Batteries Reviews

There's probably not too much to say about this one - it's a battery, and it's worked great for me. I use it with the Uniden 2.4 GHz cordless phone that I have. The cordless phone has a place on the base to recharge a spare battery. I keep a spare charged, and switch batteries when one runs out . . .

Battery is very high quality. The one I replaced lasted almost 3 years, and I didn't take care of that one very well. Excellent quality.

I got them, and they work. Can't ask for more for the price.

But it's also a perfect way to make your total order add up to the free shipping level in small steps. Get free shipping without spending more than you need to.

Also great if you have a gift certificate and need to spend just the right amount.

Finally a manufacturer designed a battery charger using the same switching technology that makes computer power supplies so small, light, and powerful. Output is insensitive to input voltage drops, meaning, contrary to instructions, you can very conveniently use a light extension cord and still get full output. Disadvantage?: It is light enough to easily topple if not placed securely. Hefty output cables, battery clamps, and case with cable storage compartment. Another disadvantage: it is a multi-stage (several charging plans kick in), but one shot. Once the battery is fully charged, it turns off, and will not turn on again to keep the battery topped off. Suggestion for their next model. You can start your car from dead after 5 minutes. Highly recommend.

AN EXCELLENT BATTERY FOR THE BEST LAPTOPS IN THE WORLD

The charger makes quick work out of charging all four batteries simultaneously, and automatically shuts off when finished, which is very convenient--no more burned out batteries.

Also, the batteries, 1850 mAH, which come with this charger seem to be the highest rated you can buy, and do last very long. Just out of the box, without prior charging, they already outperfomed the Alkalines I had been using previously in my Canon A70. Definately a great buy.

One complaint, however, is that the springs that come down to hold smaller AAAs in place break too easily, and will not firmly hold AAAs in place while charging. This has absolutely no affect on Double A batteries, but is an annoyance when trying to charge triple A batteries. It will still charge them, but it's a hassle trying to get the batteries to stay in place when the clip does not hold them sturdily.

Overall, a sufficient battery charger. If you are just using it to charge AAs, this is perfect. If you will primarily be charging AAAs, I would look into a different charger, perhaps one that does not involve spring-loading holding mechanisms at all.

I need a fast, compact charger that could easily fit into my digital camera bag. Other chargers are compact, BUT the electric cord takes up a lot of room. This charger DOES NOT have an electric cord to contend with, Instead, it has a collapsable plug, which folds completely hidden into the unit when not in use, allowing it to be placed neatly into the camera bag pocket.

With the storage issue taken care of, the performance of this unit is above expectations. The recharging process is less than 3 hours. Unlike other models, you can recharge either one, two three or all four batteries at once and still get a full charge on all batteries. The two battery option is nice for my kids walkie-talkie batteries. The shut down mode when complete is a nice option that is really needed, especially for the time when you forget about the charger until the next morning.

I've tried several other chargers and this is the BEST model that I have worked with. Compact, easy storage, fast charging, auto shutdown, charge less than 4 at a time. ALL the options I need for a battery charger.

I recently bought this charger kit from Amazon and I am quite happy with my purchase. The folding plug is nice for storage. The included 1850 mAh batteries last for a long time in my Nikon Coolpix 2100. One of the best features of the charger is that each battery is charged separately (as opposed to in pairs) so that each battery gets just the right amount of charge. The short 3 hour charge time is great as well. The batteries do not get overly warm while charging either.

Overall, this is a good charger for a good price. If you have a high drain device, the Kodak K2000 should keep you playing for a long time.

