Why no external battery pack for M8 and M9 Like they have for Canon or Nikon DSLR's?

[eleskin]

I have seen add on bottom mounted battery packs made for Nikon and Canon DSLR's either by the camera companies themselves or by third party manufacturers. Why is there no external pack that can mount on the bottom of the M8 or M9 for hours and hours of worry free shooting? It would be no larger than the motor drive I have for my M6. It would be easy. All it would need would be extension connections for the battery and memory card. You could then load the memory cards on the bottom or side of the new battery pack. It seems insane we do not have this choice for the price we paid for these cameras, while others that have much cheaper DSLR's have more choices. I love rangefinders, and they are tools for me to make photos, not objects to covet or protect. Anything that makes my M8 more productive is a must. I would like to see an add on battery pack with a grip and a side area where memory cards can be popped in and out. It is not impossible to build. $200-$600 would be fine for this.

 

[kbg32]

There's a winter project for you!

 

[ebino]

The reason DSLRs have battery pack has to do with the fact that a DSLR owner might be squashed in a press conference, in a wedding hall, deep in the middle of Peruvian amazon, high up on Bhutan Himalayas or lost in the Australian outback photographing Wallabies.

In other words, a DSLR needs to have back up without opening any slots, or stop shooting, when its almost impractical to do so or might result in losing 'the shot'.

Any time in the future when M9 or M10 became capable of working in such conditions, there will be battery packs made for them, not to mention when their owners begun to ease up on their fashion criterion for camera size and look. :angel:

 

[hans voralberg]

May be combining Luigi's M-mate and the machining expertise of Tom A? that will match all your requirements. I'm waiting for my CNC machine to be delivered soon.

 

[hans voralberg]

The reason DSLRs have battery pack has to do with the fact that a DSLR owner might be squashed in a press conference, in a wedding hall, deep in the middle of Peruvian amazon, high up on Bhutan Himalayas or lost in the Australian outback photographing Wallabies.

In other words, a DSLR needs to have back up without opening any slots, or stop shooting, when its almost impractical to do so or might result in losing 'the shot'.

Any time in the future when M9 or M10 became capable of working in such conditions, there will be battery packs made for them, not to mention when their owners begun to ease up on their fashion criterion for camera size and look. :angel:

There are people who use digital Ms in hostile environment out there 😉

 

[kbg32]

If memory serves me well, I don't believe the base, the small clips and latch of the M8/9, can take the extra weight. I remember seeing the bodies of M8s physically breaking from being mounted on a tripod, but that could be for other reasons.

 

[Andy Kibber]

Sounds like a spare battery and a couple of memory cards would solve your problem of not being able to shoot your M8 for hours and hours worry-free.

If you want to shoot 8 fps or blazing fast autofocus speed, a battery pack makes sense. Otherwise, I don't see the point.

 

[Rayt]

Those battery packs for DSLR serve other purposes including providing a vertical grip and on some models they actually increase focusing speed and frame rate. I wouldn't want to turn a small camera into a big camera unnecessarily.

 

[Ezzie]

More juice is not just used to take more pictures, but for most DSLR´s it ups the shooting speed too. I´d hesitate a guess that quite a few DLSR shooters are just as interested in that feature as much as anything else. Whether or not a 10fps M9 is desirable the digital M owners would have to have to add their two cents worth.

Secondly, and RF users may find this hard to believe, but adding a battery grip also enhances ergonomics for many. At least I found that to be true with the smaller DSLR´s out there.

 

[Rayt]

I bought the RRS grip and is the tops. It is strong, comfortable and light. It is a killer combo with the Thumbs Up. If somehow a batter pack can be stuffed in there without upping the cost and weight by a whole lot then maybe it is do-able.