battery

[ron klein]

after shooting a few rapid sequence shots, my M8 went dead!!!! Bettery read 3/4 full charge just prior. Gaining my composure, I removed the battery several times to no avail. All dead. I recharged the battery overnight and all seems well other than the fact that even after about 8 hours of charging, the battery still only reads 3/4 full charge.
Any similar experiences?:bang:

 

[rvaubel]

This is an example of not conditioning the battery. The idea is to let the battery discharge conpletely before recharging. That means absolutely completely. I did it and it seemed to work. Somehow it resets the charge point in the battery itself to accept a full charge. These batteries aren't so simple anymore. They have electronic gizmos in them that tell the battery how much charge to accept. Sometimes they need to be reset and draining the battery completely does this.

Rex

 

[Andy Aitken]

Mine was the same. Charge up the battery then put it in your M8 and leave it switched on all night with the LCD screen on and the auto-off disabled. Recharge the battery one more time and all should be fine. I just needed to do it again last week. It seems like this may be necessary after about the first week of use then again every 3 months or so.

 

[Joe Mondello]

I thought LiIon batteries were immune to this "re-set" phenomenon that used to plague NiCads.

 

[gb hill]

Some batteries, I understand you need to let fully discharge before charging or it will shorten the life of the battery. Plus the battery will not take a proper charge, but I thought the newer Li-Ion batteries didn't suffer from this delimma.

 

[Cindy Flood]

rvaubal said:

This is an example of not conditioning the battery. The idea is to let the battery discharge conpletely before recharging. That means absolutely completely.

I was told to condition my batteries 3 times when new-- according to rvaubal's instructions above. I have three batteries and I did it to each. I now use them in rotation and they are all holding a charge well. I let them drain almost down to empty. These are not simple batteries.

 

[usccharles]

i have three batteries that i rotate, never recharging until the battery is dead. problems with these batteries alwasy occur when you try to recharge when its only half drained. it really ruins the lifespan of the battery.

if you only have one battery, it may be a good plan to buy some extra and be consistent about rotating them only when the battery is all used up. its just a fact of life with LiIon batteries

 

[rtphotos]

i have three batteries that i rotate, never recharging until the battery is dead. problems with these batteries alwasy occur when you try to recharge when its only half drained. it really ruins the lifespan of the battery.

if you only have one battery, it may be a good plan to buy some extra and be consistent about rotating them only when the battery is all used up. its just a fact of life with LiIon batteries

If you believe Ken Rockwell's website, he claims that li-ion batteries last longer if they are NOT fully drained before recharging in regular use.

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/battery-life.htm

 

[usccharles]

i tend to believe that this is not the case. my laptop, mp3 player, camera, etc. all tend to lose overal battery strength when charged too often at randome charge states of the battery.

this i know because some of my equipment, i.e. my laptop, i have bought new batteries and have, as best i could, waited until the battery was fully discharged until recharging. my laptop lasts alot longer now than with my previous batteries.

but i don't know the technical ins and outs of these batteries so i may be completely wrong 😉

 

[Jim Watts]

I think it is that for best longevity they should be left part charged if stored. 40% at 15c according to the Battery Academy: http://www.batteryuniversity.com/partone-5.htm

 

[rvaubel]

If you believe Ken Rockwell's website, he claims that li-ion batteries last longer if they are NOT fully drained before recharging in regular use.

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/battery-life.htm

I'm the one that recommended "conditioning" the battery and yet I also agree with Ken Rockwell that li-ion batteries do not need to be fully drained to hold a maximum charge. An apparent contradiction? Not really because what discharging the battery completely does is set the battery electronics to accept, again accept a full charge. You did know that these new fangeled batteries have electronics in them? Occaionally, the set point for charging loses its way and the battery "conditioning" (not really) needs to be done again. I haven't done it in three month, though, and I haven't noticed any reduction in battery capacity.
also, I don't see any harm in running a li-ion battery down all the way. Why wouldn't you anyway, assuming you have a spare battery?

I get 2GB worth of RAW photos per battery and just chamge them both at the same time.

Rex