If you want to get a quick idea why image stabilization (IS) is the next revolution in binoculars, that's easy: take any binoculars that you can get and look through them at some object (a printed page of paper with several font sizes is ideal). Then look again at the same object from the same distance, but this time with the binoculars moudnted on a steady support (don't touch em!). You will notice that the actual resolution increases by a factor of at least 2 or 3 when mounted. That is, you can discern details that are at least two or three times smaller, because mounting eliminates the smear caused by the shaking of your hands. IS is like having this support available any time and anywhere you need it by a push of a button! In most conditions, the practical resolutions I can get with my Canon IS cannot be matched by any hand-held, unstabilized binoculars in the market, including those fancy Nikons, Swarovskis, Leicas and Zeiss that cost three or four times as much. No matter how good (and how expensive) is the optics of these top-of-the-line binoculars, their limiting factor in the field is the shaking of your hands. You may have heard that IS is important because it eliminates eyestrain and headaches, or because you can use the binoculars from a boat or a moving car. While these are good reasons to buy the Canon, the best reason is that they let you see much more detail in any given distance. And this is the reason why you buy binoculars in the first place.

If you are a birder like me, and you are looking for a top of the line binoculars, do not buy anything before you try this one. In my opinion IS is going to revolutionize the whole field, so a costly pair of Swarovski or Zeiss, that normally could be considered as a good investment for life, will not be top of the line anymore in two or three years. In addition to the IS, the Canon has quite good optics, good field of view and is much smaller and lighter then most models you probably considered. This makes the Canon very close to the ideal birding binoculars: Highest resolution, less weight, and less money. I did not have the opportunity to test the larger Canon IS models, but I don't think I'd buy them even if I had the money, because they are twice as heavy and (very important for birding) has smaller field of view.

Note one general disadvantage of the Canon, however: They are not as tough as the top roof prism binoculars. They are water resistant but not water proof, and the IS requires batteries (a pair of NiMH for several hours of birding. This is the digital camera procedure: get a charger and at least one replacement set). While the binoculars feel sturdy, dropping them is not good for the IS mechanism, and this is probably why Canon gives only one year warranty. So the Canon are not the best pair to take for an expedition in Alaska, but for a Sunday birder like me, these are easily the best in their price range, and probably the best in any price.

My husband and I are amateur birdwatchers so I was a bit hesitant to spend close to [price] for a pair of binoculars, but on the recommendation of a bird expert, we did. Wow, what a difference! They're lightweight, but sturdy, and the stablizer feature effectively holds the image constant. We can clearly see the EYE MOVEMENT of the red-tailed hawks who nest on our property. We have a pair of 16 x 32 Bushnell binoculars ([price]) and the same image is fuzzy and indistinct. Even though the Bushnells have a higher magnification, the quality of the optics are poor--there is fuzziness around the outside of each of the lens, and it's impossible to focus to a sharp, clear image to eliminate this. On the other hand, the Canon binoculars are like looking through a freshly cleaned picture window in your living room. The one problem we have with the Canon binoculars is that we own only one pair!

These are, simply put, the best compact binoculars out there. There is no way of ever going back to binoculars without an image stabilizer. I am going to sell my telescope ( Celestron G5) because the views of the moon I am seeing through the 10x30 are crisp, clear, and astounding.....and I can take them anywhere ( contrary to my Celestron - great scope - but for obvious reasons, a pain to cart everywhere)
I didn't think I would see this much detail...the ImageStabilizer really brings out the clarity and quality. It really is strange to think there are many out there who have 10 power binoculars and have to deal with the jitter, which in turn lessens, in my new opinion, the charm of using binoculars. I compared them with a Leica Trinovid ( a Binocular at 3 times the price) and the difference was slight. The quality of the Leicas may have been overall, better- but the 10x30's Image Stabilizer allowed you to have a more pleasureable viewing experience...Like moving from a double bed to a Queen - or even a King - I can never go back to conventional binoculars - this is a must buy!!!

Sweet compact little charger is powerful, fast and very much worth the money. It shipped with the better quality 1600 battery!

Nicest features are its small size and plug. It neatly fits in one hand, is quite flat (only about a half inch deep), space saving and great for popping into a digital camera bag. NO more bulky cord or power supply to lose or worry about! The plug folds out of the back for plugging directly into a socket then folds back flush when done. Very nice also that it fits into the electrical socket any way you choose to put it as there is no larger prong to worry about!

