Battery life - rechargeable or lithium?

Hello,

I've been using rechargeable batteries in my Canon A95, and a set of 4
x AAs seems to last a week or more. I'm wondering, though, whether
lithium batteries would be likely to last as long, as they're
considerably lighter. Is there a right/wrong answer?

Many thanks for any help.

Lithiums have the longest life (only over 4 years or so) and cost the most.

"Charles Schuler" wrote in
:
Lithiums have the longest life (only over 4 years or so) and cost
the most.

and cannot be recharged.

On Sun, 23 Jul 2006 23:29:08 +0100, Default NG ID wrote:

I've been using rechargeable batteries in my Canon A95, and a set of 4
x AAs seems to last a week or more. I'm wondering, though, whether
lithium batteries would be likely to last as long, as they're
considerably lighter. Is there a right/wrong answer?

It depends on which type of "lasting" you're referring to. One
type is how many shots you'll get from the NiMH batteries per charge
(and I assume that this is what you're referring to). The other is
how long the NiMH battery's charge will last even if you don't use
the camera.

For the former case, it varies because lithium batteries have
their greatest advantage over alkaline or NiMH batteries in cameras
or other devices that use relatively large average operating
currents. In the case of your camera, this would be if you kept the
LCD display on and used the flash for many of your shots. Then the
lithium batteries could last from 2 to 4 times longer. But if you
use the optical viewfinder and take most of the shots outdoors, or
indoors where it's bright enough so that the flash isn't often used,
the lithium batteries might only last from 50% to 100% longer.

In either case, using lithium AA batteries will cost you much more
in the long run, because (and this is a very rough estimate, not
knowing which of the two previously mentioned shooting styles you
use) you might have to replace lithium batteries every 3 to 5 weeks.
Picking an arbitrary 4 weeks, and that would indicate that you'd
need 13 sets of lithium batteries per year, which if you pay typical
prices, would be about $130 per year for batteries. You'd have to
replace NiMH batteries more often, but the cost savings would be
tremendous. You already have at least one set of NiMH batteries and
a charger, but for comparison, if you had to buy a charger and two
sets NiMH batteries (8 AA cells) it might set you back about $40.
But they'd probably easily last 4 years, by which time if you used
lithium AAs instead, the cost of batteries would be about $500.

The other type of "lasting" that I mentioned is how long the
battery's charge lasts when they're not used. Alkaline and lithium
have extremely long "shelf lives", about 8 and 16 years,
respectively. Most NiMH batteries suffer from a self discharge rate
that causes them to slowly lose their charge when unused. In
practice this means that you should probably put the NiMH batteries
back in the charger if you plan on using the camera for more than a
small number of shots if it has been a month or more since the
batteries were last charged. This should amount to only a slight
inconvenience. There are a few people that try to make this sound
like a serious limitation, suggesting that if some spur of the
moment need for taking pictures arises and you have only dead NiMH
batteries on hand, you'll probably miss the shots while waiting
several hours for the batteries to be charged. That's easily taken
care of by (as I mentioned) charging the batteries at least monthly.
But failing that, you'll be ok if you keep one set of alkaline or
lithium batteries on hand as emergency backups. With their very
long shelf lives, just one set of either type would probably still
be good many years from now when you're no longer using the A95.

Can you use rechargeable LiIons (CRV3-R's)? I use them and they provide
a great bang for the buck.


Default NG ID wrote:
Hello,

I've been using rechargeable batteries in my Canon A95, and a set of 4
x AAs seems to last a week or more. I'm wondering, though, whether
lithium batteries would be likely to last as long, as they're
considerably lighter. Is there a right/wrong answer?

Many thanks for any help.

Lithium nonrechargeable batteries will EAT YOU UP in cost. Either
get rechargeables - or, if you can buy in bulk, you may consider
alkalines from a place like Lowe's (quite inexpensive). Rechargeables
are best deal.

No $4 to park! No $6 admission! http://www.INTERNET-GUN-SHOW.com

Default NG ID wrote:
Hello,

I've been using rechargeable batteries in my Canon A95, and a set of 4
x AAs seems to last a week or more. I'm wondering, though, whether
lithium batteries would be likely to last as long, as they're
considerably lighter. Is there a right/wrong answer?

Many thanks for any help.


Yes, they will probably last longer, are much lighter, less polluting
when disposed of, and have vastly greater shelf life. If all those
factors override the importance of the higher cost/picture, go for it!

Jim Townsend wrote:
Default NG ID wrote:

Hello,

I've been using rechargeable batteries in my Canon A95, and a set of 4
x AAs seems to last a week or more. I'm wondering, though, whether
lithium batteries would be likely to last as long, as they're
considerably lighter. Is there a right/wrong answer?

Many thanks for any help.

Which rechargeable batteries are you using.. Nickle Cadmium (NiCad) or
Nickle Metal Hydride (NiMH) ?

