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Batteries, Adapters for Lenmar Chargers
Honest, Trustworthy, Safe: Quality Digital Camera Products

Click here to visit our Battery Chargers section.

Section 1: Batteries

Section 2: Battery Adapter Plates

Please scroll to the very bottom of the page for some basic, but helpful information about Rechargeable Batteries and Battery Chargers.

STAY AHEAD OF THE CURVE! STOCK UP ON HIGH-QUALITY, RECHARGEABLE PHOTO-QUALITY BATTERIES FOR YOUR DIGICAM.

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HONEST. TRUSTWORTHY. SAFE. SAFE. HONEST. TRUSTWORTHY Section 5: Basic Info on Recargeable Batteries and Battery Chargers BATTERIES + CHARGERS - SOME BASICS

Several years ago I was shopping and came across what appeared to be a great deal! If there was one thing I thought was grossly overpriced for what you get in return, it was dry cell batteries (like the general type of batteries used by flashlights, remote controls, radios, smoke detectors and the like with battery sizes such as AA, AAA, C, D -- but unlike wet cell batteries such as car or truck batteries that use a water-and-acid-based solution).

The so-called "great deal" was a combination of a battery charger and rechargeable batteries made by large, well-known manufacturer that claimed great savings were possible with the use of this package of products. To make a longer story a bit shorter, it turned out to be a waste of money and time. It was a real disappointment. Now I know the reasons!

But perhaps even better, the "great deal" that did not exist then DOES exist now. Technology both with respect to the batteries and also the battery chargers has progressed radically over a short period of time! And it is technology that costs less in terms of today's dollars vs. yesterdays: it has become much more affordable. For example, the AA-sized batteries - manufactured by a very well-known manufacturer of both electronics and, at that time (to a lesser extent) of rechargeable batteries - were NiMH, or Nickel Metal Hydride, could only produce a battery cell capable of 650mAh (mAh is later-defined, but simply think of it for now as a measurement of how long a battery can produce voltage in its necessary range - LIKE GAS IN YOUR VEHICLE'SGAS TANK: the HIGHER the mAh rating, the BIGGER the gas tank on thae battery in question).

We wouldn't even think of carrying AA batteries rated at 650mAh - our AA batteries range on the low side from 1,750mAh to our highest, currently, at 2300mAh (until, that-is, more powerful, longer-lasting batteries/power solutions become available)!

So, while our rechargeable AA batteries (at a full charge - see below) not only last 2-to-3-times longer than average AA alkaline batteries in high-drain applications such as digital cameras (but NOT in slow-trickle discharge units like SMOKE ALARMS, wall clocks, etc) , if you buy the right charger they can be recharged from 500-to-1,000 times! Now that's much more like it!

It wasn't long ago that Ni-Cad (Nickel Cadium) batteries represented our best technology available to the consumer in the way of heavy-drain rechargeables, but 1. cadium is a heavy metal that doesn't belong in our land fills, 2. Ni-Cad's had a "memory effect" to deal with, while our NiMH do NOT, and 3. Nickel Metal Hydride ("NiMH") has been developed with progressively better results for many applications, such as for digital cameras and the other uses mentioned above.

It wasn't long ago . . . matter-of-fact this problem currently is almost as widespread RIGHT NOW as ever . . . that many battery chargers did not [and many DO not] charge high-quality rechargeable NiMH batteries in an appropriate manner. Many of these were called "rapid charger" or "fast charger" or some similar name, but lacked the ability to charge these batteries in a way that does not greatly shorten the life of the battery.

More recent developments in widely consumer-available battery charger technologies has resulted in a "cool charger" or "smart charger" - one that usually has a microprocessor in it - but in any event, one that is capable of charging these superior batteries at a rate (think of current strength) and for a period of time that will optimize the length and quality of the useful battery life.

A very unfortunate result of the sale of these almost-always-cheaper (as in "less expensive") "rapid chargers" is that uneducated consumers use them with the superior (and a bit more expensive) NiMH batteries and - since their batteries experience "burn out" just like the older-technology batteries and have much less strength (per-use) and life (number of total uses), the uneducated consumer ends up like I did - feeling ripped off and less likely to try high-quality rechargeables again (but see below - good recent developments*).

