Batteries: Digital cameras use up
batteries at an appalling rate. A typical camera uses about 1,000 milliamperes (mA) when
it's running with the display lit up. So if you had a set of 1,000 milliampere- hour (mAh)
batteries in the camera, you could figure on getting about an hour of running time out of
them. 500 mAh batteries would give you half as much time, and so on. Alkaline batteries
are the sole exception to this handy rule of thumb: they have high mAh ratings, but
deliver very short operating times. With that in mind, let's look at your choices:
- Nickel metal hydride (NiMH): These are the highest-capacity rechargeable
AAs and generally the best ones to get for a digital camera; a set of NiMH batteries (even
low-cost ones) should be good for an hour or two of continuous use.
- Nickel cadmium (NiCd): These are the most commonly available rechargeable
batteries. Common NiCds have roughly half the capacity of NiMH cells, but the cost is a
lot lower.
- Lithium: These nonrechargeable batteries are not cheap But they pack a
punch: roughly 2,100 mAh, or better than two hours' worth of normal operation in most
digital cameras. Their big advantage aside from capacity is long shelf life: up to ten
years. For that reason, lithiums make great emergency spares.
- Alkaline: These are the most common nonrechargeable batteries. They're
cheap , but they don't do too well in the QuickTake 200/Fuji DS-7: with these cameras'
high drain, a set of four alkaline AAs may only last fifteen to twenty minutes, despite
their high power rating.
- Rechargeable alkaline: There is only one specimen of this peculiar
beast: Rayovac's "Renewal" battery. It's an 1,800 mAh alkaline battery that can
be recharged--but only a dozen or two times. Where typical NiCd or NiMH rechargeables will
last through hundreds or even thousands of charges, Renewal batteries can be used at most
25 times; then you throw them away.
|
Sony_Digital_Cameras
Kodak_Digital_Cameras
Canon_Digital_Cameras
Olympus_Digital_Cameras
Fuji_Digital_Cameras
Nikon_Digital_Cameras
About
Contact Us
Links
|
