Garrett Ace Apex Battery System

[locator]

On 5/15/2020 at 9:18 AM, johnedoe said:

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One thing I don't care for is the sealed onboard battery..... I like having spare battery packs.....

Hello.

It is charged via mini USB. So take a power bank with you and you're good.

WOW. That was very surprizing. Great shot, Garrett. Wishing all the best for the new "child".

[mh9162013]

4 hours ago, Xergix said:

The internal battery is a good choice, now it is unthinkable to stay with AA Nimh or alkaline batteries, even just for the physical size, litium is the future

So is forced obsolescence. Hopefully, this is not Garrett's goal, but if the Apex becomes a legendary machine (which it very well may), the battery configuration is a nice little "cash cow annuity" they have established when people have to send in their machine for battery replacement several years down the line.

[Xergix]

4 hours ago, mh9162013 said:

So is forced obsolescence. Hopefully, this is not Garrett's goal, but if the Apex becomes a legendary machine (which it very well may), the battery configuration is a nice little "cash cow annuity" they have established when people have to send in their machine for battery replacement several years down the line.

The battery can be changed, the controlbox can be opened, however the life of the lithium with a normal discharge current, without peaks like for drones, is very long, I think that before it can be replaced, a new model of MD will be released to buy.

[Steve Herschbach]

On 5/16/2020 at 9:33 AM, Xergix said:

The battery can be changed, the controlbox can be opened, however the life of the lithium with a normal discharge current, without peaks like for drones, is very long, I think that before it can be replaced, a new model of MD will be released to buy.

I totally agree with you. My three year old Equinox battery is going strong, and I can replace it myself if need be. And really, I will probably have upgraded to a new detector before then anyway. But if not, no reason to not replace the battery and be happy. We have always had to replace batteries in on fashion or another, and this sure beats the old days of tossing tons of dead AA batteries in the landfill.

Garrett Ace Apex Data & Reviews

[Chase Goldman]

1 hour ago, Xergix said:

The battery can be changed, the controlbox can be opened, however the life of the lithium with a normal discharge current, without peaks like for drones, is very long, I think that before it can be replaced, a new model of MD will be released to buy.

Agree, such a tired argument.  It will cost maybe $35 to $50 if you want the repair center to do it (vs. just doing it yourself) based on my experience with XP and ML, 4 to 7 years from now.  Compare that to the cost of replaceable or even a couple sets of nicads over that time.

[mh9162013]

3 hours ago, Xergix said:

The battery can be changed, the controlbox can be opened

Do we know that for sure about the Apex? I know the Equinox battery can be replaced on your own pretty easily, although I know not all users will be confident enough to replace the cell on their own (and I don't know if it affects the warranty). I wasn't of the belief that the Apex could be opened as easily. From the pics it seems like opening the control box will be similar to opening up an AT Pro or Max.

[mh9162013]

2 hours ago, Chase Goldman said:

Agree, such a tired argument.  It will cost maybe $35 to $50 if you want the repair center to do it (vs. just doing it yourself) based on my experience with XP and ML, 4 to 7 years from now.  Compare that to the cost of replaceable or even a couple sets of nicads over that time.

It may be tired, but the process of making self-repair more and more difficult is still ongoing, across all product lines, not just metal detectors. 

And it's not just cost (a set of high quality 4 AA NiMH batteries should cost less than $15 and easily last 1,000+ cycles), but waste (lithiums often have shorter life cycles than nickel based cells) and time (having to send off your machine for a few days or weeks to get its battery replaced) considerations, too.

[mh9162013]

3 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

and this sure beats the old days of tossing tons of dead AA batteries in the landfill.

If this is the sole option besides a built-in lithium, then by all means, let's encourage companies to create tech with built-in cells. But that's not always the case. There are so many high quality rechargeable AA and AAA options out there, that the only reasons I see for a built-in battery are: easier waterproofing, slightly increase volume efficiency and modest weight savings.

The easier waterproofing is the most important feature (for me). I'm willing to take a 25% or 33% drop in run time to use easily replaceable AA cells in my metal detector (assuming weight and size remains the same). I'm sure I'm in the minority here, though.

[Sven1]

15 hours ago, mh9162013 said:

Do we know that for sure about the Apex? I know the Equinox battery can be replaced on your own pretty easily, although I know not all users will be confident enough to replace the cell on their own (and I don't know if it affects the warranty). I wasn't of the belief that the Apex could be opened as easily. From the pics it seems like opening the control box will be similar to opening up an AT Pro or Max.

Do you see the battery in the picture of the insides of the control box? No.

I think they mentioned the small cellphone like battery is in the compartment area that attaches the control box to the shaft.

[kac]

One thing I really like about my MK is the optional external batter. I have been using my RnB battery from my AT Pro in it and getting 3 days running in 19khz and still have the internal as a backup, just tossed a set of blackube's in to see if I get similar results.

Wonder if there will be an external battery option on the Apex?

New lithium rechargeable batteries last between 500-1000 cycles and have more than double the run time at nearly full power to an NiMH so technically they last longer.

If the Apex isn't user serviceable it isn't really that big a deal to pop it in the mail back to Garrett, they do have outstanding service.