[WOODY]

WHICH RECHARGEABLE BATTERIES DO YOU USE? I HAVE BEEN USING 7DAY SHOPS OWN BRAND 2600MH BUT I FIND THAT THEY ARE NOT HOLDING THEIR CHARGE FOR VERY LONG . I KNOW THEY ARE NOT THE BEST OR THE DEAREST,BUT THEY DON'T SEEM TO LIVE UP TO WHAT THEY STATE SAYING THEY CAN BE CHARGED UP TO 1000 TIMES.

SUGGESTIONS ON GOOD BATTERIES PLEASE. THANK YOU

[Geir Andersen]

I bought some cheap NiMh 2300mAh batteries from a store here in Norway. Bought them just to test my new BG-E3, and they've been in use since. On average I've shot about half 'n half flash and not and got about 4-600 shots with 6 of those batteries.

As I'm almost exclusivly using my IS lens now and no flash, I'm getting about the same ammount of shots. IS does use a bit of power it seems .

[silkstone]

I can make a strong recommendation for the Sanyo Eneloop batteries - these are 'hybrids' with a much longer shelf life than normal NiMH batteries, and hold 85% of their charge for 12 months. They are more expensive than standard NiMH, but worth the extra especially if you want to keep a charged set as backup.

I actually have 48 of them!

The prices vary a lot - this is the best place I found...

Instant

[WOODY]

THANKS SILKSTONE, I WILL BE ORDERING SOME OF THOSE. THEY ARE 2000MH ARE THESE AS GOOD AS 2600MH OR IS THERE NO DIFFERENCE, I DON'T UNDERSTAND THE RATINGS OF BATTERIES.


I HAVE JUST ORDERED 5 PACKS OF THESE THEY ARE £7.99 A PACK BUT IF YOU ORDER 5 PACKS
THEY ARE £7.40 A PACK OF FOUR .

[Dabhand16]

I use 2700 or 2800 mAh batteries from Keene Electronics. Can't remember the make now and I'm at work so will try to remember to look them up later.

The Eneloop are supposed to be good, but I've not tried them.

[stepheno]

I use 7day and have never had a problem, currently using 2800 and they seem fine.

[silkstone]

Originally Posted by WOODY

THEY ARE 2000MH ARE THESE AS GOOD AS 2600MH OR IS THERE NO DIFFERENCE, I DON'T UNDERSTAND THE RATINGS OF BATTERIES.

The ratings are for how much charge the battery will hold, and therefore how long it will take to run down in use. So in theory the 2000mAh Eneloops have a lower capacity than a 2600mAh standard NiMH. In practice, however, I find that they last at least as long - perhaps because some ratings for standard batteries are a little optimistic! The main advantage is that they don't discharge very much when not in use.

I think it's also a good idea to use an 'intelligent' charger that monitors each cell individually. The Ansmann Digispeed 4 is pretty good, but several others have come onto the market recently. I'd avoid the cheap chargers that do not monitor individual cells - it's easy to overcharge one cell, especially if the batteries start off at different states of charge.

[WOODY]

THANKS SILKSTONE FOR YOUR HELP , I HAVE JUST ORDERED 5 PACKS FROM THE COMPANY YOU GAVE ME THE LINK TO.


THANKS GRAHAM

THANKS STEPHENO

[WOODY]

SILKSTONE, THANKS FOR TELLING ME ABOUT THE CHARGERS, I HAVE JUST ORDERED
A ANSMANN DIGISPEED 4 ULTRA CHARGER. AS I THOUGHT AFTER THE PROBLEM MIGHT NOT ONLY BE MY BATTERIES IT COULD BE THE CHARGER. I HAVE A UNIROSS CHARGER WHICH I HAVE HAD FOR ABOUT 8 YEARS SO I THOUGHT AS I AM GETTING NEW BATTERIES MIGHT AS WELL GET A NEW CHARGER.

[silkstone]

I think that's a good move, Woody. I got the Ansmann charger after frying two sets of NiMH batteries on a cheap charger. When you use the Ansmann you'll see that the different cells can finish charging at quite different times.

[WOODY]

THANKS SILKSTONE, MUCH APPRECIATED

[VinnyP]

Another vote for Eneloops. I have and used to use 2800 and 2850 batteries and they are great if you run them from full to empty in a day. But the eneloops lower self dicharge mean they last longer in actual use. I can recommend the Maha chargers.