[Xtra] Battery quest

My battery for my Zen Xtra is the stock battery that came with it, and it only lasts around 6 or 7 hours charged - without any EQ settings. All my music on it is CBR 28 kbps mp3 (and 4 WMA's), and I was playing a sort of large playlist on Shuffle Repeat. I only pressed some buttons on it a few times when I was playing it. I did not access the player from my computer during this time, either. I do not know why the charge only lasts 6 or 7 hours with an advertised 4 hr battery charge... I looked on ebay and found some replacement batteries for it, but they are 3.7 V - where mine is currently 3.6 V.
Is 3.7 V a problem?

The voltage isn't a problem.
How old is the player? The battery should be working well for at least 3 years unless it's faulty (or has seen a LOT of use in say a couple of years)
You might want to double check the overall life of the battery by charging fully (leave it a full 4 hours to be sure). Then leave it playing the 28kb/s CBR MP3s to see how long it lasts without touching it.

Similar Messages

  • Nomad Jukebox Zen Xtra - Battery 3.6v vs. 3

    Hey all - I'm looking to purchase a replacement battery for my 30g Nomad Jukebox Zen Xtra and I've found some cheap ones from ebay (such as this one). The question I have is this: my stock battery is 3.6v but this replacement (which has the same parts number) is rated at 3.7v - is this a problem? Will this damage my player?
    Please let me know what issues this may cause and what successes/failures people have had with replacement batteries.
    Thanks in advance!!!
    Dale

    I found the following discussion on PowerStream.com :
    <A target=_blank><B>Q: What is the difference between the 3.6 volt and the 3.7 volt lithium-ion and lithium-polymer cells?</B>[/url]A. This quesiton has been on my mind for a few months. There is a lot of folklore out there about this. It confused me for two reasons. Firstly, I have never heard of a higher charge voltage for some cells and not others. Secondly, the 3.6 is just a rule-of-thumb average of the battery voltage anyway . The actual voltage varies between 4.2 volts and 3 (or 2.8) volts during the discharge. It doesn't have one voltage. You can't just put a meter on a cell and say "this one is a 3.6 volt cell" or "this one is a 3.7 volt cell."So I asked a friend who has a PhD in battery chemistry and has been designing, testing, and manufacturing lithium ion and li-poly cells for over 5 years. Here is his answer:<I>There is no difference between 3.6V and 3.7V cells. The reasons why people say 3.6V in one case and 3.7V in other cases are due to discharge rate. If you discharge your lithium ion cells with 0.2C rate, the middle point voltage of the cells is 3.7V. If you discharge your lithium ion cells with 2C rate, the middle point voltage of the cells is 3.6V or even lower. The middle point voltage of a lithium ion cells, including Polymer Lithium ion Cells, is between 3.6V and 3.7V, variable upon discharging rate.</I>In other words, it is mostly marketing hype. Now the modern cells tend to keep their voltage higher during discharge than the old ones, so a marketing person could easily say "this makes the average higher, so let's call it a 3.7 volt cell."But why stop there? Why not rate the voltage as the peak voltage and get the jump on everybody? "It's a 4.2 volt cell, demand nothing less!"So don't get caught up with the hype when selecting a batteryMessage Edited by RobertoV05 on 0--2006 2:37 AM

  • Zen Xtra Battery Problem - won't recha

    Although I'm pretty sure I need a new battery, and that I have myself to blame, I just wanted to see if there was anything else I could do before spending $50 to buy a new battery. I am unable to turn on my Zen Xtra, unless I have it plugged into the power adaptor. When it is plugged in, it turns on, but the battery charging indicator at the bottom left does not appear; instead, a symbol of a power cord shows up. I take this to mean that the battery is broken and is incapable of being recharged, probably a result of not using the player for about a month and having the battery completely uncharged during this time. Is there anything I can do to fix this problem, or do I just have to bite the bullet and buy a new battery?

