Digital Camera Question

[sandi2005]

I need to buy a digital camera before our upcoming (July 7!!! ) trip.
I think I have it narrowed down, but it takes lithium-ion batteries. How long would they last (all day while we are the parks?) Do people normally take 2 charged batteries with them then recharge them at night?

Another camera that I like takes AA batteries, but I heard that they have to constantly be changed - cameras just drain those?

 

[oogieboogie]

I would go with the one that takes AA batteries. You can get rechargeable batteries for those and get the ones rated 2000mah or higher because they last longer. My Canon S1 IS takes 4 AA batteries and on one set of rechargeable batteries (2300mah) I can use it for the entire day and night including taking flash pictures.

I usually have one set in the charger, one set in the camera and one spare set in my fanny pack just in case I have to change mid-day.

 

[jann1033]

my daughter has a Kodak easy share 4 mgpixel and disposable lithium batteries...the initial 2 lasted about 6 months (they just died last weekend from this Jan. and took lots of pix including a trip to Paris and lots of pix of grandbaby) and were about $10 for a box of 6 or 8 at our local Target...don't think i'll bother with rechargables when i buy mine although i have heard different carmeras use them differently

 

[crow11ad]

WE have a sony cd mavacia camera that takes lithium batteries...Buy an extra battery. Our video camera also uses the same type of battery. You can end up paying a great deal for a battery for the length of time that it uses. Our battery for our digital camera will last about 7 hours +, but we don't leave it on all the time when we use it. The one for our digital is a big battery that will last 11+ hours. To help you out, try this site...

http://www.sterlingtek.com/

Discount batteries and chargers that work. Maybe they have an over night shipping option. Through normal ordering, we got ours in about 3 days. Here is a helpful hint...if a battery comes with the camera and you buy an extra one and a charger...at night charge one in the camera and one on the charger and that way by morning you have both charged for a full day of fun....

Also, remember on most digital cameras you will have to buy the cards, on the sony cdmavica they use mini cd's which you can put twice the amount on them if not more than on a disk.

Here is a link to the cameras in the series...

http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INT...alCameras_CDMavicaDigitalCameras&Dept=cameras

also a pack of 10 blank mini cd's are about 7-10.00

 

[lbgraves]

We had a 3.2 Kodak easyshare until someone decided they needed it our first day at WDW earlier this month. We always use rechargable batteries and I carried extras with us. When we were on the cruise I was taking pictures all day long & they usually lasted a day, or at least into the evening. The charger seemed to wear out after a year so I just buy a new one with four more batteries before our big trip so they are fresh. Thanks to that lovely person, we just bought a new camera! 6.1 Kodak easyshare that uses one of those ion batteries. I am going to get a spare just to make sure we have one ready...especially with anything Disney.

 

[jenjen212]

remember that batteries will lose their time for the length of time that you have the camera on, not just picture taking time. so if you keep your camera on for those "in case" moments, you'll lose time.

but our sony cybershot has a lithium battery. which i like much better.

the battery will last us a few of days, if taking casual pics. it's depending on how long i am using it. but i usually charge it back up every night when we get back to the resort, just in case.

it is good to buy an extra though, just in case you need it.

jen

 

[jenjen212]

sorry, it went through twice for some reason...

 

[mello]

with the info lithium batteries and I've been really happy with it. The battery lasts a really long time - usually even longer than the memory card holds out (256 mb memory stick which holds around 120 pics at 5mp). For casual home use that's several days up to several weeks even. For trips & events, I just charge it up the night before, and it always holds out all day. I am thinking of getting another one - just in case - for our trip. You also might want to think about stocking up on memory card space too!

 

[ukcatfan]

I prefer AAs because of the price. You can get a charger and three sets of 2500 mah AAs for the typical price of one lithium rechargeable. You can also get them much cheaper and easier in a pinch. At WDW the price of a disposable lithium(if it even fits your camera) is more than twice as much as four disposable AAs. At WDW, it is best to go over prepared instead of having to buy any batteries!!!

The one exception is that lithium have a long shelf life. If you are someone that does not take pictures very often then the lithium may be better for you. If you go three to four weeks without using the AAs, they usually need to be recharged anyway.

