Welcome to LR44ButtonBattery.com
We showcase the popular 1.5V LR44 button battery. We provide deals, reviews, and information on the intended uses of the LR44 battery.
As electronic devices have become smaller and smaller, the batteries that power these devices have necessarily become smaller as well. LR44 batteries can be used in anything from analog cameras to scientific calculators and smaller PDAs. They provide a consistent voltage output, and have a reasonably long shelf life. Thus it has become a popular battery for manufacturers and consumers alike.
Because they are so widely used, button batteries, or button cell batteries, are available all over the Internet. We’ve consistently found some of the best prices on Amazon.com. Here you can find a wide assortment of name brands from Energizer to Duracell, as well as several generic that are less expensive.
In addition to deals and information, we also provide reviews of new and existing batteries so you can make the most informed decision when purchasing button batteries for your devices. Since some LR44 button batteries come in bulk type packaging, we”ll discuss not only battery life and consistency, but also what kind of shelf life you can expect from your batteries.
Additional Information:
Best Button Battery for Watches
History of Button Batteries
Common Uses for LR44 Button Batteries
LR44 Button battery vs SR44 Button Battery
Tagged: featured
Leave a reply »
The LR44 button battery and the SR44 button battery are the two most common batteries in the coin or button type battery category. Both are intended to be used in small electronic devices. But they both have a specific set of characteristics that make them better suited to particular applications. In this article, we’ll discuss some common uses for button batteries, and which type of battery is best suited to each application. We’ll start by covering the basics of each battery.
Battery Composition
The LR44 battery is an alkaline battery. The “L” denotes the components used to to create the chemical reaction necessary to create voltage. In the case of the LR44 it is a zinc negative electrode, with a manganese dioxide depolarizer and positive electrode. The “R” designates that the battery is round. And the “44″ designates that the battery has a 11.4mm diameter and a 5.2mm height. The LR44 battery is also known as LR1154, AG13, A76, 1166A, S76, and SG13. The voltage of the LR44 battery is 1.5V, and it has a capacity of 150mAh.
The SR44 button battery is a silver-oxide battery. It looks exactly the same as the LR44. The “S” denotes that silver-oxide is used to create the chemical reaction necessary to create voltage. As with the LR44, the “R” designates that this battery is round. And the “44″ again signifies that the battery has a diameter of 11.4mm and a height of 5.2mm. The SR44 is also commonly known as a KS76, 357 Silver, D357. The voltage for an SR44 battery is 1.55V, and it has a capacity of 175-200mAh.
Pro’s and Con’s of each battery
First and foremost, LR44 batteries are cheaper that the SR44. As of the writing of this article, name brand LR44′s are about one fifth the cost of the SR44. However, because of the compounds used in the LR44, it’s voltage tends to drop over the life of the battery. Many electronic devices will still function perfectly with this voltage drop, but it might be more noticeable in some devices than others. A good example would be a light meter in a camera. A light meter will continue to work properly as the voltage drops over time. However, if the battery also controls the shutter of the camera, this can be problematic as it will require more voltage in order for it to function properly. Once the voltage drops beyond a certain point, you will have to replace the battery. If the intended use was for something like a laser pointer, an LR44 is ideal because the laser will continue to work with the drop in voltage over the life of the battery. Thus the cost savings outweigh the downside of the voltage drop. Self discharge is another consideration to take into account. The alkaline LR44 has a suggested shelf life of around ten years. Therefore if you were to buy them in bulk from a reputable manufacturer, you should expect to be able to use all of your batteries before they expire.
As previously mentioned, the price of the SR44 battery can be several times that of the LR44. However, SR44 batteries will maintain a consistent voltage throughout the life of the battery. This makes them ideally suited for more sensitive electronic equipment such as hearing aids, camera equipment, and watches. Many watchmakers use silver-oxide batteries because of the long life, slightly higher capacity, and constant voltage. In fact, it’s been estimated that up to 70% of Swiss watchmakers use silver-oxide batteries to power their watches. But if the device is something that is used less frequently, or isn’t expected to have a long life (children’s toys, games, etc), then it s probably worth the cost savings to get the cheaper LR44. Silver-oxide batteries tend to self discharge more, therefore you can expect a shorter shelf life than with the LR44.
In the end you will need to take all of this into consideration before deciding which batteries to purchase. Both the LR44 button battery and SR44 battery are readily available online.
Additional Information:
Best Button Battery for Watches
History of Button Batteries
Common Uses for LR44 Button Batteries
Leave a reply »
The LR44 button battery is designed to work with small electronic devices. So many devices now days are becoming smaller, thinner, and more light weight. Thus they require a battery that can supply the required power, but is also small and light weight. Here are a few of the more common applications for the LR44 battery.
Watches – watches require a small and reliable battery that will constantly provide an accurate voltage. Watches from all of the major manufacturers in the world rely on the LR44 battery. It is both lightweight and small. In addition, it has a life expectancy of up to 5 years. This makes it ideal for use in time pieces.
Calculators – calculators have become more and more powerful over the years. And just like many other hand held electronic devices, they have also become smaller and smaller. The LR44 is ideally suited for such applications because of its small size, most notably it’s thickness.
Laser Pointers- laser pointers require a significant amount of power for something so small. It is also something that may be used infrequently. Therefore a long shelf life, and a long battery life are both prerequisites. And of course the small size of most laser pointers require the battery to be quite small.
