EDYDO 0 #1 November 8, 2004 This information is new to me and may be helpful to someone. I would like to have known it in advance. On Saturday morning, my Neptune checked out perfectly with a full battery indicator. After 2 jumps it worked and logged properly. On the third jump of the day, it failed to come on in the plane as it usually does. I pressed the button and it started counting down from some high altitude and finally settled on the correct one. It worked fine through the jump. When I got down, it showed, "There are no logbook entries." or "Logbook empty" and I could not access the logbook. The battery indicator dropped some, but I figured something had failed and I lost my logbook. I took it on another jump where it worked perfectly, but on the ground, still no logbook. After battery replacement, the logbook returned and all jumps were logged properly, even the one when the Neptune had to be activated manually. This Neptune has about 200 jumps on it. The battery is about 8 months old and 160 jumps. Not bad for a $1.00 battery and the Neptune continued to function until I figured out that a small reduction in battery strength is enough to warrant battery replacement. Ed Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheMannequin 0 #2 November 8, 2004 Nice to know... but I did see in the manual, where they show the voltage graph, it will be constant most of it's live, and then just die!! Thanx for the heads up... luckilly mine has still some ways to go before getting close to that number of jumps..... Blue skies! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarkM 0 #3 November 8, 2004 I don't think the battery life indicator is sensative enough on the Neptune. I had my Neptune lock up a couple months ago and removing/reinserting the battery reset it. Worked fine for awhile then when I was prepping for night jumps it would lock up every time after turning the backlight on. Borrowed someone else's Neptune who's batteries were about as old as mine(March) and it locked up on me at 5k during a night HAHO. New batteries fixed both of them, but mine only registered a low battery after that second time of locking up. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EDYDO 0 #4 November 8, 2004 QuoteI don't think the battery life indicator is sensative enough on the Neptune. I had my Neptune lock up a couple months ago and removing/reinserting the battery reset it. Agreed, I am going to start replacing the battery every 4 months. At $1.00 or so, it's good insurance. With the discharge curve on that battery, it may not be possible to get a good handle on battery condition. Ed Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SkydiveMO 0 #5 November 8, 2004 Talk about timing, I had the exact same difficulty with my Neptune this weekend. I came down from a jump where the Neptune had worked properly and wanted to check my logbook for the freefall time. It kept acting as if I was in an aircraft climbing and the logbook came up empty. I grabbed my old Digitude for the next jump and when I got back on the ground I checked my Neptune and everything was working fine again? I was going to replace the battery this week to see if that would fix the problem. I see from this thread that it will, which is very good to hear. I’m guessing that the battery life indicator is pretty much useless at this point and that I need to change batteries when the unit starts acting up from now on. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarkM 0 #6 November 8, 2004 QuoteAt $1.00 or so, it's good insurance. Where are you getting them for a dollar? They were about 4 dollars at Radio Shack where I live. If you can order them online for a dollar I'd buy a small supply to keep at the DZ for other people. It sucks when your altimeter dies out in the middle of the day. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
headoverheels 291 #7 November 8, 2004 www.digikey.com I ordered enough to get free shipping (>$25), which was 22 batteries. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EDYDO 0 #8 November 8, 2004 QuoteWhere are you getting them for a dollar? You can buy them from Gary, he has a 10 year supply. I purchase them through one of my businesses when ordering other goods. They actually cost less than a dollar wholesale. I have given away a few. PM your address and I'll stick one in an envelope (US right?). Ed Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cvfd1399 0 #9 November 9, 2004 Replace the battery OFTEN. I had mine die on me in freefall when I turned on the backlight due to a sunset load that turned low light. The battery indicator showed full always, but all it took to make it die in its stage of charge was the backlight to come on. It was only 3-4 months old. The batteries are cheap I plan on changing them every 3 months no matter what from now on. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BlueEyedMonster 0 #10 November 10, 2004 QuoteI don't think the battery life indicator is sensative enough The battery meter is not a "life" indicator. Its a voltage indicator. BIG DIFFERENCE Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EDYDO 0 #11 November 10, 2004 QuoteI don't think the battery life indicator is sensative enough (quote from Mark) QuoteThe battery meter is not a "life" indicator. Its a voltage indicator. BIG DIFFERENCE (quote from Blue Eye) The sentence you quote came from Mark. Actually, neither of you are wrong. It is indeed a voltage indicator and they are commonly used to measure battery life. Problem is, most batteries have a "life curve" that is less flat than the Neptune battery and can be more easily measured. One good reason to use a battery that has a "flat curve" is that the battery maintains its full voltage thoroughout its useful life, until near the end, where it then begins a sharp drop. That allows for better performance of the product it powers. Some manufacturers have come up with a solution that seems to work. It is likely too expensive for the Neptune and we might not be willing to pay the price. In one case, let's say for simplicity that the battery is 12 volts. Instead of the indicator reading from 0 to 12, it measures from 9 to 12 and gives a much better idea of what is happening inside the battery in that critical period when the voltage first starts to drop. In this example, the indicator would show a dead battery at 9 volts since the battery no longer has the power for the product to function. Ed Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
IanHarrop 37 #12 November 10, 2004 Have you sent this idea in to Roger Allen at Alti-2? He's very receptive to ideas and incorporating them in the Neptune software."Where troubles melt like lemon drops, away above the chimney tops, that's where you'll find me" Dorothy Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EDYDO 0 #13 November 10, 2004 QuoteHave you sent this idea in to Roger Allen at Alti-2? He's very receptive to ideas and incorporating them in the Neptune software. No, I haven't. It won't be anything new to the developers of the product. Ed Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
brewman 0 #14 November 12, 2004 I also had a "battery - backlight" related failure. Was on a sunset load, and on the way up in the plane I decided to enable the backligtht on the Neptune in case it got too dark on the way back down. The Neptune worked fine on the plane, after I got out and checked it in freefall, the screen was blank. Had about 150 jumps on that battery with the gauge showing full. I talked to Lara at Alti-2 and she says: QuoteThe good thing about Lithium batteries is also the frustrating thing: voltage is maintained over most of it's useful life, but near the end of it's life, voltage drops rapidly. It's best to use not just a 'full' battery for a backlight jump, but a new one. A battery showing 'full' could be near the end of it's life. The battery level indication is set conservatively; you should be able to make several (non-backlit) jumps on an empty battery. So I made first night jump a few weeks back with a new battery and the Neptune worked perfectly. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
I_luv_beer 0 #15 November 12, 2004 Here's another tip. If you drive to a high altitude make sure it knows you're on the ground still when you get there. I went to Yosemite with the thing in the car, when I left a week later I noticed it was showing a very slow climb and had obviously been on all week. The battery icon showed empty and the log book was gone. I got done five bucks for a new batt, then it still wouldn't log anything until I manually deleted the (empty) logbook and set the logging to active. I have had a software update since though maybe this has been fixed but I'll keep an eye on it.*********************************** I am NOT responsible!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
