How Long Should an M240 Battery Hold a Charge When Not in Camera?

[raycpa]

I used the camera about three weeks ago and had a full charge and took about 20 photos and then put it in the closet. The camera was turned off. I left the battery in camera and have not touched the camera since. Going on an outing later today and started getting equipment ready. I checked the battery this morning and had zero charge. How long should a battery hold a charge in camera with the camera turned off? How long should a battery hold a full charge if stored outside the camera?

Thanks.

 

[Mackinaw]

My experience. I took a bunch family portrait pics on August 18th. I made sure the battery was fully charged before I started. I downloaded the pics to my computer, then put my M240 away as we were going to be away for a few weeks. I just checked my camera which has been in storage since the 18th. The battery has a 90% charge.

Jim B.

 

[Huss]

Simple test. Charge the battery. Leave it out of the camera for a few weeks. Put in camera and see what the level is. If it has gone down a lot, battery is defective.

I leave the battery in my M for weeks and notice only minimal drain.

 

[Godfrey]

Is the camera new? or has the camera been sitting unused without a battery for some time?

These cameras have an internal capacitor that holds state and runs the clock while they're sitting with the battery out. It's a large capacitor, and it's charged up by the battery. If the camera is new or has been sitting a while without a battery, a good bit of the battery charge goes to charging the capacitor back up to spec. That could account for the drain.

After the capacitor is fully charged, the camera should sit on a shelf and not show much if any battery drain for up to two months. That's been my experience. My M-P has been sitting unused for two months now, it was fully charged when I got the M-D, and I've been using the M-D exclusively in this time. I just checked it and the battery is down by 5%.

G

 

[Ronald M]

My Nikon batteries lost say 20% a month the shelf, 30% in a camera not used.

I rotate batteries monthly using one spare. Charge the spare, put it in camera, charge the removed one. Same with the M8/9.

If you are sure the camera was off, camera or battery is defective.

 

[David Hughes]

HI,

There are so many variables to affect the battery that I doubt if you'll get an accurate answer to your question, simply because it depends on so many things and I doubt if you've a record of everything you've done since it was new.

Regards, David

 

[zerobuttons]

I used the camera about three weeks ago and had a full charge and took about 20 photos and then put it in the closet. The camera was turned off. I left the battery in camera and have not touched the camera since. Going on an outing later today and started getting equipment ready. I checked the battery this morning and had zero charge. How long should a battery hold a charge in camera with the camera turned off? How long should a battery hold a full charge if stored outside the camera?

Thanks.

Like others here, I can confirm that the batteries hold a charge for weeks both in camera and left out of the camera. What are your "Auto off" settings? Whenever I wish to cycle my batteries, I set this setting to "Off", and leave the camera turned on. This way, the battery will be drained within a matter of hours.

 

[RichC]

Store them in the fridge! This makes a difference ranging from barely noticeable (alkaline) to significant (NiCad) by slowing down the chemical reactions in batteries. This not only preserves charge but extends the lifespan. There are caveats:

• Don't let them freeze - put them on the top shelf. Freezing will cause swelling, damaging seals or even causing leaks
• Store them in a small, airtight Tupperware box. This will prevent condensation and thus damage from water. By the same token, if you live somewhere humid, wipe off the condensation that will occur when the batteries are taken from the fridge
• Lastly, cold batteries put out less power than at room temperature. You may need to let them warm up

Sounds a faff but it really isn't, and does make a difference to camera Li batteries, especially if you live somewhere hot (the hotter a battery, the shorter its life)