Battery and SD Card Question

BobsGX · 03-06-06, 10:50 PM

I just picked up a Canon PowerShot SD550 camera. It only came with a 32 mb SD card.
Has anyone used this camera and if so, what capacity card should I upgrade to (2 GB)? Also seems like the battery runs out pretty quickly, no doubt due to the 2.5" LCD sucking up the juice. Any suggestions on brands of batteries and SD cards that you can recommend is appreciated.

Percy · 03-06-06, 11:09 PM

Sandisk Ultra II's seem to be the best bang and performance for the buck. No complaints there. As for the batteries, stick with the Canon originals. Some of the aftermarkets have been known to catch fire or damage the camera.

Percy

BobsGX · 03-07-06, 12:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Percy

Sandisk Ultra II's seem to be the best bang and performance for the buck. No complaints there. As for the batteries, stick with the Canon originals. Some of the aftermarkets have been known to catch fire or damage the camera.

Percy

Thanks for the advice. Now I see Canon is coming out with a new camera SD700 IS next month. Will have image stabilization and a few other upgrades.
http://consumer.usa.canon.com/ir/con...&modelid=13019
I wonder if I should return this camera and get that one? What do you think?

bitkahuna · 03-07-06, 03:50 PM

Well I disagree with Percy here. I bought my Canon BP-511 clone from http://digicamaccessories.com/ for 1/3 the price and it works perfectly.

Percy · 03-07-06, 05:20 PM

Bit,

Called up Calumet today and spoke with one of their tech guys. It's kind of a double edged sword...some aftermarket batteries will work, some won't. Pretty much a gamble, but the ones that do work have very good feedback. Spoke to another photographer about this also and he's been using a BP511 aftermarket with longer life and more shots than the original Canon.

Only reason I called was my 150 dollar EOS 1 series digital battery is on it's last legs. Calumet has it for 100 bucks...so I might take that one instead.

Percy

Percy · 03-07-06, 05:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BobsGX

Thanks for the advice. Now I see Canon is coming out with a new camera SD700 IS next month. Will have image stabilization and a few other upgrades.
http://consumer.usa.canon.com/ir/con...&modelid=13019
I wonder if I should return this camera and get that one? What do you think?

Go get em. Looks good!

Percy

bitkahuna · 03-07-06, 09:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Percy

Bit,
Called up Calumet today and spoke with one of their tech guys. It's kind of a double edged sword...some aftermarket batteries will work, some won't. Pretty much a gamble, but the ones that do work have very good feedback. Spoke to another photographer about this also and he's been using a BP511 aftermarket with longer life and more shots than the original Canon.

Yup - caveat emptor. I got the lead to digicamaccessories.com from dpreview forums I think - came highly recommended - and you can kinda tell from their web site that they're a reputable outfit (bizrate, BBB rated). Likewise, calumetphoto.com looks very reputable and it's always great if you talk to them.

I also like 2filter.com by the way - nice folks for quality filters (B+W, Hoya, etc.).

But yes, I wouldn't buy a no name battery off eBay for example!

Quote:

Only reason I called was my 150 dollar EOS 1 series digital battery is on it's last legs. Calumet has it for 100 bucks...so I might take that one instead.

Sounds like a plan.

BobsGX · 07-05-06, 04:24 PM

Just an update. I purchased the Canon SD700 IS yesterday while Circuit City had it on sale and they were giving out 10% off coupons. So it cost me $410. I also picked up a SanDisk Ultra II 2.0 GB SD card while those were also on sale plus they have a $16.00 rebate on the card. So far I love the camera.

bitkahuna · 07-05-06, 05:54 PM

Very cool. If you can post what you like, what you don't like or could be improved for you, that would be helpful to everyone! And of course pics.

RA40 · 07-06-06, 12:29 AM

This is a lengthy read but contains some excellent info on Li-ion type cells.

http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=106242

After serveral battery explosions I've ceased buying/using batteries from unknown sources. Canon USA will support the product if you have issues. My contacts at Samy's while they sell third party, I was advised to use only factory Canon BP511's in mine.

The Canon BP-511 puts out 1390mAh while the third party is like 1500mAh. Better spec but saving $10 for 100 more shots and risking a 5D isn't in my cards. YMMV.