device (such as IPOD charger) to this unit. Input power for this USB charger can be from one of the following sources:
1. From 100-240V universal AC input,
2. From 12V DC input (car adapter), or
3. From four AA/AAA NiMH cells in the battery compartment.
The third way is the most interesting, because in case of emergency, you can even use 4 alkaline cells to power this USB charger, in order to charge up your cell phone's battery.
I must say that this charger is really well designed. It is a great bargain even if all you need is a simple battery charger. The USB charger mode is just an extra bonus.
[Update on Oct 7, 2010]:
Duracell has discontinued the excellent CEF23 charger (at least in the US) last year. So prices for the remaining inventory have skyrocketed. The replacement produc only charges in pairs, and does not contain an USB charger.
- If you just need an inexpensive 2-cell charger that can handle individual cell, consider th
- If you need a good 4-cell charger that can operate from 12V cigarette lighter adapter, consider the
- If you need an advanced charger that can operate from 12V CLA, consider the
- If you need a good 4-cell charger that can operate from 12V CLA _and_ can power an USB port using internal batteries... Sorry! Your best hope is to look for an international version of CEF23, such as the (AU=Australia)
[Update on Dec 1, 2010]
Just in case anyone is still interested in this charger: I recently found out that its USB port is capable of supplying 1000mA output current - even though the spec says 500mA only. I discovered this by accident when using it as a portable recharger for myI've done a lot of research on batteries and chargers, and I have to say I'm impressed with this charger. I am a photographer, and my fancy flashes are only as good as the batteries they use. Other reviews have already stated the high points: gentle charge rate (550 mA is great); individual charging of batteries (absolutely vital); intelligent shutoff (does not overcharge). On top of these, it runs off of 12V and any AC wall power in the world (120-240V), and it charges USB devices. It also will charge a USB device off of 4 charged batteries. It's a dream come true.
One thing to note: You cannot charge batteries AND charge a USB device at the same time. You have to pick one or the other. But this is a very minor issue for something so functional, portable, and inexpensive.
Assuming it doesn't die in two months, this is the best consumer charger that is widely available. (I also have the Maha C-9000, which I love, but is not for the faint of heart. The Maha C401FS is also very good.)
If you're even considering buying one of those 15-minute chargers, PLEASE don't. It will destroy your batteries by cooking them at a high temperature. Buy this one, instead. Just get an extra set of batteries to swap out while the others are charging, if you need the quick turnaround. First, a note on what's included: 2AA, 2AAA, a charger, and a car adaptor. It does not come with a usb cable. You can see the customer photos I uploaded.
As noted by others, these batteries are "highly similar" if not identical to Eneloops. So the batteries are great.
For AA, I like the charger included in this kit more than the one in this for two reasons:
1. Each slot has its own individual indicator so you know which battery is done. Equally importantly, you can detect bad batteries in a set. Say you always use four as a set but one suddenly finishes charging a lot earlier than the other three, it's time for testing. (For testing, I use
2. It charges faster, at 550mA, so the 2000mAh AA batteries charge in about four hours.
Unfortunately 500mA is also how it charges AAA batteries. Contrast this to the Eneloop charger in the kit above: 300mA for AA and 160mA for AAA. We see that the Eneloop charger is a lot more gentle for AAA. (I won't charge my AAA in this Duracell charger.) There are three virtues in this Duracell charger:
1. It can charge any AA and AAA combination of batteries, unlike inferior chargers that must charge in pairs.
2. This is a smart charger that will stop charging once the correct voltage has been reached, thus preventing over-charging.
3. Because of the built-in USB port, it can also become a charger of small electronics such as MP3 players, digital cameras, cellphones, etc.
CEF23DX4N is the U.S. version which comes with 2 AA and 2 AAA rechargeable batteries. It costs $39.99. Its plug is foldable, but even in the retracted position, it still protrudes considerably from the base of the charger unit to make placing it evenly on a flat surface not possible. The U.S. version also comes with a car adapter cable.
CEF23AU is the Australian version which comes with 4 AA rechargeable batteries. It costs $18.89. The capacity of each AA battery is 2000 mAh.
The difference is in the shape of the plug, but a small converter is included with CEF23AU, so you can plug it into any 120V U.S. wall socket.
The U.S. version is less bulky than the Australian version with the converter attached, but I bought the Australian version because of its less than half of the U.S. version price.
In both country versions, the electrical plug base is detachable to make the whole unit more manageable when used as a USB charger.
