This video is about disposable items like these that contain lithium cells and if you see these lying discarded in the street, you pick them up keeping hygiene in mind, because these are handled and put in people's mouths and things like that. But if you were to pick it up in a hygienic manner, you can then scavenge cells and in the early days, the little dinky ones. I've had this one open. You can see it used to be a little 250-ish milliamp power cell inside, but for some reason they've got they've got bigger, they've got they've grown up, and now they contain a very useful 500 milliamp hour cell or higher.

I think this one contains one. That's slightly bigger, so let's explore these and let's talk about them, so i think this may be the most popular one in the uk at the moment. So, let's put these other ones out the side and this kind of thing started because last time i was visiting glasgow, i saw a yellow one of these just lying on the ground and after walking past, i thought oh there's one of those disposable things and i Thought then i said i walked on a bit and thought. Oh, i really want to take you to bits but covid and all that, but i went back and picked it up like that and carried it home, like that, gave a thorough sterilization when i got into the house and then took it to bits.

And here is what i found it came apart quite easily very odd construction. It's got a clear outer shell, which gives a very deep glossy look, and it's got an end cap that comes off. Is this going to come off easily? The other one did? Oh? No. Maybe it won't come off easily, it's notable to say not refillable.

This is not coming off easily. Oh there we go oh right. Okay, so uh here is the assembly sliding out with oh look at that juicy lithium cell. Here's the bit! That's not refillable, but here is the odd bit for a disposable item this bit here unplugs and it's a really simple construction.

They've got the liquid cartridge here for ah the glyco-based drug delivery, thing and they've got gold-plated pins and i guess it's modular. So you know whatever flavor it is. They can put the little uh microphone pressure sensor, cartridge in they can put this universal lithium cell in and then they can get this pre-filled cartridge just basically plug them together and uh slot it into this cartridge and then just put them out. It's designed for mass manufacturer most of these appear to be made in china made and filled in china.

I presume uh, but anyway, let's take a look at this cell. Actually, i can show you the cell, because that's exactly the cell here 8016 hold on. Let's see if there are the same numbers 801640, i went in ebay just to find out initially what the capacity of this was rated at, and i found someone selling these online and they openly said there were some in packs and ebay and they said recovered from These devices um and i tested it and as uh it came from the discarded unit because, like obviously once it depletes to a certain level, people just throw it away uh, it still had a charge in it, but i discharged it and then charged it, and it Came up a good, solid, 500 milliamp hour capacity. I think that's worth putting the test for other things, uh technically speaking, then, if this is a standard circuitry used in the non-disposable ones, maybe you could charge it via those pins and as for the refilling, then i guess yeah.

That's not. You know it's completely reusable to people like us. I mean your average person that buys these isn't going to do that right. Tell you what let's take another one to bits and see what it's like i'm interested.

I believe this might be the second most popular in the uk. A bit tacky they've got a paper label wrap around it. Let's uh see if we can get the end off this. If this is the end, that's supposed to come off, it might not be.

Oh, it is kind of popping out oop, okay, what we got. What we got is a similar construction, all right, okay. Well, there is the the heater. This one is more traditional, hardwired, but there's our cell says 550 milliamp hour.

Now it's worth mentioning that these cells don't have the protection circle on them, uh on traditional cells. Let me see if i can find a traditional cell this one. They have a tiny little circuit board on them, and the circuit board has a dw01 chip and a mosfet dual mosfet, and the purpose of that board is for those uh, normal rechargeable ones. It's to protect the cell from overcharging and also protect it from under charging, because it's going to be reused over and over again.

It also protects it from over current because, if it detects too much current being drawn, it measures the voltage across the mosfets and that uh, if it reaches a certain threshold, will just cut off and uh standby mode until the attempt is made to charge it again. Then it that switches that back off this is very typical. It's a what size is this cell? Does it say uh hgb13, 400 r, so is that 13 millimeters diameter? Let's bring the calipers in and measure that 13 millimeters diameter, let's find out about 12 millimeters diameter. It's just zeroed yeah 12 millimeters timed about 40 millimeters long yeah about 40 millimeters long, so useful, very useful.

This one! What's the cartridge, and course about this because well it is containing quite strong. I'm not going to finger that because it, but this wicking material could be refilled if you wish, but i have to say so far. This geek bar thing looks the most refillable now what about these ones? This one feels really solid. Is this a metal case? I'm not going to demonstrate these because that's not what this video is about.

This video is not about the devices themselves, it's about salvaging the stuff from them, but the market they're aimed at appears to be people who perhaps uh now, let's pop the other end off as well, people who perhaps ooh right. Let's push this out. I will get around to finishing what i was saying there at some point. People who perhaps are used to traditional packets of the old alternative, so here is here, is: is this a cartridge again, it's a cartridge again, but it lacks the plug.

This is just a pure, hardwired thing: 500 milliamp hour again: 21, 10 29. So the lithium cell is this good. Is that the number of this it's about 8.3 millimeters, thick 17 wide and about 30 six millimeters long? Does that really equate to that? It doesn't really does it. 80 1840.

