Batteries for digital cameras - charging?

I just had a Homer Simpson moment.

New digital camera. Ready to buy an extra battery so I’ll be prepared (an old Boy Scout thing … harder to shake than heroin).

So, I’m thinking, cool, I’ll have a second battery, and while I’m out shooting, my extra battery can be … :homer:

To charge, my battery has to be in the camera, and the camera in the cradle and the cradle plugged into the wall.

I’m sure the answer is simple. Please educate me. Thanks.

Sounds like a pain in the arse to me. My Canon battery has a separate charger, so you don’t need to use the camera for charging. In any case, you don’t wan’t to be leaving your spare battery at home, do you? Kind of defeats the purpose of having a spare, surely?

Man, that camera (Casio Z750) takes about one million shots per charge (well, 325).
That’s more than 1GB at 7MP (3.7MB/photo). You’ll most likely never have to use the spare battery.
I used to have a camera that could take over 300 shots with one battery… I’m glad I didn’t waste money on a spare.

My “new” camera (Fuji F810) only lasts a little over 100 shots, so I had to buy a second battery (the brand is “fits FUJIFILM”, “Made in JOPAN” :slight_smile:).
I charge both batteries in the camera, and I take them both with me, although I rarely need to use the spare.

Anyway, they sell an external charger if you really need one.

What did you get in the end S4? Most manufacturers should sell a seperate charger. Ours came free.

Casio Exilim EX-Z750. :sunglasses: (except the battery charging thing)

I have a Canon Powershot A620… it uses 4 AA batteries.

OK, this has been heartwarming and all, but I need someone to explain to me about battery charging options, etc. :help:

If I were you, I’d simply take my battery to a shop and ask them for the requisite charger. RTMart, for example, probably has them – they certainly have the batteries themselves.

This isn’t one of those cameras with AA batteries. It has a proprietary battery (Type NP-40). Probably don’t have those or the chargers at RTMart. Casio itself in Taipei has them for about NT $1,500, but I’m hoping for options and some knowledge from someone who’s juggled multiple digital camera batteries, cradles vs. standalone chargers, etc.

These cheapo chargers can be had in the U.S. for the equivalent of NT $500. I wonder if somewhere in Taipei there is something like “Batteries R Us” (specialized battery store)?

I’m beginning to agree with an earlier poster who said that it isn’t needed/worth it.

[quote=“seeker4”][quote=“sandman”]
If I were you, I’d simply take my battery to a shop and ask them for the requisite charger. RTMart, for example, probably has them – they certainly have the batteries themselves.
[/quote]
This isn’t one of those cameras with AA batteries. It has a proprietary battery (Type NP-40). Probably don’t have those or the chargers at RTMart. Casio itself in Taipei has them for about NT $1,500, but I’m hoping for options and some knowledge from someone who’s juggled multiple digital camera batteries, cradles vs. standalone chargers, etc.

These cheapo chargers can be had in the U.S. for the equivalent of NT $500. I wonder if somewhere in Taipei there is something like “Batteries R Us” (specialized battery store)?

I’m beginning to agree with an earlier poster who said that it isn’t needed/worth it.[/quote]
RTMart has many many different kinds of camera batteries for all the major brands – I got a replacement for my Canon digital just a few weeks ago. I’m sure they’ll also have chargers. It’s at least worth a try.

huh? :slight_smile:

it only takes a few hours to charge. after that, put in the other battery; you’re not going to be draining both of them everyday? no big deal if you don’t have time to fully charge 2; how often are you going to be taking hundreds of photos in a day?

it’s common enough for batteries to be charged in the camera. my sony dsc-t1 is like that; and that’s the one thing I don’t complain about. :slight_smile: everything else on my sony could be better. :slight_smile:

if you want to charge 2 at the same time, get the extra charger. no big deal.

my friend got that same camera today. he loves it. I’ll be getting one sometime, someday.

Some cell phone shops sells this charger thant has adjustable clips that you can adjust the pins to match the contacts on your battery to charge them. You can give those a shot… they cost no more than 300 dollars.

Well ya don’t say! Thought of it as an ordinary department store. Never been in one actually. I’ll have to take a look.

Not to get off topic, but in general, what are my choices in Taipei for RTMart locations (roughly)? Any near an MRT station?

Is it a membership store like Costco or free to enter/buy?

Unless you’re going on a really long trip, you’ll probably fill up your SD card before you run out of battery with the Casio.

If you’re ok with using Yahoo Bid, there are lots of options, starting at NT 130
tw.search.bid.yahoo.com/search/a … 2092076031

If that makes you nervous, Monday.com.tw is a reputable seller.
Charger+battery combo: monday.com.tw/gdsale/gdsale.asp?gdid=53480
Charger only: monday.com.tw/gdsale/gdsale.asp?gdid=67445

A digital camera store will most likely sell it also, but it’ll be probably in the 500nt range just for the charger.

Thanks.

EDIT1: How can the battery + charger combo cost just 60% of the charger price alone? Different chargers I guess.

EDIT2: Any reason to be wary of off-brand batteries?

I asked a few people. No one could tell me what the name of any digital camera stores might be in Taipei. Odd, yeah, I know. I’m not really a camera buff and I can give you a list of 4 or 5 places off the top of my head for back home. :s

So, names and rough locations?

(I know about stores that aren’t dedicated to cameras, like the 3C stores)

One of the reasons would be this:
world.casio.com/qv/support/en/in … _np30.html

[quote]Precautions Concerning Counterfeit CASIO Rechargeable Lithium Ion Batteries (NP-20, NP-30, NP-40)
Recently, there have been a number of counterfeit rechargeable lithium ion batteries on the market that are similar in design and configuration to the CASIO NP-20, NP-30 and NP-40 which are used to power the CASIO EXILIM Series and QV Series digital cameras. Since use of a counterfeit battery can cause the serious performance and safety problems described below, we strongly urge you to use only genuine CASIO rechargeable lithium ion batteries.

Err… double posts happen even to the best of us.

Andre, thanks a bunch for the info.

One more thing:

Older battery types were sensitive to charging times, being stored in the charger, etc. (nickel types). I know that lithium ion batteries (mine) are more hardy, can tolerate partial discharge + full recharge cycles, etc.

However, is it technically safe to leave the digital camera sitting in the charger after the battery is fully charged, without causing any damage? Overnight? Two days? Remaining lifespan?

:wink:

I’m pretty sure the problem is only with removing the battery or camera from the charger BEFORE its fully charged.