Olympus Digital Camera - batteries!!!

wannabe_a_mum

Hi,

I don't know if anyone can help me on a problem that I am having with my new Digital Camera.

I bought the Olympus SE270 from Boots when it was on half price offer last month. It doesn'y use rechargeable batteries, just came with
Normal AA batteries.
We only use it when we go out and about at the weekends. Initially I left the batteries in and they died after 2 weeks! (During this time, we'd used the camera on 2 days, and downloaded around 35 photo's) and I thought it was because they were just plain AA batteries ( - Olympus brand I think?)
The batteries dies when we in in the Lakes so I bought some Duracell ones from the Tourist information centre.
This time I just used them and took them out everytime I'd finishes - but alas, they died last weekend when we were in Edinburgh!
Popped into Boots and bought some Duracell Ultra M3 ones as recommended by the assistant……………….
Took about 100 photos and downloaded them on Tuesday last week. Took out the batteries in between and when I'd finished. Just went to use the camera yesterday and the batteries have dies again!
When I say 'died' anwhere above; except for one time, I mean it's flashing the red battery symbol on the screen.
What am I doing wrong or is this normal??
Is there anyway to extend the battery life of the camera???
Or can I use rechargeable batteries in the camera (I can buy a battery charger kit - something like the UniRoss ones)
And what are Lithium batteries?? Are they better?
If anyone has this camera please let me know your experiences!
Thanks guys - sorry for the long post!

davetrousers

Welcome to the world of AA batteries in digital cameras.

Get some decent (high mAh Nimh) rechargeables

Lithium batteries will last longer but will cost more. I think a comparison with Alkaline battereis was done and yes they (Lithium) lasted longer but were not worth the extra expense.

wannabe_a_mum

Thanks for the info.....

Do you know if it's the downloading that's eating away at the batteries or just that they don't last that long anyway??

Could I use some cheaper (like £1 a dozen!!) batteries for downloading?

espresso

As your camera uses 2 AA batteries, if you buy a good charger with four NiMh batteries e.g here you will always have one set charged up ready for use. Disposable batteries are a waste of time and money with digital cameras.

davetrousers

Downloading pics from your camera to comp shouldn't use any battery power. How are you downloading them? Are you using some software that came with the camera or are you just using Windows explorer and dragging and dropping onto your hard drive?

Digital camera batteries don't last long, think of all the focusing, metering, zooming , flashing and powering the LCD screen that they have to do.

cowbutt

The problem is that the high current drawn by digital cameras causes the internal resistance of Alkaline batteries to rise, limiting the amount of current that can be drawn in future. You can demonstrate this by trying some 'dead' batteries (according to your camera!) in a low current device, such as a torch and you'll find they continue to be useful for a while yet.

The answer is simple and quite cheap; buy some NiMH rechargeables. Lidl were doing a fast charger and 8 AA cells for about 15 quid last week - if you get to your local store quickly, they might still have some stock.