8.6
Score

Pros

  • Compact & Portable
  • Very Easy to Operate
  • Supports 12 Batteries Simultaneously
  • Digital Display Indicator
  • Can Discharge the Batteries too
  • Aesthetically Beautiful

Cons

  • Expensive
  • Supports only NiMH Batteries
  • Does not support AAA Batteries
Design & Build Quality
9
Features
9
Ease of Use
8.5
Pricing
7.5

There was a time when I used to buy 3 AA batteries every month for my remote-controlled car (lol!) because rechargeable batteries were not famous then. But today, If I go to a toy store to buy an RC car, I am pretty sure 90% of them will have some sort of rechargeable batteries in them. With that being said, it is very hard these days to find a gadget that uses AA batteries, except for TV remotes, wall clocks, digital cameras, and some rare toys. But if you happen to use a lot of AA batteries, I have an amazing gadget to talk about. Meet RadCad charger, one of the best and feature-packed AA battery charger for all your needs. This gadget can recharge up to 12 AA batteries simultaneously and has a built-in digital display. This is my hands-on review of RadCad AA battery charger by East Brooklyn Labs.

What’s in the Box?

Inside the package, you can find the charger, battery caddy, and a power adapter.

east brooklyn labs review

AA Battery charging adapter

First Impression

Looking at the battery charger, it is super compact and portable. The build quality looks amazing. There is a digital display and an LED indicator on the top of the charger. It’s a basic LCD display that indicates the battery level for all the 12 batteries. A bad thing is that the display is very prone to scratches. To my surprise, there is a button that can discharge all the juice from your batteries. You may not need it but there is an option. On the back, there is a port to power up the device. It is a 12V DC power supply port that nobody uses these days. I have not idea why the manufacturer didn’t switch to a micro USB port or something.

radcad batter charger

There is a small DC fan (the same fan that you find inside a desktop CPU but a mini version) to regulate the heat generated in the circuit.

The aesthetics of the charger is not the best but it’s not bad either. The caddy can hold up to 12 AA batteries. It is very convenient to use and easy to distinguish between the top and the bottom ends. The caddy looks pretty rugged. As far as the rating goes, I would give a 9/10 for the look and design of this RadCad battery charger.

How to use this Charger?

As I mentioned earlier, it can charge up to 12 AA batteries in total but I myself had just 4 rechargeable batteries to test it with. The charging is flawless, just put in the batteries in the caddy (the positive and negative direction needs to be taken care of and it is clearly instructed on the back of the charger), insert the caddy inside the charger, close the top lid and connect it to the power cord, that’s all. Your AA batteries should be fully charged in a couple of hours.

best AA battery caddy

The display on the top shows the current level of charge in your battery and the LED indicator shows whether the charger is in charging mode or discharging mode (discharge mode can be activated by long-pressing the button on the top surface). A red light indicates that the batteries are discharging and green indicates that the batteries are recharging.

aa battery charger review
Recharging Mode
aa battery discharger
Discharge Mode

Is this Charger useful?

It depends! For me, it is definitely useful because I have a ton of electronic gadgets that work on AA batteries. Some of them include a TV remote, 2 Wall clocks (yes, it is an old school clock), a Laser light (laser lights consume a hell lot of juice) and a handheld battery. But if you don’t have a lot of devices that use AA batteries, this gadget is a waste of money. On the flip side, RadCad charger has unique features like discharge capability, quick charging, digital display to name a few. If you go with a cheaper AA battery charger, you may be missing these useful features.

Key Takeaways

RadCad AA battery charger is a good looking, powerful and easy to use AA battery charger. Some of its features and key points are as follows

  • Good build quality
  • Lightweight and can easily fit in your bag
  • Can charge 12 batteries simultaneously
  • The battery level indicator is useful
  • The power adapter is old and outdated, if you forget to carry this adapter, you are gone.
  • This charger will be super useful for those who use more than 4 batteries for their purpose, especially photographers
  • Cannot recharge AAA batteries, I would have been super happy if it supported AAA batteries too, this is a big drawback

Last update on 2024-11-23 / Links / Images from Amazon PAAPI