[d94]

im looking to buy a digi cam in the $200 field preferable 4mp that doesnt take AA batteries. Yesterday i went to officedepot and bought a Hp M407 cam. this morning i asked my dad abought it and he said i dont want 1 that takes AA batteries because it will eat em up specialy if i use the flash! The main thing ill use this camera for is taking pictures of houses (for realestate agents) and the gerneral stuff you'd use a camera on, like the crazy stull ill be doin in 2 weeks while on im spring break

[Graphicism]

Try get your hands on the Panasonic FZ1 with Lumix 12x optical lense. This is the best all-around camera I own, and at 2MP takes better pictures than my parents 8MP sony. It takes a Li-ion battery block and SD memory. It's easy to learn and also offers manual features that you can learn along the way.

It takes 1600x1200 pictures, I've uploaded one here for you to get an idea.
http://www.loadingdeck.com/P1020177.JPG

Oh and it cost me $198 at brandsmart.

[Malpine Walis]

Well, yes, any camera will eat batteries. Before I had a digital myself, my old film camera ate batteries with the flash and the autowinder. But I would stick with the AA format if I were you.

My old camera used a battery that was made for the camera only market and you know what? You could only buy them in a very few places and they were far more expensive than the technology warranted (because they had me over a barrel).

Yes, a camera will go through a set of Duracells in a day or two but that is why you will not be using them. What you want is rechargeable batteries. Look for the letters NiMH on the package. The best batteries today are 2300mah and sell for about twice what a single set of duracell batteries go for. However, they also last twice as long in a camera. After that, keeping them charged is going to use about as much power as keeping a low wattage bulb turned on. And modern chargers can bring a dead set of batteries back to life in a couple of hours.

If like me, you are really impatient, you can always have two sets of batteries. Also, I believe that www.greenbatteries.com has a faq on how to keep your new batteries running like new for over a thousand charging cycles before you have to replace them.

[Graphicism]

Why would you want batteries that last a couple hours and take 12 hours to charge?
The ion batteries last 12 Hours + (1200 pictures) and take 1 hour to charge.

[MadSkillzMan]

lemme tell ya, just suck it up and get the NiCads. They serve me very well.

[Jackywebdesign]

Originally Posted by Graphicism

Why would you want batteries that last a couple hours and take 12 hours to charge?
The ion batteries last 12 Hours + (1200 pictures) and take 1 hour to charge.

NiMHs do NOT take 12 hrs to chage... In fact, I have a 30 min. charger for my numerous NiMH cells... And I don't know about other cameras, but in my digicam, 1 set of NiMH can last me 2.5-3.5 hrs on movie mode or about 200 pictures w/ flash and LCD on. So I'd say your argument's not valid..

As for a good digicam, have you looked at the Kodak CX7430 or CX7530? Those 2 do use AA batteries, but with a pair of good NiMHs, they do last quite a while. Good thing about AA is that they can be found almost anywhere (although usually only in alkaline), so there's little worry of running out of juice and not being able to take any more pictures until you can get to a charger.

Also, when the battery starts to deteriorate (sp?) after 500 or more cycles (all rechargeables do, btw), you can just go and get a new set for like $5 instead of the $50 or so for a new LiIon... Just my 2 cents.. Hope that helped.

Jacky L.

[Jackywebdesign]

Originally Posted by MadSkillzMan

lemme tell ya, just suck it up and get the NiCads. They serve me very well.

I hope you were kidding, or meant NiMHs, since NiCads do NOT last long at all in high drain devices like a digicam. For example, the last Nicad set that I bought was 1000 mAH, and the latest NiMHs I have are the 2300 mAH cells that were mentioned earlier in the thread. Also, Nicads have the nasty memory effect, which NiMHs do not.

BTW, d94, I haven't heard too many good reviews about the M407, esp. with the LCD screens going bad, so unless you got a REALLY good deal on it, I'd probably return it if I were you.

Jacky L.