    I had the same problem. Bought the Zen to deploy to Afghanistan, came home and couldn't find the charger, so like a dummy I listened to it until it ran out. Then I found the charger and all I could see was the power cord symbol - not the charging lightning bolt. I left it plugged in all night and it still shut right off when I unplugged it. I tried unplugging it and replugging it to "jumpstart' the battery but no luck. I tried to update the firmware but it wouldn't let me - said I needed to have a battery in. So I went to Batteries Plus and got a Nuon replacement for $30, put it in and saw the same power cord symbol and same shut down after I unplugged it. That's when I found this forum and was getting ready to try the "reformat" method posted above. I figured why not try it with my original battery so I put that one back in while the machine was plugged in and voila, I got the charging symbol!
    So I guess the Zen needed to "get back in the charging mode" with a 'not-completely-dead' battery for it to wake up its original battery. Now I am going to return my replacement battery.
    I just checked it by unplugging it while it is charging and it holds a charge (it had one bar after 5 mins of charging).
    By the way, you can get to the Recovery Menu by just holding play when you turn it on (no need to press the reset button).

  • Zen xtra battery adv

    I was havving problems with my zen xtra, whenever it had been on for about 20min without being on charge it would switch off then keep resetting constantly. The only way of stopping it was to remove the battery. Anyway, I thought it might be a problem with the battery so bought a new one on ebay for a tenner and the problem is now fixed.
    Just thought Id point out the problem incase it happens to anyone else. Also the new battery lasts soo much longer than the old one did before it completely went, well worth a tenner.

    That constant resetting is typically down to a flat battery.

  • Zen Xtra battery w

    Hallo all.
    For the past few days I've been having trouble with the battery for my NOMAD Jukebox Zen Xtra--just general eccentric behaviour. Now, the battery is completely drained, so that the Low Battery screen comes on when the mp3 player is turned on. However, I seem to be unable to charge it. When I plg it in to the charging cable, nothing happens--or sometimes it turns on, gets to the EAX screen, and then turns off, or goes to the Low Battery screen. Whatever happens, though, I simply can't get the charging icon in the bottom left of the screen, and the player won't charge.
    What can I do, other than buying a new battery? Will buying a new battery help? If it will, how do I buy one?--I can't seem to find it in the UK online shop.
    Thanks in advance for your help.

    Sounds like the hard disk is failing to talk to the player. You can try the advice here in the Zen FAQ at Nomadness.net at your OWN RISK.
    If this doesn't help, or you don't wish to try it and you are under warranty, then contact Creative Support.

  • Zen Xtra battery 'confusi

    Alright, I've been through the board and everyone seems to agree that you should fully discharge your battery 3 times for 'optimal' battery life. But my question is this, It states that you should connect your Zen Xtra to the a/c cord when transfering files from my computer. So how does this help in discharging the battery? Talk about confusing!

    wulfie, it is a good idea to have the AC plugged in while transferring files from a PC to your Zen. This is because you do not want the transfer interrupted by the battery running low and the Zen shutting down unexpectedly. This could cause fragmented files, or even worse.
    Plugging the Zen in during file transfers is unrelated to charging the battery, just good practice. In reality, if you know you have a good charge and are not doing a huge file transfer it would work just fine to not have it plugged in to the AC.
    So .. easy rule of thumb to avoid problems ... plug it in.
    -wizard

  • Nomad Jukebox 40GB battery quest

    I've had my player for a little over year. It uses a 3.6v rechargebable lithium battery. I typically play it in my car using an FM modulator.
    After only a few hours, the batter is dead. I basically have to recharge it every night. Is it possible for the battery to wear out? If so, can I get a generic battery to replace it, or does it have to be a Creative brand battery? Thanks.

    If your player is a Zen Xtra 40GB player then you can buy 3rd party batteries; same batteries as Zen NX and MuVo? series or buy them from Creative. Couple of battery sites:
    http://www.pdainternalbattery.com/nomadpdabattery.html
    http://www.bargainbasementbatteries.com/mp3-player-creative.html
    If it is a Nomad Jukebox (NJB) then any decent AA NiMH batteries will work.
    If it is a Nomad Jukebox3 then you may be out of luck ... as those batteries are in short supply or folks selling them on eBay want a lot of money.

