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Canon A20 and mysterious power problems

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Richie53961

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Hi,

I am very new to the digital camera group and have bought myself the Canon A20 camera.

Has anyone got any info on a problem I seem to be having with it tho ?? Every now and again the "REPLACE BATTERIES" or the red "BATTERY LOW" indicator appears. Now I am totally fine with this IF the batteries are in fact low or empty but they dont seem to be.

If I simply open the battery cover (camera off) and then close it again, I can get another 45 mins or so of use before it happens again (not a heavy user really). When it happens again, I do the same and fine for a while and it keeps on going.

Here is a starnger one tho. With FULLY charged batteries (5 mins use) I can go into the repeat shot part of the camera (where it takes the pics till you release the button) and sometimes after 2-3 shots it will beep with "CHANGE BATTERIES" and switch off.

I have 1300mAh Ni-MH Uniross rechargeables and they have been fully charged beforehand.

Thing is, it doesnt happen all the time and when I took it to the shop they were ready to pack it off to Canon to investigate but that will take 3-4 weeks. I only bought the camera 2 days ago for £320 so I dont see why I should be without it for 3 weeks when its so new and is outwith my control !!!

Also, I dont feel I should have a re-furbished/repaired camera thats only 2 days old when I bought it new !!

Anyone got a suggestion as I am going to go back to the shop tomorrow. The "multi shot" fault wasnt happening until I came back from them today !!!

Apart from that its a great camera.... theres always going to be a dodgy one tho so it doesnt bother me IF they can replace it as its only 2 days old.

Sorry for moaning but I have no idea where to go now.

Cheers

Rich
 
Hi:

Instead it is related to the nature of the Alkaline batteries and Rechargeable batteries. Since the digital camera need more power to drive when it shot, the voltage will drop from 1.5 to a very low voltage suddenly and then back to the normal voltage again. The problem is here! as the Alkaline batteries will drop slowly when it drive the power to camera, Once the voltage drop below the operating voltage of A20, the A20 itself will show "Low Batteries".....Actually the batteries still have the power but the voltage is below the A20 require.

However, when we use the rechargeable batteries, especially the lithium batteries (if A20 can!)that its recovery time is so short and it keep steady voltage 1.2V for operation, the voltage won't drop below the operating voltage. Then the rechargeable can even take more picture than the alkaline.

Cheer!

Neith
Richie said:
Hi,

I am very new to the digital camera group and have bought myself
the Canon A20 camera.

Has anyone got any info on a problem I seem to be having with it
tho ?? Every now and again the "REPLACE BATTERIES" or the red
"BATTERY LOW" indicator appears. Now I am totally fine with this IF
the batteries are in fact low or empty but they dont seem to be.

If I simply open the battery cover (camera off) and then close it
again, I can get another 45 mins or so of use before it happens
again (not a heavy user really). When it happens again, I do the
same and fine for a while and it keeps on going.

Here is a starnger one tho. With FULLY charged batteries (5 mins
use) I can go into the repeat shot part of the camera (where it
takes the pics till you release the button) and sometimes after 2-3
shots it will beep with "CHANGE BATTERIES" and switch off.

I have 1300mAh Ni-MH Uniross rechargeables and they have been fully
charged beforehand.

Thing is, it doesnt happen all the time and when I took it to the
shop they were ready to pack it off to Canon to investigate but
that will take 3-4 weeks. I only bought the camera 2 days ago for
£320 so I dont see why I should be without it for 3 weeks when its
so new and is outwith my control !!!

Also, I dont feel I should have a re-furbished/repaired camera
thats only 2 days old when I bought it new !!

Anyone got a suggestion as I am going to go back to the shop
tomorrow. The "multi shot" fault wasnt happening until I came back
from them today !!!

Apart from that its a great camera.... theres always going to be a
dodgy one tho so it doesnt bother me IF they can replace it as its
only 2 days old.

Sorry for moaning but I have no idea where to go now.

