PowerEx MH-C808M “Ultimate Professional” Charger

The MH-C808M charger by Maha can charge any combination of 1 to 8 batteries. You can mix and charge AA, AAA, C and D sized cells at the same time on individual charging circuits. Each battery size also has its own fixed contact charging points (i.e. not a spring). An LCD display shows charging and conditioning status of each rechargeable battery.

Maha’s chargers can restore batteries to their optimal performance level by repeatedly charging and discharging them. It also has intelligent charging technology and overcharge protection. It comes with an international AC adapter, and short-circuit protection.

The PowerEx MH-C808M is available from Amazon for around $90.

PowerEx MH-C9000 WizardOne Charger

The PowerEx MH-C9000 charger is now our pick for an inexpensive battery charger. This charger has four independent slots for AA or AAA NiMH or NiCd batteries. It can provide charging current from 200 to 1000mA for 4 cells, or up to 1800mA for two cells. Just like the Maha Ultimate Professional charger, each battery is independently charged. It also features battery analysis and refresh functions.

Under testing, this charger has proven itself to be superior to the LaCrosse charger (our previous recommendation) — see the Amazon reviews for the MH-C9000 for more information.

The PowerEx MH-C9000 is available at Amazon for about $50

LaCrosse Technology BC-1000 Alpha Battery Charger

The LaCrosse Alpha BC-1000 Charger has sophisticated monitoring circuitry that controls the charging process, and it is also capable of “reconditioning” batteries by running a series of discharge-recharge cycles.

The charger shows battery voltage and charge status on its digital display. It has four separate charge channels so you can charge one, two three or four batteries at a time – even on individual charge programs. This allows you to test one battery while charging the others. It comes with four AA and four AAA batteries, four battery adapters (which convert AA sized battery to C and D sizes) and a carry case. Note, however, if you want to charge C or D size batteries, you’ll want to get the Ansmann chargers below.

Available from Amazon:

• LaCrosse BC-700 Charger – $36
• LaCrosse BC-1000 Alpha Charger – $60 (same as the BC-700 but includes four AA  & AAA cells, plus the four C + D-cell converters)

The post The Best Serious Battery Chargers appeared first on Reactual.

We’ve researched websites such as V3.co.uk, PC World, Recovery-Review.com, Computeractive, Download.com, About.com, CNET, and PC Magazine. Here is the top rated data recovery software for USB drives:

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Free Edition (Free)

Pros:

• Effective USB drive data recovery
• Ability to perform Windows hard drive data recovery

Cons:

• 1GB limit on recovered data

Top Review Sources:

• V3.co.uk: 4.0/5.0 “An ideal solution for those seeking to recover lost data on all forms of removable media”
• PC World: “EaseUs Data Recovery Wizard Free actually works and it’s not a glorified undelete program like some you’ll encounter”
• Recovery-Review.com: “The program has proven to be a reliable, stable and fast tool”

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Free Edition is a full-featured undelete program with options for USB flash drive data restoration. No matter how you lost the files—accidental deletion, software crash, damage from malware, or even reformatting—Data Recovery Wizard will almost certainly be able to help. This program has advanced capabilities such as sector scanning and file name restoration. The only catch is that the Free Edition only allows you to recover 1GB of data. You’ll be able to scan for and see all the data that EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard finds and can restore, but without spending $70 for the paid edition, you can’t recover more than a gigabyte. With USB flash drive capacities commonly well above 1GB, it is likely you will need the paid edition. However, you may not, and even if you do, there isn’t any investment required to try out this solid performer.

Visit the publisher’s site to download EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Free Edition, as well as EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard ($70).

BadCopy Pro ($40)

Pros:

• Dedicated removable media recovery
• Fast

Cons:

• Only recognizes FAT file systems

Top Review Sources:

• PC World: “If you’ve ever inserted a CD, floppy, Zip disk, or thumb drive only to have Windows cough up an error message telling you it isn’t there, isn’t formatted, or some such, you’ll appreciate BadCopy Pro”
• Computeractive: “If you need to recover a file, it’s definitely worth giving BadCopy a try”
• Dowload.com User Reviews: 3.0/5.0 (35+ reviews)

BadCopy Pro is a dedicated removable media recovery program. USB flash drives commonly use the FAT32 file system. FAT32 allows data to be written and read between Windows, Mac, and Linux operating systems, so it is useful to have removable media formatted with FAT32. However, it is possible to format a USB drive with another popular file system, such as NTFS (used by modern Windows operating systems). If you don’t work with FAT32, look elsewhere for your USB flash drive data recovery software. However, if you are using FAT32, BadCopy Pro is worth a close look. BadCopy Pro is built to restore data on USB drives and other removable media. It works in a few simple steps to scan for deleted or corrupted files, and its interface is clean and simple. If you download the free trial version of BadCopy Pro, you’ll be able to preview the files it finds but not save them. If you are happy with the results, you can purchase the paid version in order to restore your data.

