*istDS premature battery depletion - a possible solution

Having used the thing for a while, a lot of people (me included) have thrown up our hands in dismay when a new set of AAs put into a *ist discharge so quickly you can almost watch it happen. Mine would be flat after leaving the camera overnight, for example, or a few hours steady use, irrespective of battery type.

I think I've cracked it.

The terminals on the inside of the battery cover are thin brass and are under considerable compression when the cover is closed. This compression eventually flattens them against the plastic of the cover, resulting in a poor contact. I physically (and carefully) bent them back outwards again with pressure of a fingernail underneath them.

No more prematurely depleted batteries! The current set have been in it for almost a week now.