Battery Life K200
Posted 20/08/2009 - 09:35 - Helpful Comment
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Not sure what the K200D is calibrated for, but new NiMH cells do take a while before they reach their optimum performance
Best for the first few charges to give them a "deep" charge as in leaving them charging for about 12 hours (nice lady at Tantronics told me this)
I manily use Energizer Lithium's in my K200D, been on sale for half price recently in Asda and Tesco and also available in Superdrug for £6.85 for 6
Do also use rechargeables, in fact the very brand you named although they are 2700's.
Last a fair old while, can't say exactly how many shots, but certainly more than 100. Tend to lose their charge very quickly, so I charge them up the day before they are needed
Therse batteries also require a good charger if they are to be as efficient as possible. The Ansmann range is very good, had mine for years and still going strong
I did have a N***N that was wrongly calibrated and the battery level showed low even with new batteris, had a firmware fix for that. Maybe yours is calibrated for Lithiums which it comes with originally and that's why it sees your batteries as having low charge
Cheers
Rich
Best for the first few charges to give them a "deep" charge as in leaving them charging for about 12 hours (nice lady at Tantronics told me this)
I manily use Energizer Lithium's in my K200D, been on sale for half price recently in Asda and Tesco and also available in Superdrug for £6.85 for 6
Do also use rechargeables, in fact the very brand you named although they are 2700's.
Last a fair old while, can't say exactly how many shots, but certainly more than 100. Tend to lose their charge very quickly, so I charge them up the day before they are needed
Therse batteries also require a good charger if they are to be as efficient as possible. The Ansmann range is very good, had mine for years and still going strong
I did have a N***N that was wrongly calibrated and the battery level showed low even with new batteris, had a firmware fix for that. Maybe yours is calibrated for Lithiums which it comes with originally and that's why it sees your batteries as having low charge
Cheers
Rich
Posted 20/08/2009 - 09:49
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i've just got a 200d, but i've had a 100d for a couple of years now and they can get through batteries in the cold weather.
the best ones i've used have been pre-charged type - i have some Hybrios that were fantastic, but are past their prime. i've recently started using Eneloops and they are very good, especially in colder weather when you don't have the luxury of putting the batteries warm from the charger into the camera.
interesting point about the lithium calibration - can you change the calibration on the 200d? i was very impressed with the supplied batteries, they managed over 1,000 shots and lots of messing about with settings and stuff before they died.
L
the best ones i've used have been pre-charged type - i have some Hybrios that were fantastic, but are past their prime. i've recently started using Eneloops and they are very good, especially in colder weather when you don't have the luxury of putting the batteries warm from the charger into the camera.
interesting point about the lithium calibration - can you change the calibration on the 200d? i was very impressed with the supplied batteries, they managed over 1,000 shots and lots of messing about with settings and stuff before they died.
L
Pentax k1000, MX, ME Super, K5iiD 18-55, Tamron 70-300, Tamron 500 mirror, pentax 10-17, 50 1:4, a manual 28, some extension tubes and a bagful of memory cards. That's all i need... and a load of film cameras too... that's it, honest.
Posted 20/08/2009 - 10:23
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Thanks for the replies. I was wondering if a firmware upgrade would help it is very evident that it is a preset cut off, as with many devices because as I say we have a Canon that has no problem but we also have a radio that runs on AA's and it's not at all happy with a nominal 2.5 volts from rechargeables working far better with 3v from dry cells.
Regards
John
Regards
John
Posted 20/08/2009 - 10:46
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Mintsman wrote:
Thanks for the replies. I was wondering if a firmware upgrade would help it is very evident that it is a preset cut off, as with many devices because as I say we have a Canon that has no problem but we also have a radio that runs on AA's and it's not at all happy with a nominal 2.5 volts from rechargeables working far better with 3v from dry cells.
Regards
John
Sorry to upset you John, there aren't any firmware upgrades for the K200d!Thanks for the replies. I was wondering if a firmware upgrade would help it is very evident that it is a preset cut off, as with many devices because as I say we have a Canon that has no problem but we also have a radio that runs on AA's and it's not at all happy with a nominal 2.5 volts from rechargeables working far better with 3v from dry cells.
Regards
John
I use 2300 NiMh cells in mine and have no problems, the fully charged set returning well over 100 shots. Try what's been suggested and if it doesn't improve contact Pentax or your camera supplier about the problem.
