Help - My DL has Died

My DL has died. Despite fresh batteries the camera indicates that the batteries are empty and nothing works. Before sending it off for repair has anyone had a similar problem and if so what was the solution ?

Did it show any previous symptoms? Have you checked the battery polarity? I know that sounds so obvious but...

What sort of batteries are you using?

I have a K100d body with similar symptoms; even with fresh lithium or fully charged NiMH batteries, it powers up briefly, but as soon as I try to fire the shutter, it reports that the battery has died and powers off.

A bit of googling suggested two possible causes:

- Calibration error with the voltage regulator on the main PCB (fixed by replacing the main PCB)
- Failed aperture control unit (the bit that stops down the lens when the shutter is fired)

I think the latter was more likely in my case as the camera appeared to work until actuation of the shutter. Either way, a repair didn't sound economical and I got a replacement. I still have the old one though, so I'd be interested to hear how you get on.

Previous symptoms (two days ago); fully charged batteries showing as half empty.
Yes, I did check and double checked the polarity. I have been using 7DAY Shop rechargeable batteries which I have done so for a long time. But today I put in some new Duracell rechargeables with the same result.

sorted78 I'll keep you posted if I get it repaired. It may not be worth while.

Thank you both for your swift replies. I am off on holiday tomorrow but luckily I have a spare camera.

I know the issue first hand and research led me to these two videos on Youtube. So have a look at these. They relate to a K-x but the same issue seems to apply:

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBmLxdUlkW8

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLPKgoG76bw

Try using new lithiums to initially resolve the power issue and suggest Eneloops to replace your current rechargeables (it could be that one or two of the rechargeables has gone bad.)

Are you using the latest firmware, v1.02?

John

I have had rechargeables "die" on their very first charge. Not worth taking the dead ones back when they were bought in Carrefour (Cherbourg, probably).
"Old ones" can die quite fast when their life is up - great today, tomorrow they go into the box of dead stuff to haul to a retailer and tip into his collection bin.
Typically, the spec will say "good for 100 recharges" or something similar. So, without keeping a record, how do you know that a given battery has not failed on the 99th recharge, while the next one will have lasted to the 115th recharge.
I use a charger from the 7-Day Shop that shows (crude bar chart) what is happening to each individual battery. This gives a warning that an individual battery can be about to fail. Dubious ones get labelled, and put on one side for use in non-critical applications (torches and LED lamps, etc).
Since most rechargeables will go right down over a few days, the question now is: "Do you recharge when it goes flat - or just before you want to use it?" Personally, I went from the first method to the second; then I went back to lithium batteries.
Geoff

Problem solved. The new rechargeable batteries needed charging. How embarrassing. Many thanks for all of your suggestions.

I'm glad it turned out well, so often we all miss the obvious