  • Xtra operation quest

    Probably a simple question but if I chose an album to play on my Zen Xtra I want it to play the next one when the chosen one ends within the genre/artist rather than just stop. Have I missed something in the setup somehwere.
    My iRi'ver 40 works just fine, I choose an album and when it finishes it then plays the next one within genre, if it runs out of albums to play in the genre it starts to paly albums in the next genre, it only stops when the battery runs flat.
    Thanks
    J

    The voltage isn't a problem.
    How old is the player? The battery should be working well for at least 3 years unless it's faulty (or has seen a LOT of use in say a couple of years)
    You might want to double check the overall life of the battery by charging fully (leave it a full 4 hours to be sure). Then leave it playing the 28kb/s CBR MP3s to see how long it lasts without touching it.

  • Zen Xtra battery qu

    I gave my old Xtra to my sis since it's still a 30Gb player and works fine, but doesn'tseem to be charging that well, i'm considering getting this battery:
    http://www.amazon.co.uk/33A4Z20DE2D-73PD000000005-BA20203R79902-BA20203R79903-Replacement/dp/B000OVDEF8/ref=sr__6/202-954037-638704?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=92002869&sr=8-6
    Will it work, since i don't think 0. of a volt over the original makes much difference no?
    Also, can it be the adapter giving problems? i dont want to get this all the way from UK only to find it's not the battery.
    The problem is that after it goes down to a battery low stage, it keeps turning on and then dieing after being plugged in, several hundred times. And the charge isn't as short as before. This is usually the battery as my guess...

    Your user test of your charging ability versus that of your friend suggests you may have a hardware problem at your recharge plug. If your player is still under warranty you might consider sending your unit in for repair; if you are beyond your warranty, you might consider asking an electronics expert to look over the recharge plug and its connection to the main printed circuitboard inside the player.
    The Xtra uses small modular plugs and connectors soldered to the PCB. Over time concussi've events may cause these connections to break. If your player does not recognize your charger and does not charge your battery, even though you KNOW your charger works (having user tested that with your friends' unit) then it is a sure bet that you have an electrical connectivity issue between your player and your charger.

  • Nomad jukebox zen xtra firmware quest

    Hello all,
    happy to be on the boards. I have a few questions I would like to ask:
    ) what product do I have? on the front it says "nomad jukebox zen xtra" with 40gb on the side. is it a "zen xtra" or a "nomad jukebox"? I was trying to find updated firmware, but found both "zen xtra" and "nomad jukebox" on the creative site.
    2) i've read horror stories of firmware 2..03. is there newer or firmware that works?
    3) is there a way to treat this player as a regular hard dri've? as in when I plug it into Windows/Linux (Debian linux), it will be recognized as a regular hard dri've without much trouble?
    Thanks all!

    Oo
    ps.
    I didn't mean to take the hard dri've out and use it as a computer hard dri've. I meant: is there a way (maybe changing firmware?) to make the creative plug and play with windows without installing drivers?
    An example: I want to go to a friend's house, plug my creative in, and copy a 5gb ISO off his computer. This is assuming he doesn't have the creative drivers.
    I read that the 2..03 (or whatever the bad one is called) is supposed to allow this. Any solutions?

  • Zen Touch Battery Quest

    when i first bought my zen touch, i started loading songs on it through theusb port because i was told that the usb also charges the battery, but i didnot realize that the usb only charges the battery when the player is turnedoff, so when i loaded my first batch of music onto my player the battery wasnot charging like i thought, so i kept going back and forth from the acadaptor to the usb just to make sure the player was working and to load somemusic onto the player and listen to it to make sure it worked correctly,then i realized i had to fully charge the battery before i could really useit. so after doing all this i decided to just charge the battery fullythrough the ac adaptor before loading anymore music and playing any moremusic on my zen touch. i hope by starting off like this that i didnt do anydamage to the battery or shorten the life of it between charges because ididnt fully charge it at first before doing any transfering and playing ofmusic. please tell me there is no possiblity of ruining the battery life percharge or overall by doing what i did.thank you

    It's hard to know for sure. I even contacted the author of BatteryUni'versity.com to ask about initial charging, and he was unsure as to whether it really makes any difference. So the general school of thought at the moment is that an initial charge certainly doesn't do any harm, so it might as well be done (you'll see some manuals even recommending three complete charges and discharges).

