MH-25a recharger versus MH-25 recharger

  Since I still have been struggling with getting the claimed number of shots with a single charge of my battery on my Nikon D500, I was quite interested to read in
Brad Hill's recent D500 blog (dated July 19) "that you needed to use the supplied MH-25a recharger (and not the "old " MH-25 recharger)."  I may have missed this point but has anyone actually tested this or shown this?  I have of course pulled out my new MH-25a recharger that came with my D500 and started to use it but find this hard to believe since at least on my copy of the "old" MH-25 recharger (not sure whether this came with my D7200 or one of my older cameras) the only difference I see between my two rechargers is the color of the writing (they have exactly the same input and output specs as far as I can tell).

yeah. I read that post too.. and was the first I'd heard about it also. looking at the back of the two chargers side by side, the 25a has some extra info on consumption: (0.6757 wh under that round symbol (UL) - NOM and some further "Self Declaration" IS info but you are absolutely right about the Input and Output.

Would be interesting to hear. (or whether it's more Nikon baloney).

david fletcher wrote:yeah.  I read that post too..  and was the first I'd heard about it also.  looking at the back of the two chargers side by side, the 25a has some extra info on consumption: (0.6757 wh under that round symbol (UL) - NOM and some further "Self Declaration" IS info but you are absolutely right about the Input and Output.  

Would be interesting to hear.  (or whether it's more Nikon baloney).

Thanks David for taking the time to respond.  In my first attempt at charging with the 25a, if anything I found that I got even fewer photographs with the battery charged with the 25a than I had been getting but this was by no means a scientific test.  I also contacted Nikon and they responded that there is no difference in using the updated battery charger.  So not sure where Brad got his info.

I wouldn't worry about which charger you are using. I don't even use the Nikon charger. I'm using the Watson charger and have been since long before the new En-EL15's came out.

Don't try to micro manage the battery life on the D500. It is not going to be as good as the D810's, D800's, D7200, D7100 or any of the other cameras currently using the En-EL15. But it is much better than the battery life on the old D1's and D2's.

Make sure the camera is in Airplane mode with the wireless stuff turned off. Then have fun with the camera.

Anthony Medici wrote:I wouldn't worry about which charger you are using. I don't even use the Nikon charger. I'm using the Watson charger and have been since long before the new En-EL15's came out.

Don't try to micro manage the battery life on the D500. It is not going to be as good as the D810's, D800's, D7200, D7100 or any of the other cameras currently using the En-EL15. But it is much better than the battery life on the old D1's and D2's.

Make sure the camera is in Airplane mode with the wireless stuff turned off. Then have fun with the camera.

Hi Tony,
   Don't know what you mean by "mirco managing the battery life on the D500", but it is disconcerting to be shooting for only a couple of hours and then pick up the camera for a critical shot and see that the battery is already in the red zone.  I have the camera in Airplane mode with the wireless stuff turned off and only use the newer batteries that Nikon sent me.  I am primarily using this camera (ie. on a recent trip to Alaska it was my main camera) and have taken to carrying two spare batteries in my pockets (when I remember).  I am struggling to figure out if there is something wrong with how I use the camera (I don't have this problem with my D7200) or  if I should send my camera to Nikon to check if there is something wrong with my individual camera since I routinely get less than 500 shots per charge.  It would be helpful to know if this is what one should expect from this camera.
ricardo00
https://www.flickr.com/photos/60519499@ ... 1316314736

I'm not getting that little though I'm not shooting enough to really see. I'll be in Africa during August so I should get a reasonable feel for actual life on the battery there. My feeling is 500 is too few though it might be in the way you use the camera.

Do you have image review on?
What is the brightness of your monitor set to usually?
What is your monitor delay off set to?
What is your stand by timer set to?
Do you use a Eye-Fi card or any other device on/in your camera that might take power?
Do you spend a lot of time looking through the lens with VR on while not taking pictures?

Obviously, do you use Live View often?

You can answer so I can compare to mine or if you think you've gone though all of this and the camera is setup to save power and your still getting well below the Nikon guidelines, I'd consult with Nikon Service to see what they say over the phone.

Thanks Tony for your thoughts!  I do wonder if there is a setting that I should change that might give me a longer battery life. 

  I have found that when you call camera companies that you often talk to people who don't know anything.  A recent example, a couple of months ago I called Nikon Service about sending in my 300mm f/4 for the service on the VR where I knew they had had a recall and my lens was covered.  The person I talked to insisted there was no such recall.  So I paid the shipping and sent my lens in anyway and they did repair it for free since the tech new about the recall.  So I am leery to call or send in my body unless they have announced a problem.  Do you have a way to get passed the person who answers and talk to one of the techs directly?  (I had a similar problem with a non-DSLR Canon camera where they insisted there was no problem and later, after I switched to another camera, they issued a recall for exactly the problem I was having).



To answer your questions on my settings:


Do you have image review on?
   I shut this off a while ago and it didn't help.

What is the brightness of your monitor set to usually?
  I also lowered this two below its original setting

What is your monitor delay off set to?
  10s
What is your stand by timer set to?
  30s

Do you use a Eye-Fi card or any other device on/in your camera that might take power?
   NO

Do you spend a lot of time looking through the lens with VR on while not taking pictures?
  yes, I do often look through the lens and press the shutter button half-way to focus (and it activates VR) without taking a pic.

Obviously, do you use Live View often?
  No I try not to use Live View on this camera.


Also, I don't have the camera set to clean the sensor on start up/shut down.  I am recording both raw and JPG on two separate cards (an XQD and SD card) which actually has caused no problems (never locked up on me).  So am loving the camera but would be grateful for any advice to increase the number of photos I can get per battery. 

ricardo

I have my stand by timer at 10 seconds. Most of my Monitor Delay's are at 10 seconds also.

Large lenses with VR do pull a lot of power. If your not shooting under about 1/500th, generally it is better to have the VR off. The shorting of the stand by timer will also cut off the VR quicker when you let go. And keeping the finger 1/2 pressed a lot keeps everything active so spending lots of time looking and not shooting will drain the battery as though you were shooting the whole time.

The last part, about the meter staying on with VR on and focus active will drain the battery like you blasting away at full speed. (It's only saving the power to drive the cards.) I think that habit with this camera hurts a lot. With your habit to stay on the button, you might want to set your stand by timer to the minimum since you want things shutdown when you are not on the shutter.

Anthony Medici wrote:I have my stand by timer at 10 seconds. Most of my Monitor Delay's are at 10 seconds also.

Large lenses with VR do pull a lot of power. If your not shooting under about 1/500th, generally it is better to have the VR off. The shorting of the stand by timer will also cut off the VR quicker when you let go. And keeping the finger 1/2 pressed a lot keeps everything active so spending lots of time looking and not shooting will drain the battery as though you were shooting the whole time.

The last part, about the meter staying on with VR on and focus active will drain the battery like you blasting away at full speed. (It's only saving the power to drive the cards.) I think that habit with this camera hurts a lot. With your habit to stay on the button, you might want to set your stand by timer to the minimum since you want things shutdown when you are not on the shutter.

 Thanks Tony, will give this a try.  I have read many conflicting things about VR even at shutter speeds above 1/500th.  I am mostly using the 300mm f/4 pf lens and have thought that the VR helps even at the higher shutter speeds but it is hard to tell.

I think its a combination between the meter being on, AF being active and the VR being on. If you spend a lot of time like this without taking pictures, you will definitely get less pictures per battery than if you moderate the meter, focusing and VR use.

In addition to the list that Tony has already provided, the amount of chimping plays a significant role in battery life.