optio 33l batteries depleting

hello, i'm new here, wonder if anyone can advise...

my mother in law has an optio 33l

he has had it about 1 year and as far as i know it has been working fine, however in the past week it seems to have started draining the batteries...

i.e. on inserting a new set (standard AAs) the camera indicate the batteries are 'full, you are able to perform one action i.e. take a shot, then the battery indicator shows them to be half 'full, do one more shot and it shows them as 'low', do anything else and it shows 'batteries depleted' and shuts down...

is this usual? a recognised problems with the 33l? does she just need to use stronger batteries or is there something more sinister afoot?

thanks...

I'm afraid that there is seldom a happy outcome in these cases. It is rarely worth the expense to get a camera like this repaired, and the fault is likely to be beyond the capabilities of an average optimist with a screw-driver (people like me, in other words).

If it is still under a year old, then of course you can invoke the warranty. If it's just over a year old, and you bought it from a local camera shop, get MIL to go in and get tearful. Some women have made a fine art out of timely tears.

If you are using rechargeable batteries, then it is possible they might be the culprit. Try new batteries.

Otherwise, I can offer only condolences, but our resident camera repairer, Kim Coxon, might come up with something more helpful.

G