On Rechargeable Vs Standard Batteries For Digital Cameras

We've skirted the issue in other threads, but it's now time to address the subject of batteries, rechargeable batteries, and battery chargers for digital cameras. Years ago, I bought a bunch of rechargeable batteries of one size or another, mostly AAs at from $2.50 to $4 each, along with a multi-type and multiple-battery charger. This lasted for maybe two years until I lost most of the rechargeables long before the end of their service life. I decided it was more economical to buy only standard batteries which I did until recently when I bought my Canon S2 IS.

When I first bought my S2 this past April, I bought a bunch of el cheapo Rayovac "Heavy Duty" AA batteries at Walmart. I quickly learned these bottom-of-the-line fresh out of the box batteries would not even power up the camera; at best, all I got was a flashing "replace batteries" message in the viewfinder. I then bought a couple 4-packs of Rayovac Maximum Plus™ which lasted me all summer (maybe 150 images plus a couple experimental "movies").

When I started serious coin photography in September, I bought a 16-pack of Energizer's best (the pink Susan B. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation) for about $10 at WallyWorld. Each group of four lasted about 100 to 150 images depending upon the resolution and compression. The higher the resolution and the less the compression, the faster the batteries were used up and I was using mostly high resolution. What I found, however, was that the "low battery" indicator came on (or, if I waited long enough before changing batteries, the camera shut down) when the batteries were still relatively fresh for just about any other application except for the camera.** After going through three sets of four batteries after about 350 coin images, I decided it was time to investigate the possibility of getting back into rechargeable batteries as a matter of economics.

Beach Camera has a rechargeable AA kit with four 2500 mAh AAs plus charger for $50 (plus shipping): http://www.beachcamera.com/shop/pro...sku=CNACKD55 . This was more than I wanted to pay, so I hit the pavement. After a number of stops at Walmart, Office Max, Best Buy, and a couple other places, I found what I wanted at Home Depot where I bought a packaged Duracell 15-minute charger and four Duracell 2400 mAh rechargeables for about $22. I also bought four Duracell 2650 mAh AA for an additional $9.50. As an alternative, I could have bought a less expensive charger which did the same job, but over a much longer period of time. Since I'm a fulltime RVer with only generator power which is on only a few hours per day, I wanted a fast charge although the slower charge will give a "deeper" and hence longer lasting charge. YMMV. The batteries are NiMH (Nickel metal hydride) composition. I did not find any Lithium ion, Nickel Cadmium, nor other rechargeable battery types for digital cameras. It is my understanding the state-of-the-art of such alternative battery types is at the point where NiMH is the optimal battery for digital cameras, but I'd like to hear others' experiences. I have had the new rechargeables in my S2 for about a month, have taken about 100 pictures, have not yet had to change batteries, so I cannot give a statement of longevity.

One source for rechargeable digital camera batteries (from a Google on "NiMH batteries"): http://www.steves-digicams.com/nimh_batteries.html .



**Battery capacity is measured in ampere-hours. While voltage may be an indicator of battery condition and is the unit most easily measured with a meter, the actual capacity of a battery to operate an appliance is measured in power (watts), but is best estimated by current (amperes = amps) over time as shown on many batteries as amp-hours. (Current can only be measured under load and in series, very difficult to do with a digital camera.) In the instance of AA batteries, only rechargeables show amp-hours (milli-Ampere hours or mAh) on the outside of the batteries. While standard alkaline batteries may have a nominal voltage of 1.5 volts DC (measured range of new alkaline AAs from 1.25vdc to 1.7vdc), they have relatively low current (milliamp) ratings and power output (in milliwatts [volts times amps = watts]) is reduced fairly quickly. Thus, while a battery may show good voltage, it may not have enough total power to operate the camera. Conversely, I consistently measured only 1.2 vdc on the eight Duracell NiMH AAs, but the much greater current output results in higher power for longer periods than alkaline batteries.

Fred