 

[mac3013]

We have a Sony Cybershot and I use regular old AA batteries, last year I took over 200 pictures and only changed the batteries 1 time during the 9 day trip. If you son't keep the camera on all the time the you shouldn't have a problem.

 

[disboy21086]

I just got a Panasonic Lumix FK7. It's a 5.0mp Camera, and it takes great pics. Bright side of the Camera is that it so tiny, but your not sacrificing quality. - But It only has an LCD screen on it (2.5") so your stuck using the screen the whole day. Which I'm sure would drain the Battery. I'm buying 2 spares for my upcoming trip

 

[DavefanBen]

We have an hp 935 photosmart 5.3 megapixil digital camera, which takes amazing quality photos and, with the proper memory card, can store tons of photos. We've found that rechargeable batteries work the best. If the camera is constantly on, it wouldn't be a bad idea to recharge every night when you are back in the room.

I would say avoid staying away from plain AA's, because they will be drained in no time and your battery bills will be fairly hefty. Our camera takes AA's, so we just bought rechargeable ones. They work quite well!

Good luck!

 

[monorailsilver]

Another vote for AA but rechargable ones. If you use throw aways, depending on the camera they will be garbage after a few pics.

My rechargables last me the whole day of picture taking at Disney but I always keep a spare in the camera bag while the 2nd spare is charging in the room.

I do have a lithium battery for my video camera & I have only had to change that a handful of times & my camera is pushing 10 years old.

 

[bunnyfoo]

For my next digital camera, I'm going to be looking for one that takes AA batteries or just batteries you can buy at the drugstore. I had forgotten to pack my extra battery and charger and had to buy one from a camera store and have it shipped down to the hotel (there were too many possible complications for shipping from my house). It cost me about $130 Lesson learned.

 

[scoutsmom99]

I would go with the one that takes AA batteries. You can get rechargeable batteries for those and get the ones rated 2000mah or higher because they last longer.

ITA My camera takes AA batteries and I have some rechargeable batteries that are 2000mah and they last me a really long time (last fall I went for 6 days not needing to re-charge them!). I always have a back-up set of regular AA batteries with me just in case(I have only had to use them once).

 

[scrapperjill]

We have a couple cameras...well actually a few cameras that use the lithium ion batteries...and I can take pictures for days with all of them...of course the 35mm SLR cameras tend to last longer...but my Digital SLR with the lithium last a LONG time also...then my Sony T1 will last for days...but not nearly as long...maybe because it dosn't have a viewfinder...only the big screen...but still it lasts days. My daugher has a finepix..that uses AA...and she is going through them ALL the time. Myself I wouldn't buy a camera that uses AA....you just go through them to fast..even with the rechargables...you'd still be charging them ALOT more.

No matter what you go with you should have some spares...I always pack my spare lithiums...and will charge them at night (only while were on vacation...just wouldn't want to risk running low)

 

[the kabuki]

Have the sony cyber shot with rechargeable AA batteries and love it. They've lasted all day in the parks for me and the best part is if they do run done, I can always run into any store and buy some regular AA's. Can't do that with Lithium

 

[Ragnrok23]

Sorry this is off the subject, but what do you do with a digital camera on rides that could possible get you wet? I was just going to buy disposible camera's to take to the park for fear of ruining the digital

 

[tlbwriter]

I have a Canon A95 that takes AA, and I wouldn't have it any other way. It's so convenient to be able to buy batteries *anywhere*. I use the special batteries for electronic devices and they last long enough for hundreds of pictures, even though I use flash and my LCD viewfinder. When I use regular AAs, they last less than a day. (Oh, and I did buy rechargeables, but the charger was defective and melted! Haven't replaced it yet.)

 

[jswalker1981]

I am going to get a new digital camera soon, and it is going to be either the pentax optio s5i or s5z. The s5z only has the screen as a viewfinder, so I am worried about it draining the lithium ion battery. So I might get the s5i, because it has both. One of the perks about lithium ion batteries, is that the most of the cameras that use them are mostly compact. In fact, it is so small, it fits in an altoids tin.