NOT heavy duty construction. You have a trade-off here. If you want all of the features mentioned, you probably have to handle this charger a bit gently. Plastic construction (like the little door that opens to the battery compartment) looks like it will break off if handled roughly. To me it is well worth the effort for all the advantages. If you are hard on things, this is probably not the charger for you. Another nice feature is that you can charge one battery at a time... or up to four.

I have not had it long enough to comment on the life of the Kodak batteries (hence a 4 star rating instead of 5). Very good price at Amazon (as of this writing) and I highly recommend the product.

I need a fast, compact charger that could easily fit into my digital camera bag. Other chargers are compact, BUT the electric cord takes up a lot of room. This charger DOES NOT have an electric cord to contend with, Instead, it has a collapsable plug, which folds completely hidden into the unit when not in use, allowing it to be placed neatly into the camera bag pocket.

With the storage issue taken care of, the performance of this unit is above expectations. The recharging process is less than 3 hours. Unlike other models, you can recharge either one, two three or all four batteries at once and still get a full chargeon all batteries. The two battery option is nice for my kids walkie-talkie batteries. The shut down mode when complete is a nice option that is really needed, especially for the time when you forget about the charger until the next morning.

I've tried several other chargers and this is the BEST model that I have worked with. Compact, easy storage, fast charging, auto shutdown, charge less than 4 at a time. ALL the options I need for a battery charger.

I've been using this charger for over 2 years and have no complaints. I leave the batteries charging over night and the next day they are ready to go. It has about a 2-3X picture taking advantage over disposable batteries. I'm bummed that they don't make this particular model any longer but I'm happy to find that they have a new and improved model that comes with batteries with a higher mAH.

It lost one star is mainly due to the high price.

If you are a heavy user of AA-size rechargeable batteries (both NiMH & NiCd), I suggest you get both Olympus B-40SU and Maha MH-C204F charger. Yeap ... 2 chargers. They work GREAT as partners and one cannot replace the other !!

Let me explain why ...

- B-40SU cannot re-condition the batteries. MH-C204F can. NiCd needs that every once in a while.

- B-40SU cannot be used in a car. MH-C204F can.

- MH-C204F has to charge batteries in pairs. B-40SU can charge 1, 2, 3 or 4 batteries. Very flexible. This is important for FRS users. My Motorola TalkAbout FRS uses 3 AA. You can always try to find a spare battery somewhere to make up a pair. But it is not advisable to rapid charge batteries in different capacity states.

- B-40SU works worldwide. MH-C204F needs different power supply.

- B-40SU does not seem to charge NiCd properly (at least my unit doesn't). MH-C204F charges both NiCd & NiMH well.

I found my twin charger setup works great.

But if you are a light rechargeable battery user and only use 2 (e.g. Kodak DX3500) or 4 (e.g. Olympus C-3xxx) NiMH AA for your digital camera, this unit may be a bit too pricey. There are better alternatives out there.

Now on to the batteries. The batteries coming with my B-40SU are rated at 1600mAh. This 'used to be' considered high capacity but now 1700 and 1800mAh are available. However, I do not believe they will make a significant difference in real life use since even 1600mAh lasts quite a long time for my digital camera use. You will have to pay a premium for those 1800mAh. I have used other brands of NiMH batteries in B-40SU and it works just fine.

This is by far the most compact and convenient set that I have found for international travel.

Although quick-charge might be important to some, I run an Olympus 3040 all day and into the night on the stock Olympus Batterys so I usually recharge overnight.

I also own a set of Friwo 1800 mAh batteries and they do last about a day longer per charge (shooting approx. a hundred 2048x1024 shots and at least two mpegs/day with the 3040 screen on). While it is nice that the 1800s can shoot for almost twice the 1600s without recharge, the 1600s are adequate for a whole day. I would actually recommend having two sets of rechargables and there's nothing wrong with the 1600s for the first set, especially since you save a lot of money compared to the 1800s. My Olympus charger set came bundled with my camera but I think four AA 1800s alone cost me a little more than the 1600s with the charger.

