Thermal images of a Mega

dkl65:
I wished that there are cheap, rechargeable, common, high capacity 5V batteries so that I can bypass the regulator on the Arduino and save power!

Four rechargeable 1.2 volt cells (NiMH or NiCd generally) in series will give you 4.8 volts, which many people have used without a problem (YMMV)...