Help! Fully charged AA batteries drained in 20 minutes I just started to get familiar with my Canon Powershot S3 using those 2500 mAh batteries. I wasn't continuous shooting, and within 20 minutes, the "charge the batteries" sign was on, and pretty soon I was out of juice. According to the reviews of S3, a set of batteries will last 550 pictures. Anybody know what's wrong? Is it the charger or the batteries? It took me over 5 hours to charge the batteries. Help! Fully charged AA batteries drained in 20 minutes I just started to get familiar with my Canon Powershot S3 using those 2500 mAh batteries. I wasn't continuous shooting, and within 20... » Read More Help! Fully charged AA batteries drained in 20 minutes I just started to get familiar with my Canon Powershot S3 using those 2500 mAh batteries. I wasn't continuous shooting, and within 20 minutes, the "charge the batteries" sign was on, and pretty soon I was out of juice. According to the reviews of S3, a set of batteries will last 550 pictures. Anybody know what's wrong? Is it the charger or the batteries? It took me over 5 hours to charge the batteries. « Show Less
942147
I have the same problem, these batteries drain immediately after installing them on my camera. Even after I "refresh" using the charger multiple times, or after multiple overnight charge tries.
942148
Could this be bad quality products? Even name brands did not escape this problem. I was cheap once, bought some NiMH batteries from Lenmar and after 2nd charge (brand new), it failed to hold the charge. Returned a large batch and never bought Lenmar again. Maybe it's good now, but I am not going to take another chance with less than name brand products. Beware.
535182
The PowerShot A2300 uses the same battery that most of the other PowerShot models use. (We've got an S90 and an S95 rolling around the house as well..) From absolutely dead to fully charged, the battery is in the cradle for about 90 minutes. On a full charge, my youngest hammered off about 400 shots (sans flash) and a few minutes of video without a problem. Your Mileage May Vary, but battery performance is one of the areas where the PowerShop holds up well in comparisons.
2019288
Hi! I ended up using rechargeable sony batteries... they lasted a long time...and I always kept a spare pair... I didn't want a missed photo opportunity!My new camera has a different kind of lithium battery that needs its own charger... It's annoying because if the battery loses all its charge, I can't just throw in a couple of duracell AA's and keep shooting photos... I have to wait for a recharge ... or buy an extra battery for several $$$ I hope this helps! ps... I also know that cold temperatures really knock down battery life.
777072
For Juli,I just bought 2 sets of rechargeable batteries (Bunny Batteries) with chargers and keep them charged up. If you don't want to go the rechargeable route, buy a 16 or 24 pk of AAs and ALWAYS keep an extra set of 4 in your camera bag. That way, if your camera runs out of power, you can pop another set in. My experience is, they last pretty well.
74684
I've had pretty good success with these batteries. I put a fully-charged battery in my camera before my niece's wedding last Saturday & started taking pictures at the church at 1:30. I took several hundred pictures (don't know the exact count on this battery) and didn't have to change the battery until about 7:30 that evening. I always keep a fully-charged backup in my bag & the second one got me thru the rest of the night, with charge to spare. Hope that helps!
1893354
Hello Amy. I see that you've not gotten a reply yet for a few days. I own the Canon SX130is camera that is nearly identical to that of the next version, the SX150is. I even owned the previous model of mine now, SX120is. THe only reason for the upgrade was to get HD video and stereo sound. Other than that, I loved that camera too. I've not studied the others you are deciding on but just looked them over. THere's not a "night & day" major difference between them. Differences of 2x zoom power is not major IMHO. Frames per second in burst mode shooting is. Size may be a factor too. But I can tell you why I like my camera. A manual flip up flash allows unmistakeable control over the flash and keeps the camera from waisting power charging for a flash that you didn't need for that shot. The option of complete manual settings is a must. And the advantage of using AA batteries gives you limitless flexibility of power. Don't let the negative reviews tell you that you cannot take lots of photos with this camera. If you get some high capacity rechargable batteries and enough for an extra set, you'll be good. Several here have recommended Sanyo Eneloop brand cells. That they come precharged and hold that charge for extended periods of storage time. A friend of mine used them and swears by them. I use Ansmann 2850 mAh batteries (which are higher capacity) and they give me nearly 200 more shots in my Canon SX20is than what is rated in the camera manual.
722700
I bought three batteries but I have not had to use them all. I took the camera and one battery for a three day trip and used it exclusively and charged the battery in the middle of the last day. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0089KJSKQ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
2076554
When I use them I am a heavy user of the battery power. In my T3i camera, using the LCD screen on live view, I've never had one run completely down. I use it with my telescope, and one night at a temperature of about 55F, I took photos from about 9pm to 2am without stopping on one battery. It had about 1/4 charge left and probably would have lasted about 6 hours before needing charging. These are very demanding conditions where I would keep the LCD screen on continuously, take a series of photos, review, deleting several, then repeat.
1817708
I've never timed it, but I went for an extended horseback ride with friends, shooting video every few minutes, for sometimes a few minutes at a time, and never ran down the battery. Did probably a dozen little vids, and still pics, too. I've never run out of battery, but after I've used the camera quite a bit, I put it in the nifty wall charger, so that I don't get out there and find a dead battery. Hate that! Love my camera!
