Comparing Traxxas iD Battery Chargers & LiPo Accessories

Traxxas Dual iD Chargers

First let’s talk about the dual chargers, the EZ Peak LIVE Dual and EZ Peak Dual. The LIVE Dual is the most powerful charger with up to 16 amps and can charge your Traxxas LiPo batteries faster than any other Traxxas charger. It's rightfully the most expensive Traxxas charger at about a $170. Live Dual also features Bluetooth connectivity, so you can use your iOS or Android device to download and install the Traxxas is EZ Peak LIVE app. With that app, you can see all your charger's charging parameters and have full manual control of its operation on your mobile device. Some people love seeing all the real-time data even if they're away from the charger, and some people don't find it that important.

If you fall under the second group, then the EZ Peak Dual will probably be the dual charger for you. It may not charge your batteries as fast as the LIVE Dual, but it still provides up to 8 amps of charged power, with a $120 price tag. One major factor to consider amongst these two dual chargers is that the EZ Peak Dual will only charge two and three cell LiPo batteries. The LIVE Dual will do two, three, and four cell LiPo batteries.

Traxxas Single iD Chargers

The EZ Peak LIVE is the most powerful single channel solution with up to 12 amps of charged power. It's actually more powerful than the Dual we just looked at, and it also has Bluetooth connectivity so that you can receive live data through the Traxxas EZ Peak LIVE app on your smart device. The EZ Peak LIVE is about $110 and will charge two, three, and four cell LiPos.

Lastly, the Traxxas EZ Peak Plus single channel charger is the most basic and inexpensive offering from Traxxas. Offering a four amp charge rate with a $60 price tag. The EZ Peak Plus charger is great for Slash, Stampede, Rustlers, and many other 1/10 scale RC vehicles. It can charge 2S and 3S LiPos.

Traxxas Charger Technologies

The chargers with Bluetooth connectivity and LIVE function have the highest charge rate specs and charge your LiPo the fastest. These Traxxas chargers are compatible with charging 4S LiPo batteries, so if your Traxxas model requires 4S batteries, you're going to need one of these chargers or the new EZ Peak Plus 4S single charger.

If you don't need 4S compatibility, the EZ Peak Dual and the EZ Peak Plus will more than cover your 2S and 3S charging needs. Of course, all these EZ Peak chargers are compatible with both Traxxas LiPo and Traxxas NiMH batteries. You can even charge a LiPo and NiMh battery simultaneously on the dual chargers.

All Traxxas chargers have the Traxxas iD system, so the charger will recognize any Traxxas battery with an iD connector and automatically configure the best charge settings for that battery. These chargers are simple to use even with older Traxxas LiPos. If you have a legacy high current Traxxas connector, you can still plug it in the charger, but for the balanced lead, you will have to remove the little flap on the charger to expose the balance ports. Then manually plug in the balance and charge lead to the charger and set the charge settings manually.

Quick safety note, the balance ports are only there to charge older Traxxas legacy LiPo batteries. Never attempt to charge a non Traxxas LiPo on a Traxxas charger. One last point is that all of the EZ Peak chargers provide two important modes that you should be using. The first is the balance charge, which ensures all the individual cells inside the LiPo battery charge at an equal balanced rate. The second is the storage mode which prepares your battery to be stored away. It is recommended to use this mode if you're not planning on using the batteries for more than a few days.

Traxxas Completer Packs

Traxxas offers 2, 3, and 4S completer packs that include batteries and EZ Peak chargers, and if you're starting from scratch, this is a money-saving alternative to purchasing them separately. Be sure to check the compatibility tab on the completer pack product page to see what models are compatible.

Plus Single Charger with One 5800mAh Battery

Dual Charger with Two 5000mAh Batteries

LIVE Charger with One 5000mAh Battery

LIVE Dual Charger with 6700mAh 2S Batteries

Traxxas LiPo Charging Accessories

Aside from the EZ Peak chargers, Traxxas also offers a couple of different DC chargers that come included with some ready-to-run models. These 12-volt DC chargers generally plug into full-size car cigarette lighters. However, it is inconvenient to charge a battery this way. So Traxxas sells a 40 watt power supply with a standard AC connection that plugs into an electrical socket to remedy this. This makes the DC charger easier and convenient for Traxxas NiMh iD batteries only.

NiMH DC Peak Charger

 

AC to DC Power Supply Adapter

Speaking of must-haves, the Traxxas LiPo cell checker is a useful and easy-to-use device that tells the health and state of LiPo batteries, plus it has a balance function. This device is a great way to check the individual voltages of each cell inside your battery to ensure that the cells are balanced as long as you charge in balance mode, as we talked about earlier. However, the EZ Peak charger will not balance your cells if you use the fast charge mode. And, if your Traxxas LiPo cells have become unbalanced, you can put them on the cell checker, hit the balance function, and the checker will slowly rebalance the cells.

Lipo Cell Voltage Checker and Balancer

iD LiPo Battery Balance Lead Adapter

Cell Checker Balancer with Lead Adapters

To make this work with the Traxxas iD connector Traxxas sells a lead adaptor package that includes three adaptors for 2, 3, and 4S LiPo batteries.* Unfortunately, this package does not include the cell checker and should only be used if you already have one. The Traxxas battery voltage cell checker with lead adapters included would be a more advantageous purchase. The cell checker is a must-have if you're using Traxxas LiPo batteries.