Because of the substantial charger plug protrusion, I'd suggest plugging it in a wall socket (where the two plug blades are vertically oriented), rather than a horizontal power strip, so that the plug will stay in place while the batteries are being charged. As a bit of a technological nomad, I am always on the lookout for quality gear that'll lighten my load. When I realized that my old AA charger was just eating my batteries, overcharging them and shortening their life, I immediately started out the search for a "smart" charger -- one that would charge my batteries without destroying them.
I searched high and low, but there was nothing currently on the market that I particularly liked. Sure, they were compact, and inexpensive, but none of them seemed to be very sturdy, or to have any redeeming features beyond "battery charger."
It was then that I discovered this Duracell charger. It had just recently been discontinued, but folks around the internet were raving about it. I managed, through searching, to find a seller that still carried the CEF23DX4N charger, and immediately pounced on it, and I'm glad I did.
This charger is one of the best devices I've owned. Not only does it charge AA and AAA batteries, stopping when they're fully charged, and using a healthy charge profile for them, but it has a USB port on the bottom of it for charging whatever USB-chargeable device you have. In addition to the flip-down plug on the back (no prongs sticking out in my bag, and no losing detachable things) it has a socket for the included 12v cigarette lighter charger. There aren't many places you can't use this device, with both 12v and 120vAC input (might be 100-250v operating range, haven't looked in a while.)
The real clincher-feature for me though, was the second function of the USB port. With four fully charged AAs installed, you can plug a device into the USB port, and press a button on the charger, and it'll use the juice from the batteries plugged into it to supply the USB port, turning the charger into a portable USB battery pack as well!
The build quality is robust, it's well designed, attractive, and made of quality materials. The included batteries are excellent as well, and this charger will charge any brand of NiMH battery that I've thrown at it (the ones that are "pre charged" rechargeable are the ones to shop for)
There are a few disadvantages to this though, but the good far outweighs the bad. Here's what I've found so far:
1) Charge batteries, OR USB device. One or the other, it won't charge both simultaneously.
2) USB port only seems to supply 500mA power, which is fine and good, just makes for slow charging. I'll take that over nothing at all.
3) Unit is a little chubby. It's wide and thick, and there's a bulge on the back the prongs fold in to. A lot bigger than the el-cheapo chargers I'd been using before.
4) 12v cable is a pain in the butt to deal with. This is the nature of the beast, but I wish they would've included some way to snap the cigarette lighter adapter into the case of the charger itself. As big as it is, there was probably some extra room inside to do so.
Overall though, this is a fantastic charger, and if you can still find them available, go for one. I'm sad that these were discontinued by Duracell, and hope they bring something similar, but improved, back in the future. I'm very happy with this charger. I needed something that can charge odd numbers of cells (typical for many LED flashlights these days) - this charger does independent cell charging, as opposed to charging cells only in pairs, so handles this need well.
I've verified its ability to charge a cell phone from four AA cells - a useful feature that makes this double as a generic USB device charger for either AC or as a mobile recharger. So this can save buying a second charger for your phone for work, for instance.
I don't understand Durcell's business decision to cease sales of this in the U.S.A. Now the only CEF23-DX4N CHARGERS for sale in the U.S. are at very elevated prices. They are still sold in Canada, at very decent prices. I really don't see the point in having the product in one North american country but not another. This being said I bought this at one of these elevated price points and am still happy I got the charger. But it would have been $20 cheaper had I bought it when they were commonly on sale in the U.S.A. And Duracell's chargers currently being marketed in the U.S. are all mediocre. Except for this, the CEF23DX4N, there is no good reason to buy a Duracell charger - there are many better choices. This is, by far, the best charger you can buy. It can charge you batteries from a power outlet or a car adapter. The power connector is the US type, but surprisingly there's an "eject" button on the back of the charger and you can remove the plug. You'll probably be able to buy another type of plug and also the unit gets thinner when you remove it. With charged batteries inside, this unit can also charge USB devices, since it comes with an USB port. Very handy!
The charger can hold 4 AA or 4 AAA batteries. The best thing is that each slot is independent from the others. This is a major advantage over other chargers, that need batteries to be charged on pair (or even the whole 4 at the same time). Every slot has it's own charge led to indicate when charge is complete. It was great for me because I bought a and it uses 3 AAA batteries. So I always had to charge 3 at a time.
It also does come with some rechargeable batteries that are pretty good. I can also recomend , they are awesome and last even longer. A whole day of GPS logging with 1 set of those. Worth the money!
If I could give you one advice, it would be to take care with the power outlet you choose to use. When I was in an old hotel in USA, some wall power outlets were somehow loose and since this charger is a little bulk (and heavy when loaded with 4 batteries) it looked like it could fall off the power outlet. The best option in this case is to use a power extension cord and leave the charger over a flat surface.
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