Types Of Digital Camera Batteries

June 1, 2008

One of the few drawbacks to a digital camera is the life of the battery. Regardless of the type of camera being used, or how snap happy you are, the electronics inside your camera will eat the batteries faster than the photographer can say cheese. While the type of digital camera batteries being used will have a definite affect on the life expectancy, the type and make of camera and also how it is used will have a greater affect on the batteries life.

Essentially, there are three different digital camera batteries in use for most users, rechargeable Nickel-cadmium, alkaline batteries and nickel-metal hybrid batteries. As digital cameras get ever smaller and their power need increase, research into digital camera batteries that can supply the power for longer use is being carried out by all the to camera manufacturers. While many portable devices such as cell phones and video cameras have the physical space for a much bigger battery, digital cameras continue to shrink and so does the space for their power cells.

Many digital camera batteries, even when the user is not using the liquid crystal display or the built-in flash unit, is powering many other parts of the camera’s internal systems, slowing leaking power from the batteries. Remember that the usual alkaline battery is rated at 2.4Ah, meaning amp-hours, so can power a device requiring 1.2 amps of power for no more than two hours.

NiCad Batteries Leave Power In The Shop

One of the problems with nickel-cadmium batteries is that most of them have lost some of the power before they even leave the shop! These batteries tend to leak power while sitting on the shelf. Even though they will have sufficient power remaining by the use by date on the package its worth trying to pick out a pack with plenty of use by date left.

Even rechargeable digital camera batteries never really have their full charge potential. Anyone familiar with rechargeable batteries understand the built-in memory that allows them to be charged on as much as their internal memory allows. Unless the batteries allowed to go all the way down and recharged two or three times, they will never hold the full amount of power they are capable of holding.

When buying off the shelf batteries you have to be careful that you are getting the correct batteries for your camera, especially if they are the rechargeable variety. There are different ratings for different digital camera batteries concerning the amount of power they hold. Some may be 2.5 Ah and others of the same 1.5 Volt size that are rated at 1.8Ah or less. Always consult your digital camera instruction booklet carefully and if in doubt take it with you and buy the batteries from a specialist camera shop where the manager will be happy to help you choose the right digital camera batteries.