735305
'50+ shots per day and typically could use one set of bateries for each day.' What if your on a tour that lasts 26 days? 26 pair of batteries? I got a Panasonic TZ5 and get over 300 shots between charging the Lithium Battery. I will NEVER buy a camera that uses any type of AA again. SX100 was a horrible camera!
2154692
I've been using the 2000 mAh rechargeable Amazon brand for a month now. They work very well. I did a three hour shoot with two SB910s and one SB800. Approximately 300 shots. Speedlights remained powered on/standby the entire time. When I put the batteries on the charger, they were still almost half charged. The ones in the SB800 were a little lower, but not by much. Go to the following link to see these batteries: AmazonBasics AA Rechargeable Batteries (16-Pack)
1112754
As is typical with most subcompact cameras, the Powershot S110 charges the battery externally in a separate charger. So the battery is not charged inside the camera, unlike a typical cell phone. The charger required for the camera's battery is bundled with the camera. Charging normally takes about two hours.Note that it is recommended by most reviewers to buy at least a second battery for the camera, as battery life is noted to be a bit short.
1358221
The Canon cameras that use AA batteries can use rechargeable NiMH batteries in AA format. In my Canon "A" series camera I use four PowerEx rechargeable AA batteries (2700 mAh). With the setup, battery life is phenomenal. I can take hundreds of pictures with one set of batteries. (I rarely use flash, but I do keep the LCD display turned on whenever I use the camera.) The new SX110 uses only two AA batteries, and I'm wondering how the battery life will be for my type of usage pattern. The SX110 would be very tempting if the disappointments reported for the SX100 have been overcome. The Canon cameras that use AA batteries can use rechargeable NiMH batteries in AA format. In my Canon "A" series camera I use four PowerEx rechargeable AA batteries (2700 mAh). With the setup, battery life is phenomenal. I can take hundreds of pictures with one set of batteries. (I rarely use flash, but I do keep the LCD display turned on whenever I use the camera.) The new SX110 uses only two AA batteries, and I'm wondering how the battery life will be for my type of usage pattern. The SX110 would be very tempting if the disappointments reported for the SX100 have been overcome.
1011371
if you can smell the battery it probably is bad or your overcharging it.. How long you should charge your battery is totally dependant upon how many milliamps or mA it has. If it has 1400mA it will charge much faster than a battery with 2800mA. Now look at your converter, you will notice several things on the sticker that will be affixed to it. We are looking for the output rating on it specifically. It usually says something like "OUTPUT: DC 8.4v 300mA" but changes from brand to brand and model to model. See that 300mA on the charge? That's how many mA its charges per hour so if you have a 1500mA battery and a 300mA charger its just simple math from this point.So it will take 5 hours total to charge a completely dead/new battery to its full capacity. You simply divide the mA on the charge to the mA of your battery and you will get the time it should take to fully charge a completely drained battery. This does mean to set it and forget it though. In most cases your battery has already been charged once even if still new for quality control purposes so you really need to keep an eye on your battery still.
1531013
I have this camera and I use re-chargeable batteries that it goes through VERY quickly. I guess I was spoiled by my Pentax Optio 5 megapix camera which could go at least 4 weeks without having to recharge the batteries.
735308
I too have this concern. Though it's hard to gauge because people all seem to have different standards about what good battery life is. So please, those of you who reply, be sure to specify in some quantifiable terms how long your batteries lasted, what kind you were using, and whether you used the flash or battery saving settings/techniques. Be as specific as possible. Thanks.I see posts by people who were thrilled that they could take 'almost a whole day' worth of pictures. I have a bulky sony DSC-S50 that will take pictures all day for a week without recharging so I'm not sure if I should be impressed by this for a small camera or not. Depends on how many pictures are being taken on that almost whole day. I too have this concern. Though it's hard to gauge because people all seem to have different standards about what good battery life is. So please, those of you who reply, be sure to specify in some quantifiable terms how long your batteries lasted, what kind you were using, and whether you used the flash or battery saving settings/techniques. Be as specific as possible. Thanks.I see posts by people who were thrilled that they could take 'almost a whole day' worth of pictures. I have a bulky sony DSC-S50 that will take pictures all day for a week without recharging so I'm not... » Read More I too have this concern. Though it's hard to gauge because people all seem to have different standards about what good battery life is. So please, those of you who reply, be sure to specify in some quantifiable terms how long your batteries lasted, what kind you were using, and whether you used the flash or battery saving settings/techniques. Be as specific as possible. Thanks.I see posts by people who were thrilled that they could take 'almost a whole day' worth of pictures. I have a bulky sony DSC-S50 that will take pictures all day for a week without recharging so I'm not sure if I should be impressed by this for a small camera or not. Depends on how many pictures are being taken on that almost whole day. « Show Less
1787889
I got like 300 pictures and 5 minutes of video on the alkaline batteries that came with my camera. ... My rechargeable Energizer 2300mAh nimh batteries seemed to be doing about the same. (surprisingly ... I usually get better performance out of the rechargeable, but I may have been using an old / worn out set)