Panasonic CR123 Lithium Battery

This is a single CR123 lithium cell from Panasonic, a 3V primary battery built for equipment that draws hard in short bursts and then sits idle. The pack is marked Photo Lithium 3V, and that 3V figure is the thing to notice: it is double the 1.5V an alkaline AA gives, which is why a camera or a sensor designed around a CR123 will not run on anything else. Lithium primary chemistry is the reason these cells turn up in kit people forget about for years at a time. It holds its voltage steadily through most of its working life rather than sagging away gradually, and it loses very little charge simply sitting in a drawer.

The retail pack points at three uses in particular: smoke alarms, cameras and motion sensors, and that is a fair summary of where CR123 cells live. Film and early digital compacts, flash units, laser sights, rangefinders, compact torches, door and window contacts, alarm PIRs and gas detectors all take them. If you are replacing one, lift the old cell out and read the printing on it before ordering, because a CR123 sits close in size to a CR2 and a CR-P2 and the three are not interchangeable. Anything marked CR123 or CR123A will take this cell.

Each unit is one cell on a blister card. Our minimum order is 10, sold in multiples of 10, which suits alarm panels and camera kits where several devices come up for replacement at the same time. This is a primary cell, so it is not rechargeable; once it is spent it goes to a battery recycling point rather than back on charge. It sits alongside our Panasonic range, which runs from alkaline AA, AAA, C and D cells through 9V and lithium coin cells.

How many cells do I actually receive?

One cell per unit, on a single blister card. The minimum order is 10 units, sold in multiples of 10, so the smallest order brings you ten separate cells.

Will this fit a device marked CR123A?

Yes. CR123 and CR123A name the same 3V lithium cell, so a holder or camera marked either way will take it. A CR2 or CR-P2 holder will not.

Can I recharge it once it is flat?

No. This is a primary lithium cell, not a rechargeable one, and it should never be put on a charger. Take spent cells to a battery recycling point.

Why 3V rather than the 1.5V I get from an AA?

Lithium chemistry runs at twice the cell voltage of alkaline, so one CR123 does the work of two ordinary cells in far less space. That is why compact cameras and sensors use it.

How does it behave in the cold?

Lithium primary cells hold up better at low temperatures than alkaline, which is useful for outdoor sensors, garage alarms and torches kept in a car through winter.

Does the pack print a shelf life figure?

It does not.