~~~THE KODAK Ni-MH RAPID BATTERY CHARGER~~~A MUST HAVE FOR KODAK EASY SHARE DIGITAL CAMERA OWNERS!
Written: Nov 07 '06 (Updated Nov 25 '06)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Fast charge; nice to have an extra set of batteries fully charged as a spare.
Cons: The red and yellow blinking lights look close to the same.
The Bottom Line: Rechargeable batteries are the way to go with digital cameras. So this Kodak Ni-MH Rapid Battery Charger is a must-have accessory purchase for our Easy Share camera model.
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| melissasrn's Full Review: Kodak Ni-MH Rapid Battery Charger (523837) |
About a month ago, we purchased a Kodak Easy Share Z650 Digital Camera & Printer Dock at our local Sears store have so far been very impressed with the high quality photos we've taken so far. Only the dilemma we discovered shortly after bringing our new camera bundle home was that there was only one set of these Kodak rechargeable batteries included, but no charger on which to charge them! What a sneaky way to get consumers to purchase the extra accessories. We quickly discovered that inserting regular "AA" sized batteries lasted no time at all; ten pictures if we were lucky. So it was back to the store for this Kodak Ni-MH Rapid Battery Charger. It included the charger itself along with an extra set of size KAA2HR rechargeable batteries in a set of 2 battery pack. Read on to find out more about a must-have accessory no Kodak Easy Share Digital Camera owner should be without.
~~~The Battery Recharger~~~
Advertised to be ideal for digital camera owners, this Kodak Ni-MH Rapid Battery Charger can be used to re-charge any KAA2HR sized rechargeable batteries. We all know how expensive buying regular batteries for cameras, hand held video games, and other similar items can be. So it's nice to make one investment in a rechargeable battery pack and charger such as this one as it will easily pay for itself in the long run. The package contents include one black rapid battery charger K4500 with North American style plug and one rechargeable battery pack KAA2HR. Not only does it take 2.5 hours or less to fully recharge the battery pack, but it also has a battery refresh feature good for extending the life of the battery pack beyond the point where they may start to lose some charge after multiples uses. It will charge any rechargeable digital camera battery of the same size and features a 100-240 volt input. So not only did purchasing this Kodak Ni-MH Rapid Battery Charger give us the means to recharge the one battery pack that came included with our digital camera bundle, but it also gave us an extra set of batteries to keep fully charged as a spare.
~~~Price & Availability~~~
Looking back now, it's rather obvious that the salesperson at Sears must have been working outside of her regular department the night we purchased our new digital camera bundle. Otherwise, I can only assume now she would have known we'd have to make an additional purchase so that we'd have something to charge the rechargeable battery pack included with. This Kodak Ni-MH Rapid Battery Charger cost an additional $30 over the almost $400 we paid for the camera plus printer dock as this accessory really is a necessity rather than an optional extra. Featuring a 1 year limited warranty, this charger comes with a users guide printed in several different languages. It comes packaged inside a hard plastic clear overwrap that literally has to be cut apart to get to the charger and battery pack found inside. To view an online photo of this Kodak Ni-MH Rapid Battery Charger or to purchase for $29.95 today, copy and paste the following URL into your computer's web browser:
http://www.kodak.com/eknec/PageQuerier.jhtml?pq-path=6325&pq-locale=en_US
~~~Product Experience~~~
All you have to do is to properly insert any compatible rechargeable battery pack into this Kodak Ni-MH Rapid Battery Charger for a fully charged set in 2.5 hours or less. The black battery charger itself is approximately 4 inches tall and 2.5 inches wide. The plug section is removable but I really don't find it necessary to do so. It can be placed either right side up or upside down into any standard outlet for power. The light will flash yellow while charging, flash green when the charge is complete, and will flash red if an error has occurred. The yellow and the red look very similar to me, however, so at first I was confused and wasn't sure if the battery pack was charging correctly of if I'd inserted everything properly. And the yellow light looks closer to orange to me. Anyway, if you want to fully discharge the battery and then press the "refresh" button for 3 seconds to recharge it back, you can do so as needed and the light will be solid red while discharging. The instructions state this might be required if the battery pack is left uncharged for longer than 2 months at a time. You may also need to "refresh" the batteries if you are getting less than 20 pictures per charge. Unplug the unit when not in use. So far I've taken 50+ pictures easily at once on one charge without my batteries dying, so I'm very impressed with the power stored in the battery packs. And since I've always got a spare, I'm not terribly concerned with just how fast this Kodak Ni-MH Rapid Battery Charger actually recharges. I've not offically timed it, but the 2.5 hours or less seems about right.
~~~Overall Recommendation~~~
Not purchasing this Kodak Ni-MH Rapid Battery Charger really isn't an option when investing in any Kodak Easy Share Digital Camera. We found this out a bit after the fact as there's not much you can do with a battery pack without the charger! It worked out well in the end, however, as now I have a spare battery pack that I keep charged at all times just in case the one in my camera gets low. No doubt they will be charged and ready to go this holiday season as everyone close to me knows I love to take tons of pictures. Not only do I like to take photos of everyday happenings, but I'm rarely without my camera during holidays and other special family events. I think it's rather sneaky to include the battery pack with the camera so that you are basically required to make an additional purchase for this charger. But for $30, the extra investment will still end up paying for itself in the long run. In conclusion, there's no way that I can't recommend this Kodak Ni-MH Rapid Battery Charger as you certainly won't be taking many pictures with your new Kodak Easy Share Camera without it! Good luck and happy picture taking :-)
***For more information on this Kodak Ni-MH Rapid Battery Charger and other similar digital photography accessories, please check out their website online at:
www.kodak.com/batteries
Eastman Kodak Company
Rochester, NY 14650
***Find out more about our new Kodak digital camera itself here:
Kodak Easy Share Z650 Digital Camera
Recommended:
Yes
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