Which lithium batteries do you plan to use. Non rechargeable standard
Lithium, or rechargeable Lithium Ion ?

NiCads have seen their day. They are less efficient than NiMH and are
prone to developing a memory if not treated properly. The cost of
NiMH batteries has come down greatly. I would rate rechargeable NiMH
batteries as best bang for the buck.

Non rechargeable Lithium batteries are EXPENSIVE. They will last
much longer. (And they even keep working 40 below zero) but in the
long run, using these WILL be very costly.

I don't know if they make rechargeable Lithium Ion in the AA package.
These do pack the most punch. Pound for pound they provide the most
energy and last the longest before they need recharging.

It seems most LiIon batteries come in proprietary packages designed
to fit certain cameras.



cost of disposable lithium batteries.

I have found that Sam's Club sells them for $19.95 for a package of
twelve. For a person who takes few pictures, and wants a camera that is
'ready to go' at any time, the expense is well worth the convenience.
If you take a lot of pictures, the NIMH battery will work very well, and
if you do both, at intervals, the NIMH batteries, with lithiums for
backup are ideal. That is the way I work it here.

"Ron Hunter" wrote in message
...
Jim Townsend wrote:
Default NG ID wrote:

Hello,

I've been using rechargeable batteries in my Canon A95, and a set of 4
x AAs seems to last a week or more. I'm wondering, though, whether
lithium batteries would be likely to last as long, as they're
considerably lighter. Is there a right/wrong answer?

Many thanks for any help.

Which rechargeable batteries are you using.. Nickle Cadmium (NiCad) or
Nickle Metal Hydride (NiMH) ?

Which lithium batteries do you plan to use. Non rechargeable standard
Lithium, or rechargeable Lithium Ion ?

NiCads have seen their day. They are less efficient than NiMH and are
prone to developing a memory if not treated properly. The cost of
NiMH batteries has come down greatly. I would rate rechargeable NiMH
batteries as best bang for the buck.

Non rechargeable Lithium batteries are EXPENSIVE. They will last
much longer. (And they even keep working 40 below zero) but in the long
run, using these WILL be very costly.

I don't know if they make rechargeable Lithium Ion in the AA package.
These do pack the most punch. Pound for pound they provide the most
energy and last the longest before they need recharging.

It seems most LiIon batteries come in proprietary packages designed
to fit certain cameras.


cost of disposable lithium batteries.

I have found that Sam's Club sells them for $19.95 for a package of
twelve. For a person who takes few pictures, and wants a camera that is
'ready to go' at any time, the expense is well worth the convenience. If
you take a lot of pictures, the NIMH battery will work very well, and if
you do both, at intervals, the NIMH batteries, with lithiums for backup
are ideal. That is the way I work it here.

This is how I do it also. I carry several sets of rechargeables, and one or
two sets of the disposable lithiums. On my recent trip to the Philippines,
this saved me from not having a camera to use, as one of the places we
traveled to was very remote and we went for a couple days with no
electricity. The lithiums lasted for several hundred shots, and still had a
lot of life left in them. When I got home, I just put them in to one of the
remotes for the stereo and got another new set for the camera case.

Chris

Tzortzakakis Dimitrios wrote:
? "Jim Townsend" ?????? ??? ??????
...
Default NG ID wrote:

Hello,

I've been using rechargeable batteries in my Canon A95, and a set of 4
x AAs seems to last a week or more. I'm wondering, though, whether
lithium batteries would be likely to last as long, as they're
considerably lighter. Is there a right/wrong answer?

Many thanks for any help.
Which rechargeable batteries are you using.. Nickle Cadmium (NiCad) or
Nickle Metal Hydride (NiMH) ?

Which lithium batteries do you plan to use. Non rechargeable standard
Lithium, or rechargeable Lithium Ion ?

NiCads have seen their day. They are less efficient than NiMH and are
prone to developing a memory if not treated properly. The cost of
NiMH batteries has come down greatly. I would rate rechargeable NiMH
batteries as best bang for the buck.

Non rechargeable Lithium batteries are EXPENSIVE. They will last
much longer. (And they even keep working 40 below zero) but in the
long run, using these WILL be very costly.

I don't know if they make rechargeable Lithium Ion in the AA package.
These do pack the most punch. Pound for pound they provide the most
energy and last the longest before they need recharging.

It seems most LiIon batteries come in proprietary packages designed
to fit certain cameras.

I think that's why li-ion cells cannot be made for 1.25 volts aka a standard
AA cell.They can be made, I think like 7.2 volts min so they're best for
camcorders and cell phones.



--
Tzortzakakis Dimitrios
major in electrical engineering,freelance electrician
542nd mechanized infantry batallion
dimtzort AT otenet DOT gr


I believe a 'standard' AA cell is nominally 1.5 volts, and the
NIMH/NiCAD batteries are 1.25 (nominal).