Charging G1X via camera jack not possible?

I am on holiday and decided to take my G1X as the main camera to save on weight and bulk. Although I got 2 extra batteries I figured I would charge the batteries in the camera via a USB cable and use my phone USB charger to do the charging. I was trying to be efficient! I have just found out that unlike many cameras the G1X cannot be charged while the battery is in the camera and needs the special charger it comes with. Why is that It would seem a very easy thing to allow charging via camera and on many occasions it could be very useful!

spear wrote in post #16147083
I have just found out that unlike many cameras the G1X cannot be charged while the battery is in the camera and needs the special charger it comes with.

Many?....

Your G9 and G11 also do not charge via USB, so why would the G1X? Did you read the user manual?

Dennis

I'm puzzled.

Your list of kit implies some degree of knowledge and expertise. I assume you checked the voltage and amperage available from the charger and the demands of the battery - if your work-around HAD worked, you did risk either a fritzed battery, or charger, or both. Nothing beats due diligence before purchase.

I reckon charging battery in camera is a non prefered from Canon. To much of a risk, wrong amperage could create extra heat which could frizzle the camera.

The USB connector already has a reasonable current limit that would negate most overheating issues.

Charging from the 5 Volts available from the ubiquitous USB connector is a feature that could be relatively easily accommodated, Canon just has not got around to it yet.

You are seeing this accommodation more and more on all sorts of devices. Canon and other camera manufactures will eventually feed at this trough.

Enjoy! Lon

I usually carry the camera charger along with a bunch of extra batteries. Just before going to the airport my wife pulled out several Canon chargers but they were all for different batteries. I figured it was no big deal and I would save space and I have been using the HD HERO cameras a lot lately and with that camera I download the videos and camera gets charged via USB simultaneously. Somehow that seemed natural as the USB carries enough voltage to charge the camera. I think it would be very easy to implement charging via USB cable, but I guess Canon wants to isolate any warranty problems to the camera that might be caused by the charger. This is probably a decision made by the lawyers rather than engineers. Anyway I bought a Lemix charger from Amazon UK and it works great!

http://www.amazon.co.u​k …10L%29+travel+c​harger+for

FlashZebra wrote in post #16156252
The USB connector already has a reasonable current limit that would negate most overheating issues.

Charging from the 5 Volts available from the ubiquitous USB connector is a feature that could be relatively easily accommodated, Canon just has not got around to it yet.

You are seeing this accommodation more and more on all sorts of devices. Canon and other camera manufactures will eventually feed at this trough.

Enjoy! Lon

Camera batteries need more than 5 Volts in order to be charged. How do you get around that?

The charger is a small piece of plastic that weighs nothing. The mind boggles, it really does.

spear wrote in post #16147083
I am on holiday and decided to take my G1X as the main camera to save on weight and bulk. Although I got 2 extra batteries I figured I would charge the batteries in the camera via a USB cable and use my phone USB charger to do the charging. I was trying to be efficient! I have just found out that unlike many cameras the G1X cannot be charged while the battery is in the camera and needs the special charger it comes with. Why is that It would seem a very easy thing to allow charging via camera and on many occasions it could be very useful!

It takes a lot more juice to power a camera, especially a zoom lens camera than your cell phone does. It probably wont be happening unless they switch to tiny batteries that allow about 25 shots before you recharge. Not very practical. And even then they would probably have to eliminate the motorized lens.

hemmings wrote in post #16715323
The charger is a small piece of plastic that weighs nothing. The mind boggles, it really does.

The mind boggles ?? Well if you have several cameras ... all with different size batteries and of course each battery needs its own special charger even though they are from the same manufacturer ... that is what boggles the mind! It is a real PIA to have to keep up with every single charger that is specific to every single camera. Maybe if you have only one camera in your house it might seem trivial, but I am pretty sure people who have several cameras and have to locate different chargers for different cameras have thought it to be annoying. Being able to simply plug the camera into a USB plug and have it charge would certainly be useful although I can understand that it is not feasible due to technical reasons. I have several GoPro cameras that are able to charge via camera but of course their voltage requirements are much less than G1X. I have looked at the possibility of getting a "universal charger" but don't know if it is a good idea. Anyone try something like this

http://www.amazon.com …c-DMW-BCG10/dp/B005IS57ZC

I have several different cameras, from Canon to Olympus to Sony.
As for your inability to take a small square piece of plastic along, yes, the mind still boggles.

spear wrote in post #16733305
The mind boggles ?? Well if you have several cameras ... all with different size batteries and of course each battery needs its own special charger even though they are from the same manufacturer ... that is what boggles the mind! It is a real PIA to have to keep up with every single charger that is specific to every single camera. Maybe if you have only one camera in your house it might seem trivial, but I am pretty sure people who have several cameras and have to locate different chargers for different cameras have thought it to be annoying. Being able to simply plug the camera into a USB plug and have it charge would certainly be useful although I can understand that it is not feasible due to technical reasons. I have several GoPro cameras that are able to charge via camera but of course their voltage requirements are much less than G1X. I have looked at the possibility of getting a "universal charger" but don't know if it is a good idea. Anyone try something like this

http://www.amazon.com …c-DMW-BCG10/dp/B005IS57ZC