  • Firmware and battery quest

    first question is there going to be a new formware coming out for the zen micro?
    socond question does the battery for the zen microphoto work for the micro and will i get better battery life?

    green_eggs wrote:
    first question is there going to be a new formware coming out for the zen micro?
    socond question does the battery for the zen microphoto work for the micro and will i get better battery life?
    First qns answer: I doubt so, since the new firmware just came out pretty recently. And as long as there aren't many users with problems/complains with their micros, then chances are they wouldn't look into the matter to create a new firmware. It depends mainly on user demands.
    2nd qns answer: I doubt so. Different players uses different firmwares.

  • Zen Xtra Faceplate questi

    Hello, I have a few questions about the Zen Xtras face plate.
    I plan on painting all my electronics to match the same. My question is, Will it void my warrenty if I paint the Zen Xtras removable faceplate?
    And does anybody know if creative has any plants on marketing faceplates with designs or different colors? I know that the ability to customize MP3 players will draw in more buyers, Just look at the ipods. I hope Creative takes this idea seriously. But they would of done it already if they ever thought it would work.
    basicly those are my questions.
    P.S. My Zen Xtra has yet to encounter any of the problems that people have experienced on these forums, and i hope it never does. My old Nomad 0GB clunker has survi'ved about 4 years and it still works fine. Its been dropped, hit, battle scared, drowned in Soda, ect. Yet that thing wont die. Thanks Creative.
    Happy owner of:
    Creative Nomad Jukebox 0GB
    Creative Nomad Zen Xtra 40GB

    Thank You for your quick reply.
    I'm glad I'm able to customize my zen. So many ideas are now running through my mind as to what I can do. I have been painting for awhile and I did a nice job already on my 0GB. painted it jet black and did planets and orbital rings. looks sweet. glow in the dark paint for the rings. when the backlight is on it looks crazy.
    Well, time to start drawing some blueprints.
    Ya, exchangable faceplates would be great. different colors, designs, happyfaces, astrological signs, anything. I'm sure a Halo2 one would sell extreamly well, heh.
    Anyways. Thanks for the answer. Glad to hear it.

  • Need help solving a minor delema....battery quest

    Hello-
    I received my Zen Micro only two days ago, I am very happy with it, yes....
    but there is one little thing that has been eating away at my brain....
    I wonder how I should recharge my battery!
    I know I need an adapter, I'm not stupid...buut...
    The Zen Micro instruction booklet says 'Connect your player to <EM>the</EM> power adapter.'
    This gives me the impression that an adapter should come with the product...
    If it should, I haven't noticed it....
    So my question <EM>is</EM>....
    <EM>Should</EM> a power adapter come with my product, or do you need to buy one specifically for the Zen Micro?
    Also, would it work with a regular, Walmart-bought power adapter, or are they not powerful enough?
    (You see, I have a number of them laying around the house...)
    I would like to know the answer to this soon.... I do not want to be stuck with an un-usable devise....
    Thank you,
    =Sumie=
    :robotmad::robotmad::robotmad::robotmad::robotmad: :robotmad::robotmad::robotmad::robotmad::robotmad:

    In your case, the power adaptor is the USB cable the ZM comes with. The newer retail ZMs come cheaper, but at the cost of a missing power outlet charger.
    There are some problems to be avoided with USB charging. (search the forums).
    I would resiously recommend either getting the newest .x or the newest 2.x firmware from the Creative download pages and reflashing your player with it.
    Cheers,
    Jan.
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dilemma ;-)

  • 30 gig ZEN NX battery quest

    I just got a 30 gig ZEN NX today and i am curious about the battery. On the first charge is the battery icon suppost to be the charging one or the powerplug one? On mine it seems to be the powerplug one. So is my zen detecting the battery at all and charging charging it or just running off the power and not doing anything to the battery?

    Assuming the battery isn't full, it should be the charging icon.
    If you remove the mains adapter what charge level i shown?
    If the battery is not fully charged then follow the advice here in the Zen FAQ at Nomadness.net.

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