Cheers

Rich
Click to expand...
 
Cheers, I can now understand why it is sutting down after a few pictures on the "repeat picture mode" but the camera is designed for this and it only happens some times and thats with fully charged 1.2v batteries.

What about the opening of the battery door giving me extra 45 mins of shooting ??

I am going to the store where I got it to see what they say but I would like to have a few thoughts from other ppl if they think this is a fault first of all and where you think I stand with regards to them sending a 2 day old camera to Canon for repair when I paid for a fully working new camera and not a re-furbished/repaired one.....

Rich
Neith said:
Instead it is related to the nature of the Alkaline batteries and
Rechargeable batteries. Since the digital camera need more power to
drive when it shot, the voltage will drop from 1.5 to a very low
voltage suddenly and then back to the normal voltage again. The
problem is here! as the Alkaline batteries will drop slowly when it
drive the power to camera, Once the voltage drop below the
operating voltage of A20, the A20 itself will show "Low
Batteries".....Actually the batteries still have the power but the
voltage is below the A20 require.

However, when we use the rechargeable batteries, especially the
lithium batteries (if A20 can!)that its recovery time is so short
and it keep steady voltage 1.2V for operation, the voltage won't
drop below the operating voltage. Then the rechargeable can even
take more picture than the alkaline.

Cheer!

Neith
Richie said:
Hi,

I am very new to the digital camera group and have bought myself
the Canon A20 camera.

Has anyone got any info on a problem I seem to be having with it
tho ?? Every now and again the "REPLACE BATTERIES" or the red
"BATTERY LOW" indicator appears. Now I am totally fine with this IF
the batteries are in fact low or empty but they dont seem to be.

If I simply open the battery cover (camera off) and then close it
again, I can get another 45 mins or so of use before it happens
again (not a heavy user really). When it happens again, I do the
same and fine for a while and it keeps on going.

Here is a starnger one tho. With FULLY charged batteries (5 mins
use) I can go into the repeat shot part of the camera (where it
takes the pics till you release the button) and sometimes after 2-3
shots it will beep with "CHANGE BATTERIES" and switch off.

I have 1300mAh Ni-MH Uniross rechargeables and they have been fully
charged beforehand.

Thing is, it doesnt happen all the time and when I took it to the
shop they were ready to pack it off to Canon to investigate but
that will take 3-4 weeks. I only bought the camera 2 days ago for
£320 so I dont see why I should be without it for 3 weeks when its
so new and is outwith my control !!!

Also, I dont feel I should have a re-furbished/repaired camera
thats only 2 days old when I bought it new !!

Anyone got a suggestion as I am going to go back to the shop
tomorrow. The "multi shot" fault wasnt happening until I came back
from them today !!!

Apart from that its a great camera.... theres always going to be a
dodgy one tho so it doesnt bother me IF they can replace it as its
only 2 days old.

Sorry for moaning but I have no idea where to go now.

Cheers

Rich
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
If you go back several days in this forum you will encounter a very active thread on this very problem. Battery voltage drops aside there is obviously a bug with some A20's.

My A20 has done it three times. The first time I assumed that the batteries were dead and probably threw away healthy batteries.

Since then I have simply switched to PLAYBACK mode and switched the camera back on. The last time I got another 20-30 shots from the batteries, several flash pics and downloaded them all. All this after a Change the batteries message.

It is a pain, but I'll put up with it rather then going through the hassles of a replacement. From past experience to get a replacement from Canon Australia would be harder then cliimbing Mt Everest in a pair of speedos.

Regards
Michael
Richie53961 said:
What about the opening of the battery door giving me extra 45 mins
of shooting ??
Click to expand...
 
The A20 comes supplied with batteries. Did you use those? If you don't want to damage the packaging then buy some for a test. Prove the camera with them. Go into settings and turn off "Auto Power Down". Then leave the camera on and check it in 15 min.

The brand of Hi-MH and/or charger used may be inferior because the charge is not high enough.

