Epson P-3000 (P3000) Questions!

[<AkulA>]

Okay, with my new 5D - 4 gigs just doesn't go as far, especially when I shoot raw! I've been looking into the P3000 for my month long trip to the Dominican Republic this summer.

My main question is, will I be able to load it up with movies and music for the trip over there - then delete some of that stuff without a computer to make room for photos? I'd like to be able to continue deleting stuff off the drive to make room for more picture throughout the trip - is this possible?

[Lazmeister]

<AkulA> : Yes, you can do it all ie. load it up with movies and music, then delete them as you need more space. This is exactly what I did with my Epson P3000 a few weeks ago when I flew from Australia to the USA (5 weeks travelling with the 5D = 30GB for me). But one BIG suggestion: get at least one spare battery! I found that the battery lasted about 6-7 hours when listening to MP3s. But when watching movies (or viewing photos) the battery lasted about 3 hours. I carried one spare battery and found that it was enough for me (I have no trouble sleeping on long flights). The other thing that you should invest in is a good set of earphones (or headphones) in order to get good sound quality. And find ones that are comfortable! Pack a tooth-pick in your carry-on luggage because I found that, occasionally, the P3000 will 'freeze' or 'lock-up' and not respond to any key-inputs; you can use the tooth-pick to press the reset button (or you can remove the battery and reboot - that works too!). This only happened a couple of time when listening to MP3s. Another thing that I found: the quality of the display on the Epson is far superior than on my laptop computer - it is truly awesome!

[rustylewis]

I bought a P-3000 prior to going to Peru. I was there for twelve days. I filled it up in nine (shooting RAW with my 5D). I spent a fair amount of time in hotel rooms sorting through images and deleting the poor ones.

I agree that you need an extra battery or access to power. The battery does not last long when copying files.

I did not use it for anything other than picture storage.

[<AkulA>]

Great guys, thanks for the info! Especially you Rick! Looks like this will be a must have for me! I have a PSP that I've used in similar situations, watching movies and storing tunes. I only have a 1 gig card for it, so I can only compress about 3 movies. Too bad the PSP doesn't have a 40 gig hard drive and a card reader! LoL The P3000 sounds like it will do everything I want tho... I can't remember the last time I've played a game on my PSP! Do you guys have any suggestions for cheap/good aftermarket batteries? (If they exist) I looked at Sterlingtek, and I can't seem to find P3000 batteries there, shame.

Oh yea, thanks for the toothpick tip! Sounds handy!

[Lazmeister]

Aftermarket batteries? Couldn't find any. I ended-up buying an Epson one. Not cheap.

[<AkulA>]

aren't those like $50+ USD($60+ AUD)??!

[Lazmeister]

I paid AUD$97 (! Ouch). But I needed it in a real big hurry and that was the only one I could get in the time-frame I needed. Sucks...

[<AkulA>]

WOW! Batteries are the world biggest rip-off. I worked at a Radio Shack (smaller electronics retailer) and the markup on batteries was insane. Watch batteries cost us 25 cents to make, we sold em for $5 - cordless phone batteries 65 cents, sold them for $15 - cell batteries cost about $2 - sold for $35-70. Such a crock - thats why I like Sterlingtek - much lower markups! (And good customer service!) LoL - Maybe we should put in an e-mail or 2 and see if they can find a supplier for P-X000 batteries!

[Lazmeister]

Sounds like a plan!

But I don't really need any more P3000 batteries... so I suppose that plan has its flaws!

Have a look at the following post, it may help since you're in the Good Ol' USA (I'm way, way Down Under):

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=323003

Cheers,

[Tsmith]

What the aftermarket batteries you can find for the Epson? Anyone use them?

[EOSAddict]

fleabay from HK... got P-2000 battery (same I think?) for about £10 (£20US)

[bigman606]

Something else to know - the chargers (both wall and car charger) for the Sony PSP work perfectly with the Epson P-3000.

[<AkulA>]

sweeeet - thanks!