M9 short lasting batteries issue?

[dacaccia]

The problem isn't to be solved so easily.
I shoot about 50-70 DNGs with my M9 ... this is not at all enough.

1. I have shot many photos with my M9, and I have loaded the battery several times - always when it was empty, not in-between.
After the last firmware update the camera shows "battery empty", but when turning it on again there is about 25% capacity ...

2. I always turn off my M9 when not in use (as I do with computers too). - Only one time I forgot about it - and a few days later the battery still was full (!). So, this is not the problem at all.

The problem is double-faced:
1. The battery is not very good. (Why is Leica out of stock with batteries? because they gave away too many ....)
2. The camera sucks battery energy, e.g. when waking it up, or wanting to shoot being in sleep modus.

Cheers,
dacaccia

 

[tbarker13]

The battery really is one of the most glaring weaknesses of the M8. I'd hoped they would make some progress in that department with the M9. But it sounds like that hasn't happened.
I just can't understand why an M8 drains its battery so much faster than, say, a Nikon D700. I get at least three times as many shots from one D700 battery than I do from an M8 battery. Certainly there's not THAT much difference in the size of the batteries.
(This is based on my experience with two M8s and my current M8.2 and at least eight different Leica batteries)

 

[sepiareverb]

Well I've spent many long days out with both M8 & M9 and not needed to change the battery. Filled up cards and changed them but the batteries keep going. I've got a mix of batteries age-wise, one from my first M8, and now one with the M9 I got a month ago. No discernible difference between any of them.

I rarely use the screen, and shoot DNG only. I turn the camera off as well. I guess I may have much smaller expectations of what the battery should be able to do. But coming home after all day out shooting with unused spare batteries in the bag seems plenty fine to me. 50-70 DNG files makes me think that there is something wrong somewhere- I'll get 300-350 from a charge with the M9 and that is shooting over two days without recharging. And that was with the new battery from charge one. Do the batteries hold a charge out of the camera? If so that would point to a camera fault. I've had M7s that sucked batteries- like 5 rolls per set- I suppose the M9 could have a similar problem.

I'd suggest contacting Leica and having the camera checked out.

 

[ampguy]

Over the past 3 years, with 3 Leica batteries and 2 ebay Loo100us batteries, I get about 470-550 JPGs from each charge.

I generally change batteries about every 2-3 sd card changes.

One piece of questionable advice I've seen around, is that you must fully drain the battery before recharging. This isn't supported by li-ion battery chemistry science, nor have I even seen Leica recommend this, so I'd be very wary of that practice.

I charge batteries once they're down to 1 bar, or if I know I'm going out for a long shoot, I might even take one out with 2 bars left.

 

[tbarker13]

Perhaps if my only reference point were the M8, I'd be much happier with the battery life. But using the M8 alongside a D700 (and before that, a D300), I can't help but wonder why the M8 performs so poorly in this regard. Maybe there's some quirk of the rangefinder design that requires more power.
With both cameras, I shoot raw only. Always turn them off when not in use.
I get at least twice as many shots (and probably closer to three times as many) from the D700. If anything I do more screen reviews with the D700 since it is so much quicker at pulling up shots.

(I'm not even including the random freeze-ups that seem to be a part of life with the M8. I routinely have to pull the battery and pop it back in to get the camera running again.)

 

[jaapv]

Not the rangefinder design - a CCD uses more power than a CMOS, discrete electronic parts take more power than integrated chips and the body size prohibits use of a larger battery. The freeze-ups have been reported before. I have never experienced them with two M8s and the M9 - I find that puzzling.

 

[sepiareverb]

The freeze-ups have been reported before. I have never experienced them with two M8s and the M9 - I find that puzzling.

Nor have I, though I did have the playback sleep problem before upgrading the M9 firmware.

 

[johnnygulliver]

the one time it happened to me I had left it on and the button was pressing against the side of my bag. But I doubt a journeyman would get tricked by that.

I've had this experience with my M8, 'experience is something you get just after you need it'. 😎