On Sat, 3 Jun 2006 15:51:56 +0100, Paul Saunders wrote:

>>  Where have you been?  That changed several years ago.
> 
> Did it?  I just remember hearing lots of people complain about how fast
> the batteries ran out.

  It used to be pretty terrible, with some of the worst cameras
getting at best a dozen shots per charge.  Manufacturer's battery
ratings are pretty accurate too, with the advent of "CIPA" test
procedures, which probably use the batteries more heavily than many
users would.  It specifies that the zoom should be fully extended or
retracted for each shot, that the LCD display (or EVF) be left
turned on, that the camera should be powered off an back on again
every 10 shots, and (toughest of all) that the flash should be used
for 1/2 of all shots.  The Fuji S5200/S5600 is rated at 500 shots
per charge, and some of Canon's cameras (A610/A620) do even better.
And if the Canons use the optical viewfinder instead of the LCD to
frame shots, they're good for up to 1,500 shots per charge.

  With older cameras, it was out of the question to even consider
using alkaline AAs, but with these new generation, efficient models,
you can get about 1/2 the number of shots compared to NiMH.  So with
the above Fuji, that would be 250 shots per set of alkalines.  But
if most of the pictures were taken outdoors, where the flash
wouldn't be used, the number of shots would probably increase above
750 shots per set of alkalines.  When I tested my Fuji S5100 last
year (it uses more battery power than the newer S5200) I got about
650 shots from one set of alkalines, about 110 of those using the
flash.  There have been comments posted here from happy Canon
A610/A620 users that have used their cameras for several months and
they were still using their first set of alkaline AA batteries.
Maybe someday Baygen will produce a battery-less camera.  Wind it up
for 30 seconds and it'll be good for a dozen shots. <g>