Adorama and the EN-EL3e Battery

[justine_k]

<p>OK, does this sound a bit extreme?</p>

<p>I recently got a D300 refurbished, which I LOVE. However, the battery appears to be defective and won't hold it's charge longer than about 75 shots without the flash. YIKES! I've taken about 300 pictures in the last week and a half and have had to charge the battery fully 3 times, and it's dead again.</p>

<p>I contacted Adorama to exchange the battery...they say no problem. BUT, I have to send the ENTIRE CAMERA and every thing I got with it back! What?! This just doesn't make sense to me. I have no problem sending the battery back and getting a new one, but it sounds extreme to have to send back the entire package when it's not a problem related to the actual camera, just one of the accessories I got with the camera.</p>

<p>Is this par for course for Adorama or is this customer service rep out there? </p>

[paul_duncan2]

<p>Are you sure the problem is with the battery and not the camera?</p>

[andrew_fedon]

<p>Buy a second battery, either from same store, or Chinese import , whatever. You need a second backup battery anyways. See how that one functions, how many shots you get out of it, and then you can judge and compare to the 'faulty' one. If that also gives only 75 shots, then maybe its the charger is the problem, if it gives a few hundred shots then you know the battery is at fault and you can send it back to them, without the camera, and insist that you have another battery that you have tested and works fine (as opposed to their faulty one). The cost (and risk) to send your entire camera, will probably be more than the cost of the second battery.</p>

[rossb]

<p>Just send it all back. Maybe the battery is defective and maybe the camera is defective.</p>

[blake_schwalbe]

<p>I think the D300 had reported problems with the battery which involved the camera. There was a firmware update, so you could check if your firmware is the most current. Do not buy Chinese batteries; they're manufactured to a much lower technical standard, are dangerous and can overheat, leak and/or ignite. Deeply discounted name-brand batteries (i.e., branded Nikon or Canon) are counterfeit.</p>

[Jerry_]

<p>"Do not buy Chinese batteries;..." Odd, Nikon has a Made in China battery for the Nikon D60 camera body. A few years back, Nikon USA had a large recall on Nikon D50 batteries.</p>

<p>A firmware update for a battery; probably not possible. The firmware update might have something to do with how much power is required to operate the camera, but the battery either holds a charge or doesn't. [And Nikon <strong>has no warranty</strong> on the camera battery, even on a brand new one. The battery is not considered a Camera component, just a equipment item.]</p>

<p> </p>

[justine_k]

<p>Blake, thanks for the hint. Grrr, am I irritated right now! This is a Nikon refurb...why didn't they update the firmware for a known problem before they sent it back out?!?!? It didn't even occur to me to check for something like firmware updates.</p>

<p>I acoused the battery from my work camera to test out this weekend, which I just charged earlier in the week...and sure enough! About 100 shots of the dog this evening, and it's only got a bar left. </p>

<p>I'm half tempted to try and do the fix myself, but I am also almost right at the 2 week return window. Returning it to Adorama just sounds like a pain. I'm like a spoiled child--once I get my greedy little hands on a new toy, I don't want to give it up!</p>

[andrew_fedon]

<p>For the price , there is nothing wrong with the chinese batteries. I use one in my D700 alongside the original that came with the camera, and so far I get the same amount of shots out of it. Exploding batteries and stuff like that I think is old wifes tales. You charged another battery from which you got only 100 shots. That still doesn't mean the camera is faulty. You fail to mention the most important factor. THE CHARGER. What charger , did it also come with the camera ? That is probably a more likely culprit than the camera. Charge the battery on another/ someone else's charger and see what happens. Take it into any camera shop and ask them to charge it for you. As for firmware, I don't think there is any firmware update thats going give the battery 100's of shots from 75 shots. Firmware is barking up the wrong tree.</p>

[blake_schwalbe]

<p>Some Nikon D300 had DBS (Dead Battery Syndrome) problems--the battery was charged but the camera would randomly display no charge regardless. It has been linked by some to miscommunication between the lens and camera body (bad contacts). <br>

