Nikon F100 - MH-15/MN-15 option

[RaymondC]

Just curious about this. If someone has this, what is the power output of this battery? It's a rechargeable.

 

I have been using normal Ni-MH AAs. I find that they work ok if they are freshly charged but after 1 or 2 weeks even though some of them still hold a good charge after a couple of week they may not have the enough 1.5V so they don't work. 4x 1.2V = 4.8V. I know there is a MS-13 which uses 2x CR123A (2x3V = 6V). Disposable batteries AAs 4x1.5V = 6V.

 

I took the AAs that was charged 2 weeks ago that didn't work on the F100 and discharged them in my charger, they registered 1,600mah and counting (!).

 

Also are the newer stuff like speedlights designed for dSLRs are they ok with 1.2V AA batteries these days? Ie - could you charge up your enloops and energizers or duracells and leave them for 2 or 3 weeks and still use them?

 

 

 

Cheers.

[BeBu Lamar]

Just use alkaline battery. They last long enough. Unless the NiMh provides the extra speed the alkalines are actually most economical.

[bgelfand]

I use AA size Lithium (non-rechargeable) batteries in my F100. They have a long shelf life, are good in cold weather, and provide more than enough power. Unless you shoot 10 to 20 roll per day and shoot several days a week, either alkaline or Lithium batteries should be as economical as NiMH.

[Rick Helmke]

I've gotten all the battery power needed from AA alkalines since the 70's. The only camera I've had that didn't like those is a D200. F2/MD-2, F4S, N90s,all of my flash units back to the SunPak 511 days. Not to mention everything else powered by AA, radios, scanners, RC radios, you name it. It's the only battery I stock up on.

 

Rick H.

[rodeo_joe1]

Ni-mh rechargeables are fine in speedlights. I get plenty of shots and a 4s recycle time in mine. I use the "ready-to-use" type that keep their charge better.

 

However, they're not so good in battery grips. Battery grips seem stupidly designed to only work well with alkalines. I disagree that alkalines are the best option. At Duracell prices you need deep pockets to keep a bunch of speedlights running. They're also more environmentally damaging, and nowhere near as leak-proof as the advertising makes out. Although alkalines aren't so bad in a camera like my old F801s that sips battery power.

 

FWIW, I had a pair of radio triggers ruined through leaving a set of Duracell triple A cells in them. Never seen such bad leakage. I'll stick with cheaper Kodak Extralifes in future!

[Richard Williams]

Leaks have put me off using alkalines in anything expensive. Lithium AAs are in any case my preferred disposables for the F100, which is fairly battery hungry (never used the grip or the CR123A holder). I've heard that Eneloops are fine in this camera, and have just bought some Fujitsu 'low self discharge' batteries that apparently use the same technology as Eneloop Pro, so we'll see how it goes. Raymond, were your Ni-MHs also Eneloops or similar low self discharge batteries, or just standard rechargeables?

[RaymondC]

They were energizer with a discharge rated up to 12 months. Mines the earlier 3 or 6 months.

[Richard Williams]

I don't know how Energizer rechargeables perform compared to Eneloops. Are you saying there are 2 types, one rated for only 3-6 months, and this is the type you have? It's probably worth trying something else if yours aren't working after a week or two. Battery geeks claim that 'made in Japan' low self discharge rechargeables (whether branded Eneloop, Fujitsu or something else) are the ones to go for - these are apparently made in the factory that used to make all Eneloops before Panasonic acquired the brand (but not the factory). I'll stick some of my Fujitsu batteries in the F100 today and let you know if it's still working in a couple of weeks...

[RaymondC]

I have the earlier ones. Doesn't need to be in the f100 just outside for 2 weeks. I'm doing a similar test again. Charged few days ago.

[Richard Williams]

I thought I'd put them in the camera in case it is drawing a little power from the batteries even when it's switched off, on top of the normal self-discharge of the cells. This should tell me if I can use them the same way I use lithiums, where I generally just leave them loaded and ready to go.

[Richard Williams]

...but just to see how they do, I just took a fresh set of the Fujitsu batteries straight out of the packet (and therefore last charged at the factory, probably months ago) and tried them in the F100. Battery gauge reads full, and shutter fires as normal. I then put them in the charger, and the voltages read 1.31-1.32V (I get >1.5V fully charged). These are the batteries I'm using: Fujitsu Pre and Stay Charged AA (HR06 / MN1500) NiMH Rechargeable Batteries 2450mAh - 4 Pack . Panasonic Eneloop Pro should be very similar (or even identical). Both make the same claim of 85% charge retained after 1 year and are made in Japan. The Fujitsu packaging claims a minimum charge capacity of 2450mAh, the Panasonic 2500mAh.

[RaymondC]

I charged them Friday so I am going to leave them 1 and 2 weeks and try them out.

 

FWIW, someone else's newer "Energizer Recharge" they had in the remote for a couple of weeks. This is the one with 12 months discharge. I used my multimeter and it was measured out to be 1.21V.

 

FWIW again, I have some AAAs only Sanyo Enloops (edit - mines are relabelled Panasonic non-Pro). They been sitting unused in the bathroom drawer for a 1 month at least. They measure out to be 1.3V. Perhaps Energizers are 1.2V as they are labelled as such and 1.2V just happens to be not liked very much by the F100. Someone did say to me the F100 the earlier ones may have been calibrated to 1.5V, the F5 has a setting you can switch between alkaline and rechargeables, but the F100 doesn't.

