lithium button battery doesn't charge - need help understanding

[clevermonkey]

Hi folks,

I purchased a voice activated recorder from a far away land and it's not working right. I think the charging / battery part of it is messed up.

There is an internal lithium button battery that is supposed to charge by USB. The device doesn't do anything when it's untethered, but when it's plugged into USB, it does what it's supposed to. (USB drive, charging light, etc.)

I have gained tentative access to the battery.

The battery is small, and has a red and a black wire soldered a small distance apart on one side. The other side has a black sticker, probably hiding the specifics of the battery.

I can measure 1.9 v dc at the solder points when it's hooked up to USB, but the same points read nothing when it's untethered.

I don't want to send the thing back for an exchange if I can help it, (might never see it again) but am trying to keep that option open by not leaving any evidence that I've cracked it open. That's why I don't take the sticker off the battery just yet.

Anyway, my newbie questions are these:

With the voltage I measured, how long would it have to charge in order to fill up that battery?

Do batteries just quit as I think this one has?

When it's untethered, if the button battery shows dead, could I take a AA battery and run test wires to the solder points on the button battery to give it some juice and see if that makes the thing work -- without causing damage to anything inside, assuming I don't klutz it up?

The solder points on the battery are really, really tiny and I'm kind of hamfisted and unskilled; if the battery is not accepting a charge, is there any way to 'wake it up' without replacing it?

Lastly, has anyone seen a little silver lithium button battery that has two solder points on one side? It's supposed to be able to record a couple hours of digital voice data.

I appreciate any help anyone has to offer.

Thanks,
Dave

 

[(*steve*)]

Some photos might help us

 

[Resqueline]

1.9V won't charge it at all, you'll need at least 3V to start putting anything into it. It's hard to say whether there's someting wrong with the battery or the charging circuit.
You're sure it's a lithium, and not a NiMh button battery? 1.9V / 0V would fit how a defective NiMh battery would act with its charging circuit.

 

[Leighcusack]

That battery your describing sounds like a microphone to me.

 

[jerryg50]

You have to be sure the USB port is supplying adequate power to charge your device. From what I have seen, the USB port will not put out any power unless the operating system allows it to be turned on.

As for the lifespan of lithium batteries, after about 3 to 4 years they may no longer perform. Any batteries over time will eventually go through some chemical breakdown, and no longer be able to perform.


Jerry G.

Hi folks,

I purchased a voice activated recorder from a far away land and it's not working right. I think the charging / battery part of it is messed up.

There is an internal lithium button battery that is supposed to charge by USB. The device doesn't do anything when it's untethered, but when it's plugged into USB, it does what it's supposed to. (USB drive, charging light, etc.)

I have gained tentative access to the battery.

The battery is small, and has a red and a black wire soldered a small distance apart on one side. The other side has a black sticker, probably hiding the specifics of the battery.

I can measure 1.9 v dc at the solder points when it's hooked up to USB, but the same points read nothing when it's untethered.

I don't want to send the thing back for an exchange if I can help it, (might never see it again) but am trying to keep that option open by not leaving any evidence that I've cracked it open. That's why I don't take the sticker off the battery just yet.

Anyway, my newbie questions are these:

With the voltage I measured, how long would it have to charge in order to fill up that battery?

Do batteries just quit as I think this one has?

When it's untethered, if the button battery shows dead, could I take a AA battery and run test wires to the solder points on the button battery to give it some juice and see if that makes the thing work -- without causing damage to anything inside, assuming I don't klutz it up?

The solder points on the battery are really, really tiny and I'm kind of hamfisted and unskilled; if the battery is not accepting a charge, is there any way to 'wake it up' without replacing it?

Lastly, has anyone seen a little silver lithium button battery that has two solder points on one side? It's supposed to be able to record a couple hours of digital voice data.

I appreciate any help anyone has to offer.

Thanks,
Dave

 

[shrtrnd]

Yeah, and a lot of Chinese batteries use metal/chemical mixes that don't meet authentic industry standards. Knock yourself out on the assembly, but bear in mind, your battery MAY actually be bad.