[JCLW]

Canon A75 and a bunch of AA NiMHs.

[d94]

Originally Posted by Jackywebdesign

I hope you were kidding, or meant NiMHs, since NiCads do NOT last long at all in high drain devices like a digicam. For example, the last Nicad set that I bought was 1000 mAH, and the latest NiMHs I have are the 2300 mAH cells that were mentioned earlier in the thread. Also, Nicads have the nasty memory effect, which NiMHs do not.

BTW, d94, I haven't heard too many good reviews about the M407, esp. with the LCD screens going bad, so unless you got a REALLY good deal on it, I'd probably return it if I were you.

Jacky L.

used a $150Gcard & $65cash
yea, looking like ill be returning this thing soon, especially if the screens on these go bad

[d94]

this is going a bit past my pricetag and against what some of you are saying but, i found 2 cams that look good for the $
Canon Powershot S410
Cyber-shot DSC-P100

[Jackywebdesign]

If you're dead set against AA's and can only choose from those 2 digicams, I would DEFINITELY go with the Canon, since the optics on them are EXCELLENT, and they generally have good reviews. So yea, I side with the Powershot if you have to choose from those 2 digicams.

Jacky L.

[larva]

AA's are far and away the best solution for a camera. As Malpine noted, current AA NiMH cells offer 2300mAH or more, and this is greater than the sorry proprietary Li-Ion batteries. If you have even two 2300mAH AAs you are ahead, and if your camera holds four like my Nikon does, you will lose the camera before you run out of charge (well, not really, but it seems that way).

Also, you can buy four of these wonderfull NiMHs for 10 bucks at any hour of the day or night at the local wallyworld. And if things ever get truly tough, you can pick up AA alkalines to get you through. Proprietary batteries are made because they are better for the makers' profits, not because they serve your purposes better.

[Kendan]

Originally Posted by d94

this is going a bit past my pricetag and against what some of you are saying but, i found 2 cams that look good for the $
Canon Powershot S410
Cyber-shot DSC-P100

I really like the canons. I have an s110 and it is still a great camera. My advice is to get the s410 and get an extra battery and a bigger memory card.

[MadSkillzMan]

mine do take awhile to charge...id say about 7hours...but ive had em for 2 years and i really dont mind 7 hours every month or 2....i dont like the speed charger ones, it seems they deteriorate much quicker....ive switched to the rechargeables whereever i can...me and my bro use em for our MP3/CD players..maglights..

[Daewood]

Originally Posted by JCLW

Canon A75 and a bunch of AA NiMHs.

Another vote for the A75 I have on and I love it could not need any more out of a camera...

[JCLW]

I'll chirp in again with some quick notes:

AAs are handier - if you run out you can always slide a few alkalines in. If you deplete all your proprietary Li-ions you might miss a few shots while they recharge.

AAs are cheaper - but not by much (depending on your Li-ion battery type). As the Li-ion BP-511 battery pack in my Canon 10D is a fairly common battery type I can find them nearly as cheap as I can find four 2300Ah AAs. If you do go lithium try and check if a bunch of cameras use the same battery, or if yours is the only one.

Li-ions can accept a much faster charge rate then NiMHs without deteriorating. My BP-511s charge (from dead empty) in less then 90mins.

Li-ions provide considerably more power per volume (and weight) then NiMH, but this is only really important if you're looking at a small/lightweight camera.

Li-ions work better in the cold. Or maybe I should say work period. I've used mine at -30C (~-25F I think) and while the run time is cut short, they do work. My Dad also had his camera (Canon A75) that night with NiMHs, and it wouldn't even turn on. Of course if you don't live in a cold climate this is a non-issue, or only take pictures once in a while in the cold you can just pick up a pack of the Energizer lithium AAs for the day.

So all in all I think it depends how you use your camera. Given the option I'd lean towards Li-ion, but only because I often have my camera out in the cold. Otherwise I'd probably lean towards NiMH.