AA batteries or Chargable battery packs?

Their is a lot of argument on which is actually better.
A lot of people think AA is better because you can get
them anywhere, but a lot of people think battery
packs are better because they last longer and you
dont have to buy a bunch
and other things.

i personally like AA's because i can run into any
7-11 and grab some.
(i have a canon that takes AA's)

just wanted to see some opinions

 

I prefer the D70 setup. I have a rechargeable battery. If it runs down, I can go pickup some disposables and put them into an adapter to use. I have the best of both worlds. With a D80 (or similar) and a grip, you can actually use AAs, which then really is the best, in my opinion.

 

I prefer AA's, when I hopefully get a Pentax K200D this summer I will use Energizer Lithium Ion AA's in it which give it about 1000 shots, Ni-Mh's give it around 400 shots. Regular AA's don't last as long but at least you can get them anywhere.

 

I have a Pentax K100D (AA power) and a K10D (li-ion power), and I've found myself wishing that the Pentax battery grip for the K10 would support AAs (Caleb: does your battery grip support either another li-ion pack or AAs, or is AA only?). That said, I'm not good about keeping NiMH's charged up and ready to go, which means I'm often falling back on traditional AAs for things like my flash units.

There are advantages on either side of this one.

dr

 

The D70 doesn't have a grip. For the D70 there is a small adapter to use an off size battery, but its still findable in a pinch. The D80 grip, and i believe most of the other Nikon grips, can take either two of the Li-Ion rechargeable, or a cartridge for AAs.

 

Hey guys,

I have a Pentax ist* DS that I really love using. I was about to trade it in because of the sad state of AA rechargeables and their discharge rates (I was using Energizer 2500). That is untill GE/Sanyo eneloops came along! I highly recommend them for any use. I haven't used my DS for over 4 months. I picked up a Panasonic TZ3 and a Kodak Z812 IS recently. I was at work the other day and decided I'd take the DS out for a spin and thought I would need to charge the batteries after work. When I got home I fired up my Pentax and .... the eneloops still had a full charge, or very close to it. Think of them as NiMH's that act like very high-powered alkaline cells. It's a no brainer, buy your self a set of eneloops, and keep a pair of CR-V3's (if your camera can use them, thanks Pentax) as backups.

Hope this helps

 

Thanks, rp2s. If I remember, AndyfromVA is a big fan of Eneloops as well. While I've never used them, the concept is very appealing. Can anyone comment on how the power/capacity compares to a standard 2300 mAh NiMH? I know that there's some trade-off, but how much?

dr

 

Hi Dave,

I can't give you the scientific calculations, but I can say that the 2000mah eneloops have given me far more shots per charge than the 2500mah Energizers (also made by Sanyo). Over a 4 month period I have taken approximately 450 shots on the same charge. Maybe I can't take as many shots in one sitting, but I don't typically shoot 400+ photos in a day or two. And that's where the eneloops really shine, as their discharge rate is nil after 2 months or so. On another note, how do like your Pentax K10D? I really like my ist* DS but would love IS and a sealed body.

 

Thanks for that bit of info, rp2s.

As to the K10, it's a very good camera in most every respect. The feel is great, images (esp. RAW images) from the camera are quite good, and it's a hard value to beat overall: it may not be quite as refined as some of its competition in the $1000+ range, but at a street price under $800 these days, you're talking semi-pro camera features for an entry-level price. Hard to beat that combo.

In my perfect world, I'd like a little more shooting speed, better in-camera JPEG processing, and more new top glass from Pentax, but all of this is really a story for another thread...

dr

 

my a570 IS gets like 150 shots for 2 AA's
kind of rough, I know, but It is a great little
camera.

But chargeable battery packs AND AA's!? That would
be awesome. That's the ultimate setup.. With a good camera.

But If I had to make a choice between the two, I would go
with... Wait. I would make a solar powered camera =]
but actually AA's.

Oh and by the way everyone,
my name is Dan.