Why does my camera keep running new batteries down?

Question

It just runs out. Brand new batteries. The camera says that the batteries are low.

Answer 1

is your camera digital? if so how many mega pixels? the more mega pixels the faster its going to drain your batteries. I would get energizer rechargeable batteries. I have an 8 mega pixel camera and those rechargeable batteries seem to go on forever. and its cheaper in the long run

Answer 2

Normal alkaline batteries just don't do it for digital cameras because of the high instantaneous current required to run a digital camera. (This includes all batteries such as "Duracell" and "Super Heavy Duty" etc) These types of batteries will appear to the camera to be flat even when they aren't because they just don't have the capacity to give the camera what it wants.

Some places still sell rechargeable Nickel Cadmium Batteries (NiCd), and these batteries cannot cut it for digital cameras. There are also rechargeable alkaline batteries and these aren't great either.

The only type of rechargeable to get is Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH), and the higher capacity the better. This capacity is typically rated in milliamp hours. A medium capacity battery for a camera will have say 1600 MAH whereas a high capacity battery will have more than 2000 MAH. Some even go as high as 2600 MAH. Get the highest that you can.

One downside is that NiMH batteries go flat in the camera if you do not use them. In a camera that uses 2 batteries, this can happen in as little as a week.

My advice is get a couple of sets of high capacity NiMH rechargeable batteries (2000 MAH or higher) and use these as much as possible. Also however buy one or two sets of Lithium batteries (non rechargeable) these last a long time but are wickedly expensive. Have one set of lithiums for backup in case you need the shot but the rechargeables are all flat. Soon as you can put freshly recharged batteries in and again keep the lithiums in reserve. Unused lithium batteries will last for years.

Many cameras have a menu setting which can flatten the batteries for you prior to recharging. ONLY IF you are using NiMH batteries is this a good idea. Vendors tell you that NiMH are not prone to "memory effect" and therefore do not need to be totally flat before being recharged, but this is not true. NiMH bateries should be discharged before being recharged. If the camera can't automatically discharge them, then keep using the camera until it won't go anymore, then recharge them.

Hope this helps.

Answer 3

Some cameras do, period.
The way to live with it to take out the batteries when the camera is not in use.

The same batteries in one camera will be low in a day, but in an other camera stay good for weeks.

If you can not take out the batteries without loosing info you should have it checked.
I own several cameras that empty batteries, and several that do not, and I know a lot of people having the same problem.

Some of the cameras that empty batteries are even good brands that are rather expensive, it does happen more often with cheaper cameras, but some cheapies do not have the problem.

Answer 4

Do you have an optical viewfinder? Turn off the monitor and use it if you do. LCD monitors are battery hungry devices. The longer you leave it on, the quicker the batteries will drain. If you don't have an optical viewfinder so you MUST use the monitor, set it to turn off after the minimum time offered, such as 5 or 10 seconds. Don't spend too much time reviewing your pictures on your camera. Save that for the computer when you can use a card reader and not drain your camera batteries.

Rechargeable batteries are certainly the best, but if you do not use rechargeable batteries, get Energizer e² LITHIUM batteries (or the Duracell equivalent) and you will get much better battery performance. They cost twice as much as alkaline batteries, but they last four times as long.

Answer 5

Aside from using cheap batteries, if your camera has only the LCD view finder it runs down the batteries quite quickly, try to limit your use of the LCD if possible. Using the flash a lot can also drain your batteries surprisingly fast. As others have said, it would probably do you good in the long run to spring for some rechargeable batteries.

Answer 6

If you are using ordinary batteries, they will run down very quickly.

You need to change to Lithium batteries. You can get them about anywhere now (I buy mine at WalMart). They are more expensive than a standard batteries (about $6 for two AA batteries) but well worth it.

My digital camera takes 2 AA batteries. When I first bought it, I went through 9 sets of Duracell AA batteries on our 4 day vacation. Yikes !! Once I got home and did a bit of research, I tried the Lithium AA. They lasted about 5 months before I had to replace them. Huge difference !!!!!

Good luck

Answer 7

It usually depends on which type of batteries you are using. If you are using a cheap brand, they will be gone within a few short mins. Also, the view screen (when not using the eye view finder) really sucks up the juice. Try not to preview your photos on the camera too much and get the special lithium batteries for cameras or just try Duracell or Energizers. I have found these to be best!!

Answer 8

If you're using standard alkaline or even regualr batteries they will stop working in a digicam after a short period of time.

The wierd thing about it is the batteries are not dead and will work well in other devices (like a flashlight) that don't require a lot of power even if they don't work in your camera.

The solution is to get rechargable Nickel Metal Hydride (NIHM) batteries and a charger. They don't cost much more than regular batteries and can be recharged 500-1000 times.

You will want batteries that are rated at least 2500MA. Here's a link to a charger and four batteries for $40.

http://thomasdistributing.com/shop/-maha-mhc204w-white-world-charger-kit-combo-brincludes-four-2700mah-aa-maha-batteriesbr1-free-maha-deluxe-travel-bag-br1-free-8-cell-and-1-four-cell-battery-holder-p-570.html?SP_id=&osCsid=a27e6dcc2b3b5d117a045ae3f22b0d4d

You will want to purchase 3 times the number of batteries the camera needs so you can have one set in the camera, one in the charger charging and a fully charged set extra.

Answer 9

you will possibly be using your batteries to get carry of the photographs on your pc wherein case this runs batteries down very immediately. attempt using your exterior capability source for doing this. different than that, get some new rechargeable batteries and spot in case you get an prolonged time.

Answer 10

extremely tough matter. try searching with bing and yahoo. this may help!