K10D battery problem

Does anyone have battery problem with K10D ? Mine stops abruptly after about 20 shots with fully charged double battery (one new in battery grip) displaying "battery depleted". I've updated firmware (now version 1.31) but the problem perdures. Suggestions will be much appreciated.

Thanks

it really does sound like your batteries may be dead.

How old are they and are they genuine Pentax or another type?
Do you keep them in a warm place?
Are you charging them fully?
Are you spending lots of time reviewing your photos on the screen?

All these things would have an impact.

All the batteries have a finite life and will only take a certain number of recharge cycles. I would try each one separately in the camera without the grip and see how they last then. The faulty one may be determined and then replaced.

With Li-Ion batteries, they should occasionally be fully discharged. In extreme cases, these types of battery if not treated with care, can spontaneously combust!

Part of the reason why laptops and the likes need special handling prior to being placed on aircraft, in order to comply with IATA/ICAO regulations.

It's been standard practice since their invention, that any kind of rechargeable battery should be run down, and down again until it's as dead as it can be before recharging.

In your case Nuri time to pick up a new battery, I'd just go with a cheap 3rd party one, just as good & very cheap.

Well, I've never agreed with the just as good and indeed we've had figures from tests provided in the past. Very few batteries deliver their specification, but the Pentax ones did. The Inov8 I seems to recall were relatively disappointing. Not bad, but not exceptional.

I've not worn out a Pentax Lithium battery pack yet, but I don't shoot the vast number of images that some of us do. I do rotate the batteries in use though and this seems to be enough to keep them in good fettle.

Yeah 'just as good' is bad choice of words in a technical/scientific test sense. However in real world experience they are just as good.

I use 2 cheap Chinese ones (£10 for 2) +1 original in rotation, and in 'real world' use I can tell no difference. For me they are backs ups for the original and given the price vs performance I don't think anyone can have any qualms about them.

thanks everyone for your great comments, .. sure I see pretty more clear know, .. thanks again

Do not fully discharge a lithium battery - you could ruin it! Lithium batteries are designed to be charged mid-cycle.

See here for more info...

and here...

I still have the original battery for my K10D and it can take hundreds of shots on a single charge but I make sure it never fully discharges.

One of the major problems with battery packs is that usually one cell in the stack is slightly "weaker" than the rest which mean that when current is drawn it reverse volts the weak cell.
When fully charged the stack will often show full value, but the terminal voltage drops off very quickly.

This has been a problem with Zinc Carbon; NiCd; NiMH so I doubt if Li battery packs are immune.

Next time your door bell fails and need a new 12v battery carefully open the metal case and take out the tiny cells, you will almost certainly find that 1 or maybe 2 are completely flat and the others are still reasonable. Replace them with a couple of similar cells from say Poundland and you're up and running again for ages.


Bernard

Would second that statement.

Also NIMH batteries do not suffer from a memory effect as did NiCad’s.


Take care.

I use my original K10 battery and it lasts for ages, although I don't always use auto-focus lenses and rarely use flash. I also have two cheap Chinese batteries which work perfectly. I often forget which I have in the camera as I try to rotate them, keeping one fully charged. They keep going for so long it's like owning a digital version of the Widow's cruse of oil!

I too have a spare battery - a Phottix compatible. I can't tell the difference between this and the original Pentax battery.

Phottix seem to get quite good reviews for a cheap Chinese battery. I've bought lots of cheap batteries off eBay over the years with mixed results; Phottix are certainly one of the better companies (or maybe I just got lucky).