Cheers, HG
K110+DA40, K200+DA35, K3 and a bag of lenses, bodies and other bits.
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K110+DA40, K200+DA35, K3 and a bag of lenses, bodies and other bits.
Mustn't forget the Zenits, or folders, or...
PPG entries.
Posted 20/08/2009 - 13:19
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Last week, at my Grandma's 80th, the battery indicator on my K200d showed no charge and the camera would not turn on. Very embarrassing. However the next day, on the same set of batteries, the camera turned on - and showed FULL CHARGE! I have been using this set of batteries for a fortnight since!
I just think the battery management is a bit cockeyed on the K200D. 95% of the time its fine, but I now intend to carry an emergency set of lithium batteries just in case...
I just think the battery management is a bit cockeyed on the K200D. 95% of the time its fine, but I now intend to carry an emergency set of lithium batteries just in case...
Posted 20/08/2009 - 14:15
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I use Energiser Lithiums in my K200D and consistently get 800+ shots out of a set. Never bothered with re-chargeables, it's easier to lug a spare set of lithiums around rather than a charger etc when I'm travelling.
John
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Posted 21/08/2009 - 13:34
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I had a similar experience with all sorts of Ni-Mh rechargables in my K100D, including the loss of power after maybe 100 shots and then erratic behaviour with the camera not clearly decisive whether they're still good or empty. Then I did some research and came across people recommending Sanyo Eneloop rechargeables, so I got a pack of these, and found them to be amazing. Never used anything else again, not even the super high spec close-to-3000mAh rated ones.
They are only rated 2000mAh but they seem to last forever, I had them in the camera for many weeks on one charge. What's even better, they use a special technology for low discharge, so you can leave them sitting on the shelf or in the camera for months and they won't go flat. I think they loose only 20% over a year from self-discharge.
You can find them in many places, like here:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sanyo-Eneloop-Pack-Batteries-2000mAh/dp/B000IDUOQO
I also got a set of generic replacements called 'Instant' with the same low-discharge technology. They are very good too, maybe not quite as good as the Eneloop, but I found them better than all my other rechargeables.
Wolf
They are only rated 2000mAh but they seem to last forever, I had them in the camera for many weeks on one charge. What's even better, they use a special technology for low discharge, so you can leave them sitting on the shelf or in the camera for months and they won't go flat. I think they loose only 20% over a year from self-discharge.
You can find them in many places, like here:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sanyo-Eneloop-Pack-Batteries-2000mAh/dp/B000IDUOQO
I also got a set of generic replacements called 'Instant' with the same low-discharge technology. They are very good too, maybe not quite as good as the Eneloop, but I found them better than all my other rechargeables.
Wolf
Posted 23/08/2009 - 09:58
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Sanyo eneloops are my preffered choice of cells also. I bought one pack about a year ago, and now I got 4 packs of them. They seem to have a good relationship with my K200 I get around 600 shots with a set of 4 (with my grip attached, the number doubles). I use them in my sigma flashgun also, and am using 1 set for almost 2 months now without recharging them...
Other than that, I have good experience with sanyo 2500, but you let them sleep for a week and they are completely empty...
Eneloop, my suggestion.
Other than that, I have good experience with sanyo 2500, but you let them sleep for a week and they are completely empty...
Eneloop, my suggestion.
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Posted 24/08/2009 - 07:40
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I use Eneloops in my flash and Kodak video-recorder. No more dead batteries if you leave it for a few weeks!
Tony
Tony
Posted 24/08/2009 - 08:45
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I'm currently using "Ultimate Lithiums" $19.99 for 4 (Australian) and I have taken 1203 shots and the batteries are still going strong.
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8 posts
17 years
I had a 1st DL until last year and used AA rechargeables without any problems getting superb battery life. I got a K200 as a replacement and using the same batteries got progressivly worse life from them. So I bought 8 new 2850mAh Ansmann NiMH batteries. Yesterday we took a trip on a (steam) train and after 100 or so shots the battery light was flashing yet again and the camera duly shut down. The second set of batteries just finished the day off. Checking the 'flat' batteries this morning they were showing 1.23 volts compared with just over 1.3v for fully charged.
The question is does anyone know what voltage the K200 should cut off at? I've put the 'flat' batteries in my Canon and it works fine.
Regards
John