I have been using Kodak 1600 Ni-MH and Radio Shack (RS) 1500 NiMH in a RS dual Nicad & NiMH charger without incident. The charger self times to shut off after 8 hours. The batteries get warm so I don't close the battery cover.

The only error that could be made is charging Ni-MH as Ni-Cad by not setting the switch correctly. Charging a NiMH at NiCad settings will not give a full charge.

When at the store test another A20. Just leave the A20 on and see what happens over a coffee or tea. (Turn off "Auto Power Down")
(el)
Richie said:
Hi,

I am very new to the digital camera group and have bought myself
the Canon A20 camera.

Has anyone got any info on a problem I seem to be having with it
tho ?? Every now and again the "REPLACE BATTERIES" or the red
"BATTERY LOW" indicator appears. Now I am totally fine with this IF
the batteries are in fact low or empty but they dont seem to be.

If I simply open the battery cover (camera off) and then close it
again, I can get another 45 mins or so of use before it happens
again (not a heavy user really). When it happens again, I do the
same and fine for a while and it keeps on going.

Here is a starnger one tho. With FULLY charged batteries (5 mins
use) I can go into the repeat shot part of the camera (where it
takes the pics till you release the button) and sometimes after 2-3
shots it will beep with "CHANGE BATTERIES" and switch off.

I have 1300mAh Ni-MH Uniross rechargeables and they have been fully
charged beforehand.

Thing is, it doesnt happen all the time and when I took it to the
shop they were ready to pack it off to Canon to investigate but
that will take 3-4 weeks. I only bought the camera 2 days ago for
£320 so I dont see why I should be without it for 3 weeks when its
so new and is outwith my control !!!

Also, I dont feel I should have a re-furbished/repaired camera
thats only 2 days old when I bought it new !!

Anyone got a suggestion as I am going to go back to the shop
tomorrow. The "multi shot" fault wasnt happening until I came back
from them today !!!

Apart from that its a great camera.... theres always going to be a
dodgy one tho so it doesnt bother me IF they can replace it as its
only 2 days old.

Sorry for moaning but I have no idea where to go now.

Cheers

Rich
Click to expand...
 
Richie:

I have noticed precisely the same phenomenon. I can get about 15-30 more pictures after turning the camera off and then on again, or by switching the positions of the batteries within the camera. I must also note that these same batteries test "full" after the A20 does finally shut off for good, and the will work in another camera (Epson) after the A20 rejects them as as discharged. But I unfortunately have no good explanation, except to say that the A20 likes to have new batteries.
Jorge
Richie said:
Hi,

I am very new to the digital camera group and have bought myself
the Canon A20 camera.

Has anyone got any info on a problem I seem to be having with it
tho ?? Every now and again the "REPLACE BATTERIES" or the red
"BATTERY LOW" indicator appears. Now I am totally fine with this IF
the batteries are in fact low or empty but they dont seem to be.

If I simply open the battery cover (camera off) and then close it
again, I can get another 45 mins or so of use before it happens
again (not a heavy user really). When it happens again, I do the
same and fine for a while and it keeps on going.

Here is a starnger one tho. With FULLY charged batteries (5 mins
use) I can go into the repeat shot part of the camera (where it
takes the pics till you release the button) and sometimes after 2-3
shots it will beep with "CHANGE BATTERIES" and switch off.

I have 1300mAh Ni-MH Uniross rechargeables and they have been fully
charged beforehand.

Thing is, it doesnt happen all the time and when I took it to the
shop they were ready to pack it off to Canon to investigate but
that will take 3-4 weeks. I only bought the camera 2 days ago for
£320 so I dont see why I should be without it for 3 weeks when its
so new and is outwith my control !!!

Also, I dont feel I should have a re-furbished/repaired camera
thats only 2 days old when I bought it new !!

Anyone got a suggestion as I am going to go back to the shop
tomorrow. The "multi shot" fault wasnt happening until I came back
from them today !!!