See this quote from Thom Hogan:</p>

<blockquote>

<p><em><strong>Dead Battery Syndrome Still Alive<br /></strong>Sept 17</em>--First, what it is: DBS (Dead Battery Syndrome) is the sudden appearance of the empty battery icon along with the camera refusing to shoot. That, despite a fully charged battery. The D300 was most notorious for this, though Nikon issued a firmware fix that seems to have eradicated the problem. [...] When DBS first surfaced big time with the D300, I didn't encounter it with six different D300 bodies and dozens of lenses, yet another photographer I know had several different bodies that went dead with almost any lens he tried. Still, I'll point out that DBS isn't a 100% thing.</p>

</blockquote>

<p><br />There doesn't seem to be an official Nikon response, so it may be better to send the camera back...<br /><br />Technically batteries don't explode and it's rare... they just ignite rapidly, as happened with laptops and cell phones. Chinese off-brand and name-brand counterfeit batteries substitute cheaper and toxic (mercury and other things) technologies, that's why they are cheaper. Chinese cell phone batteries have killed two people and injured a dozen or so people. A Chinese man put a freshly recharged phone in his front shirt pocket, a loud noise was heard a little while later. It had exploded and severed his carotid artery. Your D700 is basically a sophisticated computer and expensive; I don't understand why you would want to use a battery that may leak or that is not up to engineering standards. Maybe it will work fine for a while, but has a much shorter recycle life?</p>

<p> </p>

[elliot1]

<p>A firmware update is easy and take just a couple of minutes to do.</p>

<p>Here is a link to Nikon's site where you can read the instructions and download the update:</p>

<p><a href="http://support.nikonusa.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/16149">http://support.nikonusa.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/16149</a><br /><br /></p>

[wpahnelas]

<p>if you don't have a spare battery, buy one. you'll need it.<br>

i'm sure all our correspondents mean well, but all the speculation about firmware and the colorful stories about exploding batteries is kind of irrelevant.<br>

if you wish to protect your investment -- which i'm sure is substantial -- follow instructions and send the camera back to the dealer. unless you don't mind gambling with > $1,000 and voiding the warranty, your impatience is leading you to make a bad choice.</p>

[justine_k]

<p>I don't know how to quote responses, but Andrew...as I specified, I took a battery from my camera at WORK that had been charged at WORK with equipment we've been using for years to try it in my camera and it did the same thing. This is a "known" battery and a "known" charger, hence the reason why I decided to try it. Same problem with that battery. </p>

<p>If they make me send it back, I"ll send it back (I'm saying I am LIKE a spoiled child, not that I'll continue to act like one and risk having a bad camera for the next 10 years:-). I'm not sure the firmware discussion is irrevelant. It's a known problem with the D300's, and it's good to know since I have the product and likely have the problem. And good for anyone else to know that might come across the issue. </p>

[andrew_fedon]

<p>Ok Justine, you clarified about the work battery/charger combination, which wasn't stated earlier. In that case, yes, you conducted a positive test and need to send it back, stateing clearly as you just have, the tests with the alternative battery/charger. All I can wish you now is good luck.</p>

[eric_arnold]

<p>even after installing the firmware upgrade, i still occasionally get dead battery syndrome with my d300. it sometimes happens when i use the flash and slip it on the hotshoe already turned on. so i then have to turn off the flash, turn off the camera, turn on the camera, then turn on the flash. it's happened with the grip mounted with AAs, so its not an en-el-3 issue. i've also occasionally got a dead battery reading on a battery over 70% capacity, with both my 17-50 and 50-150 lenses. when that happens, i do one of two things to fix it: 1) unclick the lens mount then reclick or 2) slide the battery out then put it back in. this usually seems to do the trick; it's never gone dead so that it cant be brought back to life.</p>

[CvhKaar]

<blockquote>

<p>i still occasionally get dead battery syndrome with my d300. it sometimes happens when i use the flash and slip it on the hotshoe already turned on</p>

</blockquote>

<p><br />That's not "Dead Battry Syndrome"...<br />Like with most electronic equipment its not a good idea to connect/disconnect equipment when switched on, that's also why it says so in the manual. Reason for this is that you may short cirquit some of the connetions while doing so, and also the possibility of creating a "spark" moment when connecting, which in its turn can cause damage to the electronic components in the cirquitry.</p>

[helen_oster]

<p>Justine</p>

<p>You are most welcome to contact me directly if you need any additional help with this.<br>

<strong>Helen Oster<br />Adorama Camera Customer Service Ambassador</strong><br>

<a href="mailto:helen.oster@adoramacamera.com">helen.oster@adoramacamera.com</a><br>

http://helenoster.blogspot.com</p>