Battery Charging
 

I have just purchased a Nikon D50.Can anyone advise if I need to let the battery run down completely before re charging or can I just put it on charge
if I am going out for a days photography just to top it up.The handbook does not seem to give any clues on this one.
Any advise gratefully received.

I just top mine up. Never had a problem doing it that way. Battery life is fantastic even when doing lots of viewing to see what you've got.

The battery is rumoured to reach 2000 frames each charge. If you turn off playback and set the screen to stay on for 10 seconds i have had it last over 1500 frames.

I always allow any battery to become fully discharged before charging. I believe shorter life span will result if 'topping up' regularly although there are times when topping up is unavoidable.

With Canon batteries it does not need to be run down each time (it has no memory) but Canon do say the limiting factor in the long run is the total number of times the battery is charged before it becomes useless so to maximise the use of the battery and get best value let it run low before charging each time. I imagine Nikon is exactly the same. I rotate two batteries for this reason.

Correct Li-ion batterys have no memory effect, they cannot even remember if they are Canon or Nikon :D

Thankyou everyone for your replies.I think I will where possible let it run low before a re charge, but I will not loose too much sleep on the odd top up.
many thanks
Stephen (Horace)

I don't have much memory effect either these days but I don't remember coming from Li-ion.:)

I was told at time of purchase that it made no difference whatsoever if I let the battery run down or top it off.

Don't deep-discharge Li-Ion batteries.
 

Lithium-Ion rechargeables shouldn't be totally discharged. They perform best when kept topped-up. Their lifetime is virtually independant of the number of charge/discharge cycles they undergo. They have no 'memory' effect.

Here's a quote from Wikipaedia -


"Unlike NiCad batteries or NiMH batteries, lithium-ion batteries should be charged early and often. However, if they are not used for a longer time, they should be brought to a charge level of around 40%. Lithium-ion batteries should never be "deep-cycled" like NiCd or NiMH batteries"

The full article is Here. A Google search will bring up loads of other sources giving the same advice.

Advise from Nikon regarding their Li-ion batteries, i am sure the same goes for other manufacturers. Batteries can be topped up regularly but their longevity will suffer. Li-ion batteries should never be stored discharged and need to have some charge. The best charging regime is to charge from near flat 1-5% then leave in the charger until the battery has cooled to room temperature. Nikon's latest cameras have percentage increments to show level of charge and hardware (battery) life. In two years of running two Li-ion batterys without topping up simply fully charging from 1% the battery life indicator in my camera still shows 0 (a new battery)

Thankyou for this info on re charging Li-ion batteries, it is very helpful