Is that eight millimeters thick 18 millimeters wide and 40 long hold on. Oh there we go eight millimeters thick uh, 18 millimeters wide yeah. There's there's the number. It's a it's a 80 1840 500 milliamp hour cell again.

It doesn't really protection circuit because it doesn't need it because in this case, it's a disposable item. Isn't that outrageous that it's disposable, but i think in this case it's just the cheapest way to do it right. Let's continue what about this thing, i bought these by the way just to take to bits just to assess them for uh internal ribbons this one. What's this cell three-point symbol, 1.8 is at 1.95 1.85 watt hour, which is what it says.

This is another 500 milliamp hour cell. This one is 75, 20, 35 uh, seven point: five millimeter thick yeah, roughly good enough. 35. Yes, okay! So if you kind of needed a cell and this system had your circuit, you had the protection.

This is a viable source. Is this aluminum? No, it's not! It can't be aluminum. I think it's just different plastic. No, that is aluminium, no way that is aluminium.

What an absolute waste. Let's go all eve here: let's go! Oh yeah, that's aluminium, very robust! This one also, then probably feels the same. Smock all right tell you what let's get this one open! It's worth mentioning that these things are clearly aimed at the the traditional users, because they're all really high potency. Is this going to come out easily waiting for one to explode, because these are all brand new and therefore they may be? The batteries are fully charged in them.

Oh, that's something! I could check the battery voltage, but i know pretty well that they will be fully charged. This is not going to easily not come out easily. Am i going to have a little inferno on my hands in a moment, taking things to bits, keep in mind that by the time it's been discarded, it will probably be fairly low capacity. Is it not coming out easily? I think this is another aluminum body unit with the plastic inserted well in is that trying to pull the battery back in again? Oh, it is oh right.

Okay is the whole lot going to come out the other end. Then. Let me pop the little sensor thing out classic little sense that you find in well many types. It's the little one, that's based on a pressure sensor that looks a bit like a microphone right.

Tell you what let's go, try and get this one out! The other end see what happens. Something going to happen is something going to give us is suddenly going to go, bang and burst into flames, don't think so, so that is the wick container right, so i'll try pushing it out from this end. What have we got? So it's using this aluminum again body not as thick as that, one that is chunky, that is a proper extrusion here uh this one's battery. It's got a little pad over here.

What is this one labeled, as is it labeled? Oh, it's kind of labeled, but unfortunately, sticky label is pulling off 500 milliamp hour again 1.85 watt hour uh. What have we got for numbering here? 80, 21, 38, 8, millimeters, 21., yeah close enough and about 30 to say about 30 yeah roughly they allow this size. The terminals as well so there we go um how wasteful, but i guess ultimately for that market, it's just what they have uh so next time you see one of these lying in the street. Just keep in mind, don't walk by.

It may have a useful lithium cell in it. Now i want to use one of these. I want to actually do something with one of them. So one thing that comes to mind is this little pattern for red light that i got a while back.

Uh where's a spudger and it's never worked, and the reason it's never worked is because the lithium cell that was supplied with it is dry. It's obviously had a sort of ceiling problem, but uh the circuit board inside. I already assessed this. Although it's got the protection board.

Oh yeah, i could use reuse the protection board, probably uh. It does have a charge, control chip there and then the passenger for red chips. So tell you what i'm going to implant one of these cells into this uh and see if i can reincarnate this thing, i'm just going to use that little existing circuit board there. It makes sense to do so.

Doesn't it right one moment please that repair has been done so here's what i did. I took one of the existing cells, the one that i salvaged from the one i picked up off the street and i used the existing power control board the little protection board, and i just tack those leads onto the pads on the board, making sure of the Crack polarity and the unit is now projecting light forth nicely, so that's fixed, there's enough stickiness left in the pad at the back to accommodate sticking the cell back in, and i won't click this in at the moment. I can see it is going to fit, but i won't click it in right now, because otherwise it can make large popping noises on the camera, but that is it now. There's a couple of things worth mentioning when you open these things, because they've been used, hygiene for a start, but also they will still contain the chemicals that are used for people to inhale the vapor, the fog.

So just be careful because all these things are aimed at the hardcore people and as such, this is a fairly potent version. It's got quite quite a high percentage of knicker tin in it, so just be, if you it might be wise to use gloves, also keep in mind that, although they're kind of well used the batteries will still have a charge in them, which is quite good. They don't really run them right down to zero, in fact, because they use the standard little chips uh they do that thing that when they get low it blinks the led the engine says you know, that's it finished it's time to recharge, although obviously you can't recharge It, though you could theoretically be these pins if you applied a current limited 4.2 volt supply, i'm guessing if it's the same chip or just go straight on to the lithium cell itself, but that is it it's nice that you know, while i'm not really approving of This i can understand the market it's aimed at uh and certainly they've evolved quite dramatically and they're actually quite useful, and it's just good that you know you can just pick up rechargeable lithium cells off the street um this little cell, incidentally, the one that was originally In that you can see where the seal has failed around one of the electrodes and that's where the electrolyte has just gradually escaped out. So this thing is dried out and is completely dead.

Squirting your electrolyte into it is not in the equation, but that is it. Um, rather than see these things go to waste. If you see them in the street, there is the option to pick them up and uh scavenge them for their juicy lithium cells.