A70 & NiMH batteries

[GoldenOlive]

A friend has found after using up his 1.5v Alkaline batteries & putting in 1700MaH NiMH of 1.2v that he is getting LoBat very soon after the NiMH [fresh charged] go in.

Is the problem the 1.2v of the NiMH & he should be using 1.5v NiMH?
Thanks

[jgillard]

The NiMh batteries have to go through a few charge/discharge cycles before they hold their full charge. Im fairly sure that all NiMh batteries are 1.2V

[latif38]

I have the same problem with A60 but not with rechargable batteries. Any battery I have tried (all 1.5 V) gives me immediately low battery sign. I bougt it about a month ago. I am planning to send the camera to repair if I don't resolve this soon.

[Logan]

Most regular alkaline AA batteries will not work in most digital cameras. They don't release and recoup their charge fast enough. The alkalines are probably still good however they are not meant for high-drain devices such as digital cameras. Most places recommend NiMH rechageables and as you've put it, "I don't see any problems using NiMH". And that is correct. Alkalines are no good, period. This is not a defect in the camera. It is a defect in the 60+ year old alkaline battery design. Digital cameras are not designed to work with standard AA alkalines however the newer alkalines such as Duracell Ultra will.

If you value your money and snapshot opportunities, only use NiMH rechargeables. They are cheaper by far over time.

Good Luck!

[yufufi]

I bought 4 duracell ultra m3 aa type alkaline batteries. After making about 170 shots, change batteries sign appeared and camera closed itself.
Batteries have "duracell powercheck" on them. And they seem to be about 70% full ??

[dgcohen]

logan wrote:
Most regular alkaline AA batteries will not work in most digital cameras. They don't release and recoup their charge fast enough. The alkalines are probably still good however they are not meant for high-drain devices such as digital cameras. Most places recommend NiMH rechageables and as you've put it, "I don't see any problems using NiMH". And that is correct. Alkalines are no good, period. This is not a defect in the camera. It is a defect in the 60+ year old alkaline battery design. Digital cameras are not designed to work with standard AA alkalines however the newer alkalines such as Duracell Ultra will.

If you value your money and snapshot opportunities, only use NiMH rechargeables. They are cheaper by far over time.

Good Luck!

I agree, but your response isn't to what the original post said. I think the original poster may have a camera problem.
Dave Cohen

[maumari]

I've noticed a sensible increment in battery consumption comparing my previous A40 with my new A70. I tried even the same rechargeable batteries, instead of the new 2000 mah. With 1800 mah, no flash use, I can take approx 160 shots with A40 (with display on) but no more than 50 shots with the A70 (!!!).
Does anyone suspect any trouble with it?
Moreover, but i'll post another message, the A70 seems to have more (a lot) difficulties in focusing than the A40...

[Sasquatch]

Hmmm I just bought this camera and I use Camelion 2000 mAh AA cells.

I'm able to shoot about 200 pictures with LCD on + flash + some movies.. actually I'm still taking pictures with this first charge of my batteries (charge them at 2 Amps for 1 hour. I have an Ansmann sharger and a 8 x AA cell adapter...

I have used the playback feature alot too... I'm very surprised om the battery capacity of these cells + the apparently low power use of the A70...

But yes. NiMH's get better and better for the first few charges...

Perhaps I'm just lucky....

[Andrew C Cooper]

I believe the first post was right. Sometimes, but not all the time, some Nimhs need a few cycles of recharging, discharging before they will hold a full charge. It seems the higher the Mah, the more likely this will be needed.

I just got some 2100's off of Ebay and it took three charges-discharges before they really started to shine. That is what I like about my Maha 204 charger.

But also you need to understand that some chargers, just don't charge as advertised, and some "quick" chargers are really "fast" chargers. Quick being one hour, and fast between 1-3 or more hours.

Hope this helps.

[gdw77]

Hi. I'm new here... and totally new to digital cameras.

May I ask a somewhat related question? I just purchased an A70, and I'm trying to figure out what batteries to get. Will the A70 work with any brand of NiMH batteries, e.g. Energizer? The booklet says that you must use Canon AA NiMH batteries. So if I get NiMH, do I really have to use Canon? Or are they just trying to sell more Canon products?

Thanks.
Kathy

[warrenpass]

Canon are trying it on!

I use 3rd party batteries and have had no probs.

Welcome to the fast growing A70 owners club. Since buying mine a month ago 4 of my colleagues at work have bought one and 2 are considering it.

The A70 rocks!!!

[stduc]

GoldenOlive

I think your friend may well have a camera problem - but before you take it back, just check that the NiMH batteries were fully charged in an NiMH charger - a NiCad charger will not re-charge NiMH batteries properly. Also, were they new NiMH batteries? I have had an A20 for 2 years and an A70 for a couple of weeks. I have had no trouble using NiMH batteries, but have noted the following with my A20.

1. You need better than 1500mAh bats to get a days shooting. (100 + shots - some flash, display mostly off) I only get about 20 shots with some 1200mAh batteries I have now retired.

2. They don't last long if last charged a week or so before using.

3. They get better after every re-charge (well they have so far!)

4. They last twice as long if fast charged. (I have two chargers) {And they don't seem to mind that the fast charger (2 hours) makes them very hot!!!}

I now have some 2200mAh batteries that will shoot 300 shots in the A70 with the display on all the time. In fact I think the A70 must use a lot less current than the A20. (And these aren't 'run in' yet)

Also, a couple of times the camera (A20) shut down on me and as I had no spare batteries I just opened the battery door and re-closed it and got another 50 or so shots! - I've no idea why - but it seems to work.

[dgcohen]

stduc wrote:
GoldenOlive

I think your friend may well have a camera problem - but before you take it back, just check that the NiMH batteries were fully charged in an NiMH charger - a NiCad charger will not re-charge NiMH batteries properly. Also, were they new NiMH batteries? I have had an A20 for 2 years and an A70 for a couple of weeks. I have had no trouble using NiMH batteries, but have noted the following with my A20.

1. You need better than 1500mAh bats to get a days shooting. (100 + shots - some flash, display mostly off) I only get about 20 shots with some 1200mAh batteries I have now retired.

2. They don't last long if last charged a week or so before using.

3. They get better after every re-charge (well they have so far!)

4. They last twice as long if fast charged. (I have two chargers) {And they don't seem to mind that the fast charger (2 hours) makes them very hot!!!}

I now have some 2200mAh batteries that will shoot 300 shots in the A70 with the display on all the time. In fact I think the A70 must use a lot less current than the A20. (And these aren't 'run in' yet)

Also, a couple of times the camera (A20) shut down on me and as I had no spare batteries I just opened the battery door and re-closed it and got another 50 or so shots! - I've no idea why - but it seems to work.

Two points, first I don't like to see batteries get very hot, they don't in my 2-3 hr charger. I'm not claiming this is harmful, just don't like it.
Second, when your camera shut down, were you in the process of heavy usage, ie taking a number of shots in a row. Perhaps this caused a temporary lower than normal voltage which recovered when you re-inserted the batteries.
Dave Cohen

[stduc]

Perhap's I shouldn't have userd the word hot - perhaps 'very warm' would be a better turn of phrase. if you asked me to guess a temperature - I'd say blood heat + a tad! Also if I leave the batteries in the charger overnight they are cold in the morning. They are only warm if I get them out the moment the green light comes on.

[72dpi]

I haven't changed the canon battery that came with my A40. Already took atleast 180 shots. I'm planing to use eveready long life GOLD (alkaline) when the original batteries gets used up. I can't find those recharable ones from were I live.