FAQ -digital camera battery tip

SUMMARY: Digital camera batteries may lose their charge over time. Don't let under-charged batteries keep you from taking great photos!
If you infrequently use your digital camera, you may think that you after you use your digital camera, recharge your NiMH batteries, wait a few weeks or months, then use your digital camera again, that your batteries will be charged and you'll be ready to snap photos, right?

Oops... Do that and you'll be stuck with a non-functioning digital camera or one that just blinks a picture showing a dead battery.

Rechargeable batteries don't stay charged forever. They tend to lose a little bit of their power every day. If you charge your batteries and frequently use your digital camera, you will probably never notice this loss of power. However, after a couple of weeks, the power loss may be noticeable, and after a couple of months or longer of non-use, those once ready-to-go batteries may have lost enough power to make them unusable.

Don't get caught in this trap. Always charge your batteries before every trip, and make sure to use a battery charger with a sensor that prevents over-charge.

SUMMARY: What does mAh mean when it comes to digital camera batteries?
mAh stands for Milliamp Hour, a technical term for how much power a particular battery will hold. Digital camera batteries with higher mAh values theoretically last longer without requiring a recharge, allowing you to take more photographs before you have to replace your batteries.

It is recommended when placing batteries in a digital camera that their mAh values match. Otherwise, it is possible that one lesser mAh battery will drain before the others, causing extra strain on the remaining batteries or causing your digital camera to not work until all batteries are replaced.

SUMMARY: Ensure you have a backup digital camera battery for long photo shoots.
Many digital cameras support rechargeable AA NiMH batteries. The plus side is these batteries are cheap, available at many places, and non-proprietary. This means that a set of AA NiMH batteries used in one camera should work in another. However, the downside of these batteries is that digital cameras drain them relatively quickly when taking photographs.

To combat this problem, many camera manufacturers, especially in their high-end models, require use of proprietary rechargeable batteries. This way, you may get more than a dozen or hundred shots before having to recharge. While this can be of help when on long photo-taking trips, consider the following:

1. When your proprietary battery runs out of power, that's it. You can't run to the local drugstore and buy some AA batteries to take a few extra photos. It must be recharged before reused.

2. Rechargeable batteries eventually lose their ability to hold power after many charges. When this happens, you're out of luck. Remember the iPod fiasco a while back? These batteries can cost a great deal of money and can usually only be purchased from the digital camera manufacturer or a small number of resellers.

3. If your digital camera becomes obsolete (which can happen sooner than you think!), no one may continue producing the needed battery for your camera. This can mean that a couple of years after your original purchase, a perfectly good camera will be of no more use to you than a doorstop.

So, to prevent running out of power while taking great photos, as you buy your digital camera, go ahead and buy a second battery. While this may increase the cost of your original investment, it will more than make up for itself when you need the extra power to finish your photo shoots.

SUMMARY: To prevent possible damage, only insert similar digital camera batteries.
To prevent possible damage, only insert similar digital camera batteries.

Don't mix different rechargeable AA NiMH batteries together in the same digital camera. For example, don't put in two Rayovacs, one Energizer, and one Duracell. This may damage the batteries or digital camera.

Batteries may have different amounts of power. For example, I have batteries containing the following amounts:

* 1400 mAh
* 1600 mAh
* 1700 mAh
* 1850 mAh

If you put different types of batteries in your digital camera, assuming the camera even works (which it may not), one battery may run out before others do, rendering the camera useless until you recharge all the batteries or insert a new set.

Either make sure you use same brand and type of batteries when inserting batteries into a digital camera, or commit to buying just one type and brand of battery. Even if you do the latter, make sure the mAh powers match.

SUMMARY: Get more use out of your old AA NiMH batteries.
If your digital camera only supports proprietary batteries, see if it also supports an add-on power pack that uses AA NiMH batteries.

If you have many extra AA NiMH batteries from previous digital cameras or other digital technology purchases, a battery pack may be a wise investment. Though a power pack may add a little weight to the camera and cost more than a couple of proprietary batteries, it may save money in the long run if you have plenty of NiMH's that would otherwise no longer be useful in your new digital camera.