Samsung 15M - high drain 18650 Li-ion cell's capacity test (1500mAh / 23A)

Samsung INR18650-15M is a 1500mAh Li-ion cell of 18650 size which supports continuous discharge at up to 23A. It's a direct competitor for two 1500mAh high drain cells from LG i tested earlier - HB4 and HB6.

Samsung INR18650-15M Samsung 15M Li-ion battery capacity test

The battery was bought from my reliable supplier (Queen Battery) and tested with ZKETECH EBC-A20 and a self-made battery holder. It's a PC-connected battery tester supporting 4-wire measuring and discharging at up to 20A.

I've used version 3.0 of my battery holder based on 0.5mm thick pure copper terminals

I've followed all the prescriptions of the IEC61960-2003 standard concerning battery's capacity measurement. Before each discharging cycle each battery was charged at standard charge current mentioned in its datasheet to charge end voltage. Before each discharging or charging i've held a 1-1.5hrs pause. The environment temperature was 23.0-24.5°C. To be sure in results i've done each test minimum twice (usually 3-4 times).

Samsung INR18650-15M

The cell is marked as INR18650-15M M SAMSUNG SDIEM 121.

The main specs from Samsung 15M datasheet (pdf):
Nominal capacity: 1500mAh
Minimum capacity: 1450mAh
Nominal voltage: 3.6V
Standard charge current: 0.75A (0.5C)
Maximum charge current: 4A
Charge cut-off current: 100mA
Charge end voltage: 4.20V
Max. continuous discharge current: 23A
Discharge cut-off voltage: 2.5V
AC impedance at 1KHz: ≤25mΩ
Max weight: 45g

Measured initial DC IR at 1.5A in fully charged condition was 13±2mΩ

Measured weight of the tested cell was 42.16g

Samsung 15M capacity test results:

At 0.2C Samsung 15M's capacity was 41mAh higher than the 1500mAh declared and energy was a bit lower than 5.8Wh. At all discharge rates the curves were beautiful and without sags. At 20A discharge 15M's capacity still remained above 1400mAh and energy was above 4.5Wh.

Now let's compare Samsung 15M with LG HB4 and HB6:
At 15A:
LG HB4 (2.5V cut-off): 1402mAh / 4383mWh
LG HB6 (2.0V cut-off): 1495mAh / 4806mWh
LG HB6 (2.5V cut-off): 1470mAh / 4748mWh
Samsung 15M (2.5V): 1428mAh / 4732mWh

At 20A:
LG HB4 (2.5V cut-off): 1396mAh / 4238mWh
LG HB6 (2.0V cut-off): 1506mAh / 4611mWh
LG HB6 (2.5V cut-off): 1472mAh / 4534mWh
Samsung 15M (2.5V): 1415mAh / 4555mWh

LG HB6 takes the cup not only at 2.0V but also at 2.5V cut-off. Only at 20A rate and 2.5V cut-off its energy is lower than 15M's. Nevertheless 15M's curves i liked more and its average voltage was higher at all rates.

Here is the video version of this review:

Check out my YouTube channel for batteries, chargers and other stuff reviews.

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