A few stray facts that just occurred to me are 1. that our rechargeable dry cells do not reach their full strength until about the third "charge-recharge" cycle; and 2. if a superior NiMH like we carry is permitted to TOTALLY and COMPLETELY discharge (e.g. it is left in an operating radio for a year) the cell will very possibly suffer permanent damage (in this case, try charging and, if it holds a charge, run it through 3 "charge/discharge" cycles in normal use - the danger here being that when allowed to run down completely, they can reverse voltage, causing irreversible damage); and 3. like any other electronic device, getting dropped hard may not be good - and dropping NiMH batteries on a concrete or other similarly hard surface will very possibly cause permanent damage; and 4. while it doesn't hurt an NiMH battery cell to sit for periods of time between uses, it is a good idea to "top them off" with a short charge within a week-or-so of use (something you would not do with the older NiCad batteries with their 'memory effect' problem) because NiMH batteries will gradually lose their full charges simply by the passage of time. After charging, NiMH batteries will likely lose about 3% of their charge-per-week while sitting, but some believe that when put in a well-sealed container, refrigerator storage can slow this process considerably.

* It is very important to note that some "smart chargers" are now also able to be a "rapid charger" or a "fast charger". These usually (as of the time of this writing) tend to be higher priced than the "older technology" fast charger types that cause more rapid battery "burn out". Its best to check - and be careful not to simply assume the best in this particular area - even when manufactured by a highly-respected, well-known manufacturer.

And don't be easily taken in by the description "smart" when shopping for a charger. A truly smart charger will ALMOST ALWAYS be governed by 1 or more microprocessors that may very well charge with a pulse rather than a steady current and can sense when a cell has reached its optimal charge and will stop the charge - or at least slow it to a trickle, and perhaps after that might have a timer to fully stop the charge. They almost always will signal to you somehow if a cell is no longer good, and will not attempt to charge it.

If you already have a charger - or if you buy one - the easiest test that I know of to detect a probable/potential battery-damaging charger is to just feel the cells about 20-to-30 minutes into the charge cycle. If they are cool or just barely warm - then good! But if they are quite noticeably warm then there may well be cause for concern that the life of your batteries is being greatly shortened by your charger. If you remember that - generally - heat is the enemy of high-quality rechargeable batteries, I think that you will be benefitted.

The mAh rating that you find next to our rechargeable batteries stands for mili Amp hours, and is intended to be an accurate standard for measuring the "gas tank" on a battery - that-is, how long a battery can go before it runs out of power. However, this standard was intended for battery power "sippers" that are suitable ONLY for standard, NON-RECHARGEABLE batteries, like most non-rechargeable dry cell batteries that would, for example, power a SMOKE ALARM or wall clock for a year.

Digital cameras, on the other hand, are battery power "gulpers" which are high-drain systems which consume large amounts of power for relatively (comparatively) limited periods of time.

Another factor which comes into play is the fact that not all battery manufacturers seem to measure the mAh standard equally, sometimes resulting in a battery that is rated equally by its manufacturer than a competitor but where one will outperform the other considerably when tested 'side-by-side' using digital camera power "gulper" usage instead of a battery "sipper" type of usage test. Hopefully, a battery standard of usage measurement more closely approximating digital camera usage will be developed and uniformly applied by either a non-profit organization or independent consumer protection/watchdog agency will be formed that will test batteries and chargers used for digital cameras extensively so that they can be more effectively compared by consumers.

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How do digital cameras work?
Digital cameras use a series of lenses to focus light and create an image in much the same way as film cameras. But, while traditional cameras make a photochemical record on film, digital cameras record light as electrical voltages, which are turned into digital information stored on a memory card that computers can read. Digital pictures stored on portable memory cards can then be printed professionally, just like film. You don't even need a computer!

Why go digital?
Digital photography has opened whole new worlds of possibilities for picture takers.

View your pictures as you take them. Keep only the ones you want.
Take dozens of pictures in a row. Flash memory is smaller and holds many times more pictures than a roll of film.
Digital cameras can be lighter and smaller.
Add color, crop, rotate shots, and eliminate red-eye. Save so-so photos and edit for better pictures.
Almost all newer digital cameras can also record sound and movies [or movie-ettes, as I like to call them] – rarely, if ever, the quality that a camcorder produces, yet to see a persons movements, mannerisms and hear their voices adds a whole new dimension to basic photography. It is different, of course, from still camera shots, but it really “brings you back” to the moment that these movies [or movie-ettes, as I like to call them].
Some digital cameras can be used as Internet PC Cams.
E-mail your pictures right after taking them, before developing.
Digital Camera Developing is easy, usually significantly less expensive, gives you more options, and lets you develop just the pictures you want.

CLICK HERE for additional digital camera information.

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