Battery power - new sizes are no bargain!
In the ongoing quest to make cameras even smaller and more pocketable, the camera
manufacturers are not always doing the best for consumers.
Alkaline batteries have their disadvantages. They corrode and leak as they get older,
and they don't deliver power as quickly as lithiums, resulting in longer recycling times.
But in terms of sheer power supplied per penny invested, they represent a better value. Each
step towards a smaller battery has resulted in higher costs of operation:
| Product |
Voltage |
MAH |
MWH |
Cost |
Cost/MWH |
| AA battery (1) |
1.5 |
2,870 |
4,305 |
$1.30 |
.0003023 |
| AA battery (2) |
3 |
2,870 |
8,610 |
$2.60 |
.0003023 |
| AA battery (4) |
6 |
2,870 |
17,220 |
$5.20 |
.0003023 |
| 123 Lithium |
3 |
1,400 |
4,200 |
$7.53 |
.0017928 |
| CR-P2 (223) |
6 |
1,400 |
8,400 |
$11.38 |
.0013547 |
| 2CR5 |
6 |
1,400 |
8,400 |
$11.38 |
.0013547 |
| CR-2 |
3 |
750 |
2,250 |
$7.53 |
.0033466 |
That means that every erg of energy produced by a 2CR-5 or CR-2P lithium battery costs
about four times as much as the same power from the lowly AA battery, and
the new darling of the camera designers - the CR-2 - has a juice that's 10 times as
expensive!
Nikon, Minolta and Pentax are to be commended for offering battery packs that use AAs
for their SLR that would otherwise depend on the costly lithiums.
The prices and energy ratings shown are based upon Eastman Kodak's published
figures. |
