Duratrax Onyx 230 AC/DC Advanced Charger w/LCD

I purchased this Charger to charge my NIHM'S & LIPO's for my RC's. It works fast, and charges at a great rate. It's portable for the track, or just to take along for random runs. Only down fall is that this model doesn't balance the LIPO Batteries, but other than that issue this is a great charger for all your battery chargin needs.

I am extremely technical and I have a natural talent when it comes to interfacing anything electronic. I have been working in the IT field since I was 18 years old (now 33) and I'm currently employed as a senior Systems Engineer. Starting when I was a child (around 7) I was the go to person in my family for anything technical from working on computers to setting up AV systems and programming remote controls. If you didn't grow up or live in the 80's you probably won't remember this but I use to hate seeing VCR's that had the blinking 12:00 time and I would always be able to program the time without the manual. Even with my natural talent when it comes to anything technical, setting up this charger to charge a different battery drives me insane. The only thing saving me from dumping this thing in the garbage is that you can setup a profile for each battery that you own which saves having to dig through the menu system when you need to charge a different battery. If you can look past the crappy interface this charger is packed with features and unless a new battery technology comes out this thing can charge anything from a 10 cell lipo pack to a single nimh cell.Quick tip to make life easier when using this charger,When a get a new type of battery I configure a new preset for it and attach a label to the battery using my label maker that has the number that corresponds to the preset number on the charger. This saves a lot of frustration of having to navigate the horrible menu system when I charge one of my batteries.

If you're looking for a simple, reliable, well finished charger for your R/C batteries, the Duratrax Onyx would be a good choice. I've had the model 230 for a couple years now and it's performed flawlessly. I like the professional fit and finish compared to other brands that look like unfinished prototypes that just left someone's garage workbench. Another plus to the Onyx is their 5 year warranty! That's FIVE YEARS MAN! How can you beat that?I gave the Onyx a "fun factor" of only three stars cuz... well... it's a battery charger. How fun can it be? Hahaha. Same with it's "educational value". I would've given the Onyx five stars for "durability", but since the case is plastic, I imagine it could crack if dropped severely. In over two years, mine hasn't chipped, cracked, or broken in any way, so I don't know. It's a pretty hard plastic they used, so it gives me some confidence that it'll hold up to abuse. I have dropped it on a hard surface once, and nothing happened.Unfortunately, when I bought the 230, they didn't have the model 235 with the built in balancer on the market yet. So I'll be selling my 230 to get either the 235 or the 245 dual balanced charger. However, I do like the Thunder Power 610c-ACDC's discharge, cycle, and 10 amp capability, so I'll have to give it some serious thought. The two drawbacks to Thunder Power's unit is that ungainly, unfinished, "prototype" look. Come on guys, an external, raw, uncovered circuit board for the balancer adaptors? Really??? You couldn't just get a bigger case to fit that inside? The other drawback is their 2 year warranty.I'll have to do a follow up on which one I end up getting.

I have had this charger since 2009. It's been a wonderful charger. It's charged many of NIMH and Lipos. Simple to use. Store each battery under the setting. Has never ruined any of my batteries. This day in time check out the onyx 235 since it can balance Lipos, which I have another cheap eBay charger to balance them every once in a while. One day soon I will buy the 235, actually I will probably do it tomorrow lol.