SU-800 Commander Unit Batteries

[todd1664878707]

I just looked into the SU-800 commander unit. It takes CR123A

batteries. What was Nikon thinking??? This thing is going to be used

mainly with the SB600 and SB800 which take AAs! Sorry, I'm just

venting...

[todd1664878707]

OK, I also just found a CR123A rechargeable kit for about $30. That includes a charger and battery. I'll admit, it's not as bad as I originally thought, but you would think that it would have been designed to use a common battery between the flashes and commander unit.

[vivek iyer]

Todd, It does use a common battery. The SB-200 macro flash units use the CR123A batteries.

[todd1664878707]

Yeah I noticed that, but I would have hoped that Nikon would have avoided using CR123As all together and just stuck with a common battery type between all flash and commander units.

[ShunCheung]

Those macro falshes are supposed to be mounted on the front of lenses. They have to be quite small and light, and it wouldn't make sense to put AA batteries in them.

[vivek iyer]

There are no such things as "common" batteries anymore. Recently I saw 6 or seven different "common" batteries at a local supermarket. All are weird shaped and of different voltage, etc.

 

With the advent of new gizmos, a whole lot of new "common" batteries are everywhere.

 

AAAA batteries, are they common?!

[kfoster70]

The main reason they used the CR123a is because its a 3v battery vs a 1.5v for the AA. To keep the size and weight down for the SB200 flashes and still get enough power this battery was chosen. Othewise you would need 2 AA batteries to get enough power, but the weight would kill the whole system. Trying to say consistent they used the same battery in the SU800, because its main purpose is to be used with the SB200 macro flashes.

 

I personally wouldnt buy the SU800 as a controller for SB800 or SB600 flashes. For less then $100 I would get another SB800 to use as a controller. In fact, I have the R1 macro kit with 2 SB200 flash units, and I use a SB800 flashes to control them. This way I can get extra flash power when taking shots a little farther away.

[fourfa]

you can mailorder CR123's for cheap. try surefire.com, batteryspace.com, ebay, etc. They're cheaper per mAh than the lithium AAs. you can get two dozen for the cost of that single rechargeable.

[suspendedmoments]

<p>You can get four rechargeable CR123's with a charger, and the auto charge adapter for less than $30.00 U.S.<br>

I use the SU-800 routinely to fire my SB-800 and SB-900 units.. .and get better range than the rated 60 ft. outside.<br>

I always head out with a freshly charged CR123 and rechargeable is the only way to go in my book. I use the AA eneloops in my SB-800 & SB-900 units... they definitely go the distance.<br>

I was in a pinch on day and had to purchase a battery (CR123 from Radio Shack) $ 15.00 each... you get around 1,200 cycles out of that rascal.. give or take...<br>

Here is the link to the amazon source: <br>

http://www.amazon.com/RCR123A-Rechargeable-Protected-Batteries-Charger/product-reviews/9575871979/ref=cm_rdphist_4?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=0&filterBy=addFourStar</p>

<p> </p>