[Richard Williams]

Yes, maybe 1.2V is too low. Although the Fujitsu packaging also says 1.2V , if my charger's voltmeter is accurate I'm getting more than that, which is consistent with what you see with the Panasonics. Because of the result straight out of the packet, I'm pretty confident my batteries will be fine in the F100 for some time after being charged. However, with the batteries inserted the frame counter etc, remains on even with the camera switched off, so it will be drawing a little power all the time. It'll also be interesting to see how many rolls of film the F100 manages before it decides it's not getting enough juice, and how abruptly this happens. With lithiums there's little warning of the batteries dying - the gauge can go from 50% to zero before I can finish a film.

[c_watson1]

I just use Costco-brand AAs. Seem to last forever in my N90s+MB-10 cameras. Never bother with rechargeables. Anyone worried about alkaline battery leakage either has too many cameras or doesn't care to swap them out regularly.

[BeBu Lamar]

Nikon said you should expect about 60 rolls with a set of batteries. Let say you only get 30. 30 rolls of film and processing cost you around $300? I actually pay more than that. The 6 AA wouldn't cost you more than $6. So it's not worth it to try to save money by using rechargeables in this case.

[Richard Williams]

I think Nikon's estimates for the F100 are wildly optimistic! And for me it's not really about the price of the batteries, though (turning that argument around) a set of Eneloop-type rechargeables only costs about the same as a roll of Portra (and a fraction of the price of a printer cartridge or decent media card). It's more about being sick of alkalines and their potential for trashing my stuff (not just photographic gear). Switching to rechargeables where possible was prompted by discovering yet another battery leak (in a remote control that was still functioning, so there was otherwise no warning). Why put up with the wretched things when they have been superseded by better alternatives on everything except price? A single leak in a camera or flashgun can be more expensive than buying decent rechargeables for everything in the house.

[RaymondC]

I am back. It's been less than 4x 24hrs since the charge. I have 2 sets of 4 AAs. Both sets now only show half power. One set is measured out to 1.34V and the other 1.39V. Just yesterday the 1.39V was 1.42V. I heard from someone who googled, he said that some earlier F100s were designed for 1.5V and they were fixed.

 

Perhaps also underload in use its voltage drops even more.

[Richard Williams]

I hesitate to link to KR's site, given that it can be hard to disentangle fact from sometime dubious opinion, but I've just noticed he has an interesting (though now rather dated and pre-Eneloop) page on battery consumption by the F100: Nikon F100 Review © 2004 KenRockwell.com . One thing he notes is that the current drawn by the F100 when switched off is very low. If his figures are correct, then the battery drain from keeping the frame counter LCD operating for a day while the camera is idle is a little less than switching the meter on once for 16 seconds (the longest auto-off delay).

[RaymondC]

Just reporting back, alkalines prob work better than rechargeables with the F100 but they're prob not as worst as my experience.

 

I got myself 4x Eneloop AAs and a bundled charger (BQ-CC55) which charges the cells individually and have the color lights.

All my 8 AAs had the blinking red light which means error. 4 were bought in 2005 and the other 4 in 2009.

 

I do have another 2 Energizer AAs that was bought a few months ago, they worked fine with the charger.

[erichsande]

Back when I first got into using rechargeable batteries (Sanyo Eneloop in 2010), I had an underexposed roll using my F5. I'd posted about it here under my old account (which is having problems now) and someone suggested that they may have been the culprit.

 

I'm sure people that like to test batteries would like to argue about it, but I went back to using Energizer alkaline and lilthium and left the rechargeables to things that didn't matter so much and may drain during non-use.

[rodeo_joe1]

Rechargeables don't last forever! 12 years is a good lifetime, and I wouldn't moan at getting 8 years use out of a set either.

 

The clue to them turning bad should have been the high open-circuit voltage. Over 1.4 volts is far too high for a NiCd or NiMH cell. I expect mine to show around 1.35 to 1.38 volts a few minutes after coming off the charger, and to keep above 1.3 volts until about half discharged.

 

IME they only drop to their "nominal" voltage of 1.2 when close to exhaustion.

 

Having said that. 1.35 volts is about what you'd expect from a nearly depleted Alkaline cell. So if the equipment has been designed to only take alkalines, it'll think a freshly charged NiMH cell is near-dead. Stupid of the designer to not consider rechargeables as a power source I know, but that's the way it is sometimes, and you have to just use what the equipment was designed to take.

 

Thankfully most modern kit will take rechargeables. Battery grips seem to be an exception, and I haven't found one that gives a decent number of shots from NiMH cells.:-(

[Richard Williams]

After 2 weeks sitting in the F100 and powering the frame counter, the Fujitsu batteries (Eneloop Pro equivalents) are fine - the battery indicator is still full and the shutter fires. So I guess the only thing to test now is how many shots a freshly charged set is good for. I also have the grip for the D300, so it will be interesting to see how well these batteries work with that.

[Richard Williams]

The shutter still fires and the F100 battery indicator is reading full 5 weeks after loading the batteries. Took the batteries out and they read 1.35V by the charger's meter.

[BeBu Lamar]

Just use alkalines AA. Nikon rechargeable pack was built with smaller cells than AA so that they could put more cells in there an the voltage is significantly higher.

[Richard Williams]

No reason to use alkalines if the Fujitsu (or equivalent Eneloop Pro) batteries work just as well, are rechargeable, and don't leak. They pass the self-discharge test, so now it's just a question of how many rolls of film they can power.