Apart from that its a great camera.... theres always going to be a
dodgy one tho so it doesnt bother me IF they can replace it as its
only 2 days old.

Sorry for moaning but I have no idea where to go now.

Cheers

Rich
Click to expand...
 
I've very new to the digital camera also. I have also witnessed this phenomenon. I used to have this exact problem with my Uniden Travelpro PDA device. It was quite annoying! Although, the a20 is not as bad.

Some batteries work better than others with my A20. I haven't had much time to test all the batteries out; however, I'll be going on a trip and will have the opportunity soon. Very preliminary testing shows:

original alkaline batteries that were supplied: did not exibit effect
gp nimh 1800mah: showed battery low early (darn!, I really like these)
nexell nimh 1300mah: showed some low battery
radioshack gold color nimh 1200mah: has not show low battery
energizer nimh 1600mah: have not tested yet

I'm using the Radio Shack Pulse Charger purchased 2 years ago. This charger uses microchip intelligent stuff.

I'm not sure if anyone cares for this information... I'll try to post asap after my trip next week.
Richie said:
Hi,

I am very new to the digital camera group and have bought myself
the Canon A20 camera.

Has anyone got any info on a problem I seem to be having with it
tho ?? Every now and again the "REPLACE BATTERIES" or the red
"BATTERY LOW" indicator appears. Now I am totally fine with this IF
the batteries are in fact low or empty but they dont seem to be.

If I simply open the battery cover (camera off) and then close it
again, I can get another 45 mins or so of use before it happens
again (not a heavy user really). When it happens again, I do the
same and fine for a while and it keeps on going.

Here is a starnger one tho. With FULLY charged batteries (5 mins
use) I can go into the repeat shot part of the camera (where it
takes the pics till you release the button) and sometimes after 2-3
shots it will beep with "CHANGE BATTERIES" and switch off.

I have 1300mAh Ni-MH Uniross rechargeables and they have been fully
charged beforehand.

Thing is, it doesnt happen all the time and when I took it to the
shop they were ready to pack it off to Canon to investigate but
that will take 3-4 weeks. I only bought the camera 2 days ago for
£320 so I dont see why I should be without it for 3 weeks when its
so new and is outwith my control !!!

Also, I dont feel I should have a re-furbished/repaired camera
thats only 2 days old when I bought it new !!

Anyone got a suggestion as I am going to go back to the shop
tomorrow. The "multi shot" fault wasnt happening until I came back
from them today !!!

Apart from that its a great camera.... theres always going to be a
dodgy one tho so it doesnt bother me IF they can replace it as its
only 2 days old.

Sorry for moaning but I have no idea where to go now.

Cheers

Rich
Click to expand...
 
I talked to a Canon Rep last week and he said the A20 is having a over heating problem. And opening the battery door and closing it again is just enough to cool it off. I don't know how true that is, but that's what they told me.

Tammie
 
Cheers for that Michael. I looke back about 10-12 pages for the problem and even done a search and nothing so I posted not realising this was asked before.
Michael Thompson said:
My A20 has done it three times. The first time I assumed that the
batteries were dead and probably threw away healthy batteries.

Since then I have simply switched to PLAYBACK mode and switched the
camera back on. The last time I got another 20-30 shots from the
batteries, several flash pics and downloaded them all. All this
after a Change the batteries message.

It is a pain, but I'll put up with it rather then going through the
hassles of a replacement. From past experience to get a replacement
from Canon Australia would be harder then cliimbing Mt Everest in a
pair of speedos.

Regards
Michael
Michael Thompson #51483 said:
What about the opening of the battery door giving me extra 45 mins
of shooting ??
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Thanks for all the help ppl, I took it back to the shop and they have given me a replacement so hopefully it wont do it this time but if its a fauly software in some Canons then it might do as odds are its from the same batch.

At least I know its a problem with some of them and not just the one I had.

I will also look out that post that you mentioned Michael and have a wee gander at it =)

Thanks again ppl

Rich
 
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