Jufsoft’s Bad Copy Pro is available for download as a free evaluation version, or as the paid, full-featured edition.

Recuva (Free)

Pros:

• Great performance
• Helpful interface
• Free

Cons:

• Some paid programs offer more features

Top Review Sources:

• About.com: 5.0/5.0 “Contains a simple wizard and advanced options – perfect for everyone”
• CNET: 4.5/5.0 “An excellent choice for anyone in need of reliable file recovery”
• PC Magazine: 4.0/5.0 “An attractive interface that you can navigate easily even when you’re distracted by the fear that you’ve lost precious data for ever”

Piriform’s Recuva is a well-known and respected name in the data recovery game. Its main draw is its ability to save data from hard drives, but it also has the capability to rescue USB drive data. Recuva’s friendly wizard guides you through the process in a step-by-step fashion. You will be able to preview your results before saving. In tests, Recuva performs very well in finding and saving lost data. Advanced options included a deep scanning mode, sector-based recovery, and secure file deletion.

Download Recuva for free on Piriform’s website.

The post The Top Rated Data Recovery Software For USB Drives appeared first on Reactual.

By reviewing sources such as Maximum PC, PC World, About.com, Recovery-Review.com, Download.com, and CNET, these are the top rated data recovery software for PCs:

Recuva (Free)

Pros:

• Good results
• Friendly, step-by-step recovery wizard
• Free

Cons:

• Not as full-featured as some paid programs

Top Review Sources:

• Maximum PC: 7/10 “We have no trouble recommending Recuva as our favorite free file recovery app”
• PC World: “If you just want a good un-delete program with a small disk footprint at no charge, then Recuva is what you’re looking for”
• About.com: 5.0/5.0 “Recuva is, without a doubt, the very best free file recovery software available today”

Piriform’s Recuva guides you through the recovery process in a simple, non-intimidating fashion. It does a good job recovering files when you use the step-by-step wizard, and a great job recovering files when you explore the program’s advanced options. Nice features include a preview pane and the ability to re-establish a file’s folder structure. Recuva provides plenty of detail about the files it recovers so you can quickly find the one you are looking for. Recuva also includes a sector-based recovery tool, useful when you’ve had a serious crash and can’t boot your operating system. Recuva’s file shredding tool allows you to delete a file beyond recovery.

Recuva is available for free on Piriform’s website.

Quetek File Scavenger 3.2 ($50)

Pros:

• Superior scanning
• Preserves original file names

Cons:

• Cost

Top Review Sources:

• Recovery-Review.com: “Quetek…managed to create a program that is easy to navigate, even for beginners.”
• Download.com User Reviews: 4.0/5.0 (170+ reviews)
• Maximum PC: 9/10 “If you’re willing to pay for file recovery, this is your program”

Reviewers are impressed by File Scavenger 3.2’s huge list of file types from which you can select to narrow your search. This element is just one example of the program’s robust feature set. You can search very specifically for files in certain areas of the drive, plus you can choose from different scan types—from the instantaneous Quick to the time-consuming and very thorough Long. Its recovery performance is top-notch. You can view results in a convenient tree structure as well as sort them by common attributes like type, date, location, etc. Unlike many file recovery programs, Quetek File Scavenger 3.2 reconstructs original file names, rather than return results that still have the additional characters added by the Recycle Bin.

Quetek File Scavenger 3.2 is available for purchase on the manufacturer’s product page.

Pandora Recovery (Free)

Pros:

• Straightforward interface
• Great performance
• Free

Cons:

• Beginners may be confused by advanced options

Top Review Sources:

• CNET: 4.5/5.0 “File recovery has never been easier thanks to Pandora Recovery”
• PC World: 3.5/5.0 “For restoring files that you’ve deleted from your hard drive, Pandora Recovery is one solid option”
• About.com: 4.0/5.0 “The wizard included with the program is the easiest to use and understand wizard that I’ve seen in an undelete program”

Pandora Recovery’s interface is exceptionally clean and straightforward, yet reviewers are even more impressed with the program’s file recovery wizard. This intuitive, step-by-step guide leads you through the recovery process, anticipating your needs along the way. As you proceed, its interface changes to accommodate your selections. You’ll be able to narrow the search down as best you can before initiating a scan. Once a scan starts, you won’t have to wait long for results. Pandora’s speed is not at the expense of its accuracy, however; the program impresses with its successful restoration of deleted files.

Download Pandora Recovery for free on the official site.

The post The Best Data Recovery Software For PCs appeared first on Reactual.