Wireless Access Keyfobs – because most keyfobs are small and typically attached to a key chain, they require a battery that is both small and light weight. Key fobs are also subject to a wide range of temperatures. The LR44 button battery is very well suited to this application.
Hearing Aids – as everyone knows, hearing aids have gotten smaller and smaller over the years. But because they are still typically amplifiers, they require a decent amount of voltage and steady current. For that reason, the LR44 battery is perfect for this application. The long battery life also means that it won’t need to changed as frequently.
Laser Scopes – laser scopes of both soldiers and civilians require a high powered laser in a small device. Typically, a laser scope will require more than one button battery, and many times upwards of four in total. Obviously in the case of a soldier, reliability and battery life are very important. These batteries will also be subject to wide ranges of temperature variations. For these reasons, the LR44 button battery is ideally suited for this application.
Additional Information:
Best Button Battery for Watches
History of Button Batteries
LR44 Button Battery vs SR44 Button Battery
Leave a reply »
Button batteries have a long and complex history. The story begins in 1650 when German physicist Otto von Guericke experimented with generating electricity and continues through the first rudimentary battery created in 1800 by the Italian Alessandro Volta. Volta’s first battery was comprised of a series of copper and zinc rings alternated in an acidic solution. These rings were separated by layers of cardboard that had been soaked in brine and called electrolytes. This was to be known as the first “wet cell” battery. This chemical reaction, resulting in an electrical charge is the foundation for nearly all of the batteries we use today. Over the years vast improvements have been made upon this original concept. By using many different conducting and reactive materials while incorporating this same basic designs, inventors have created the variety of batteries we have today.
These first batteries were extremely large by today’s standards. In addition they were unstable and produced very little current. A variation of Volta’s battery, modified by Daniel Cell in 1836 was considered a great achievement. But it still only produced 1.1 volts. But this was enough to power for such devices as the telegraph and even early telephones. And this type of battery remained in use for practically one hundred years. Over time, the materials used to produce batteries have changed to become much more stable and vastly more efficient. And just like the products they power, batteries have become smaller and smaller.
In the eerly 1960′s Eveready brought a silver-oxide button battery to market. Shortly thereafter, during the 1970′s, with the introduction of Japanese quartz type watches and their subsequent domination of the world watch market, coin-type (button) batteries saw an enormous increase in demand. Around that same time, advances in the computer industry allowed for small hand held electronic calculators with enormous computing power. These and other smaller electronic devices required a batter that was small, had a constant and reliable voltage, and that was relatively stable. The silver-oxide battery is ideally suited for such small electronic devices. However, during the period of 1979 to 1980, there was a massive increase in the price of silver, a major component in silver-oxide batteries. This forced manufacturers to look for alternatives to sliver.
The alkaline manganese button battery had been in production since about the mid 1970′s. When the price of silver shot up, the demand for these now less expensive batteries shot up as well. Many manufacturers switched over to using the alkaline version of the battery to save costs. And while the alkaline manganese battery eventually saw a drop in demand due to the introduction of solar type batteries for calculators, they are again very popular because of the vast numbesr of small electronic devices currently on the market. These batteries are currently used in a wide variety of electronic devices. This includes everything from inexpensive wrist watches, hearing aids, and even children’s audio books.
Eventually the price of silver returned to reasonable levels. Since silver-oxide batteries are considered very reliable and stable in a wide range of temperatures, they continue to be used in almost exclusively in wrist watches. There has been another increase in the last couple years due to the recent rise in silver prices.
Another type of button battery is the lithium primary battery. These batteries were developed in the 1950′s for use in the space program. Matsushita Battery of Japan brought a lithium type coin battery to the market in the 1970′s. The charge of these batteries can last up to six years, which is almost double the battery life of a silver-oxide battery. Consequently, many watch companies started switching over to the lithium. And the previously mentioned rise in silver prices helped cement the position of the lithium battery. They are ideally suited for use in liquid crystal display watches which became very popular during the 1980′s. Many of the game systems designed for home use (Nintendo, Atari etc.) started incorporating these batteries as backup power source when the game units were turned off, causing another dramatic increase in production. Currently lithium batteries are used in computers, digital cameras, analog cameras, hearing aids, and a multitude of other small devices that incorporate a computer processor.
With more and more processing power becoming available in small handheld devices, button batteries are an integral part of today’s electronics landscape. The power demands on them continue to increase. And manufacturers continue to develop better and longer lasting button batteries.
Leave a reply »
The Energizer LR44 button battery is considered by many to be the best watch battery available on the market. They have a shelf life of between five and ten years. Many watch makers including Swatch, Fossil, Timex, and Casio recommend the Energizer LR44 battery. With a failure rate of less that one in one thousand, these batteries are considered to be some of the most reliable as well. This has given Energizer a large market share of the watch battery market. In addition, the LR44 button battery from Energizer is also commonly used in hearing aids, keyless entry devices, and personal electronics.
And given the long life of the battery, they are also commonly used in computer motherboards as well. The Energizer LR44 button battery consistently rates at the top for battery life among users as well. Reading through the reviews on Amazon.com, you’ll find that users keep going back to the Energizer name for the LR44 Battery.
Additional Reading:
History of Button Batteries
Common Uses for LR44 Button Batteries
LR44 Button battery vs SR44 Button Battery
Tagged: featured
Leave a reply »