So, the Olympus 1600 mAh have been perfectly adequate as a first set for me and I love the light weight and small profile of the charger. I also like the fact that the charger can be locked away while it's charging (since it has a cord) or at least hidden from view. I also have a fast recharger with warning lights, "trickle" safety technology, etc. but it's big, heavy and doesn't have a cord.

Light weight and small size matters to me when I travel, probably more than technical details like warning lights and trying to extend the hypothetical long-term life of my batteries. Also, avoid chargers that plug directly into an outlet. They usually hang loosely on the wall from poorly fitted plug adaptors, have LEDs that light-up an entire room at night, and they are impossible to secure while charging. When I left my fancy wall-trickle charger running overnight in a hostel, I invariably found someone would be woken by the LEDs and remove the charger from the plug. This was an unpleasant experience for all.

Just for comparison, I found that regular disposables, even "ultra" and special camera batteries, will not make it through a whole day unless I purposefully conserve energy. For example if I take two or three mpeg on the 3040 with a few screen shots and maybe use the flash a couple times, I have to load a new set of disposable AAs. Actually, only two of the four really get drained. But even so, this was very inconvenient and the hassle of swapping batteries cost me enough opportunities that I never again would use disposables unless desparate. To be fair, the Olympus Lithium disposables lasted a whole week under heavy strain. They're great for a real pinch or remote locations, but more expensive per shot and less convenient than the NiMH rechargables, especially on long trips.

NOTE! You must keep a set of batteries in the camera to keep your camera settings even when it's off, so it's handy to have two sets of four. Before I had two sets of rechargables I used four "dead" disposables to keep the camera alive overnight. In addition, a second set of rechargables is a good idea for when you just can't charge your favorite set any more.

I have been using my Olympus charger for over three years. I travel and need a dual voltage recharger. This is just about the only dual voltage charger out there - you need a convertor for most. Convertors tend to be heavy and also tend to fail at very awkward times and blow things up when they do so. An especially nice feature is that there is a cord that you use for plugging onto the wall. The reason this is so nice is that other chargers that plug directly into the wall rarely stay plugged in or won't plug in when the wall socket is recessed which is so common overseas. This problem is compounded when a plug adapter is used - the weight of the recharger and batteries pulls it right out of the adapter/wall. I have had to prop them up with books and coffee cups to keep things plugged in. The cord eliminates all of this. I would not trade this charger for anything.

I've bought Energizer replacement rechargeable batteries for both my S30 and my digital video camera and have found them to actually hold a longer charge and a longer battery life than the originals that came with the cameras. The going rate for the Canon NB-2L seems to be from $50 - $70. You can get the Energizer equivalent for $27 at one of my favorite sites. It's definitely not a generic and considering what Canon is charging for theirs, I consider it a no-brainer. I've never had any problems with the non-OEM batteries I've used, but I've never used generic batteries either.

By the way, I love my S30 and consider it one of the best buys I've ever made in my life. I've had it over 2 years now and the picture quality it produces still amazes me.

I have a Canon S30, and I am still using my original canon NB-2L battery. I also bought 3 additional generic batteries as spares. Of these 3 generics, one would not fully charge after 3 weeks, second one just died completely (seller would not offer refund or replacement. Now I am left with the 3rd generic and my original. Both are working fine still (the generic is 650Mah and actually allow me to use my camera for a longer time than the originals.

My review is just to share my experience with generic batteries versus original. Personally I would recommend buying the orginal since two of my generics died...and I always take good care of my belongings, so it's about quality control problems...

However, if you have to resort to generic (currently running at around 15-20 per battery) I wish you all are lucky to get a good one! (try to find seller that offer 1 yr warranty)

There's a common message here folks. The Canon batteries last. I bought a 900 mAh for $12.99, guaranteed for a year. After 3 months it died. Then the place I bought it from refused to replace it. My original Canon battery is not holding a full charge but it is a year old and works better than my fancy new powerful one. I wish I would have read these reviews before I purchased a generic. I just ordered 2 new Canon brand batteries from a reputable source.