Battery Life

soppy · 11-30-2010, 09:33 AM

Any idea how many shots the battery will last for in the K5? I shoot RAW if that matters. Probably won't be doing much with video but if you know how long it lasts for that, I'd love to know as well. Trying to get an idea of if I need 1 or 2 extra batteries. Thanks!

JeffJS · 11-30-2010, 09:39 AM

Originally posted by soppy

Any idea how many shots the battery will last for in the K5? I shoot RAW if that matters. Probably won't be doing much with video but if you know how long it lasts for that, I'd love to know as well. Trying to get an idea of if I need 1 or 2 extra batteries. Thanks!

For what it's worth, the camera shoots RAW regardless of your settings. The difference is whether or not it's saved. I have 3 batteries, 2 in the camera and one spare (using the grip) and I'm able to fill an 8Gb card several times between charges. Two of the batteries are $10 generic aftermarket batteries and all 3 are over a year old (gave my new battery to the guy who bought my K7).

I typically use the viewfinder unless the camera is on a tripod and the auto-review is set to 5 seconds. If you use the live view a lot, the life may be somewhat shorter of course.

soppy · 11-30-2010, 09:45 AM

So how long does it take to charge the battery? If you can fill an 8GB several times over, I'll likely be fine with one extra. I'm looking at a 16GB to live in my camera (as I currently have a total of 3, 2GB regular SD cards that I never fill in a single shoot) but I'm guessing tripling my current number of pixels will take up substantially more space.

By the way, does the speed of the card affect shooting at all? Will I get bottlenecked if I don't buy a class 10 card?

P.S. Thanks for the bit on it shooting in RAW first, I was unaware of that but it makes total sense now lol.

Didgeridoohan · 11-30-2010, 09:49 AM

My first charge lasted through a lot of fiddling with the controls, 350 or so photos (PEF) and a 90 minute exposure with a following dark frame subtraction.

On my second charge I'm currently on photo number 772 (total since I got the camera) and the battery indicator is still full. Yay!

JeffJS · 11-30-2010, 09:56 AM

Originally posted by soppy

So how long does it take to charge the battery? If you can fill an 8GB several times over, I'll likely be fine with one extra. I'm looking at a 16GB to live in my camera (as I currently have a total of 3, 2GB regular SD cards that I never fill in a single shoot) but I'm guessing tripling my current number of pixels will take up substantially more space.

By the way, does the speed of the card affect shooting at all? Will I get bottlenecked if I don't buy a class 10 card?

P.S. Thanks for the bit on it shooting in RAW first, I was unaware of that but it makes total sense now lol.

Unless you are doing a lot of machine gunning with the camera, a class 6 card should be fine. I don't have any bottleneck problems though I do use a class 10 (Sandisk Extreme III 30mb/s) card. It takes about 60-90 minutes to charge a battery. I have the camera set to use the one in the grip first and I just keep that one topped off. Once in awhile, I'll pull the one out of the body and refresh that one as well.

soppy · 11-30-2010, 10:23 AM

Alright well I might be doing sports for my school so I would be doing machine gunning lol. I will be fine with one extra battery then, and when I do get a grip (for the camera) I can throw the extra in there instead of buying another one. Thanks for the help guys!

RonHendriks1966 · 11-30-2010, 01:47 PM

I have now with K-5 and K-7 4 battery's, two original and two other brands. When you turn of everything that is consuming energy, like screens, lights, SR, review of a picture after you make one, you can easily make 2000 pics. So doing video, liveview and stuf filling a 32GB card is no problem.

Tom S. · 12-03-2010, 10:51 AM

Battery life is dependent on many factors. I believe the manual says the battery is good for about 1000 shots. However, this number will decrease depending on how much you use live view, how many times you use the menu, whether you use the built in flash, and even the ambient temperature (cold temps decrease life). Also, as batteries age, they will not hold a charge as long.

The first purchase I make when buying a new body is at least one extra battery. With my K-5, I have ordered two extra.

bats · 12-03-2010, 12:54 PM

So I have a battery-related question.

Does the battery indicator on the K5 accurately show how much the battery is depleting?

On my K10D the indicator always showed as fully charged, even up to the moment when the battery was about to go dead. I never saw it display any intermediate value.

JeffJS · 12-03-2010, 04:09 PM

Originally posted by bats

So I have a battery-related question.

Does the battery indicator on the K5 accurately show how much the battery is depleting?

On my K10D the indicator always showed as fully charged, even up to the moment when the battery was about to go dead. I never saw it display any intermediate value.

It works much better on the K5. I don't know exactly how accurate it is but you at least get Some warning that you're about to run out.

Cannikin · 12-04-2010, 03:48 AM

Both of my official Pentax batteries put out about 1000 shots before they die, but I'm only on their second cycle, so who knows what it'll end up? Brand new Li-ion batteries often need to be cycled a few times before they reach their full capacity.

At about 900 shots, the indicator turns red, and that's when it starts to become flaky. My Sigma HSM lens would occasionally cause a premature "battery depleted" warning (I got a good 100 shots after that). At about 30-40 shots before it really died, live view became unusable; it would say depleted right after any shot was taken. At about 20 shots left, the pop-up flash became unusable (just putting it up killed it).

Recently I shot about 30 minutes worth of video. I lost track of exactly how many still shots I got on that same charge, but I estimate it to be a little over 800.

As memory space, the K-5's files are pretty darn big. DNG raws range from about 16 MB to nearly 30, depending on the ISO and scene. On average, they take up twice the space of my K-x's photos. The video files are massive; a 1 minute 1080p file is well over 500MB.

soppy · 12-04-2010, 02:11 PM

Well I'm planning on getting 2, 8GB 30mb/s SanDisc Extreme III's or something like that so I'm thinking I'll be safe on the memory side. I'm used to haveing 8GB total for my K100 and I never filled up more than 2 cards in one shoot (saved as .PEF)

Tom S. · 12-06-2010, 10:44 AM

Originally posted by soppy

Well I'm planning on getting 2, 8GB 30mb/s SanDisc Extreme III's or something like that so I'm thinking I'll be safe on the memory side. I'm used to haveing 8GB total for my K100 and I never filled up more than 2 cards in one shoot (saved as .PEF)

My biggest problem with cards is I often forget to unplug it from the computer and stick it back in the camera. After doing this once, I started carrying at least one extra in the bag.

FWIW: I have used Transcend cards with no issues whatsoever and they are usually cheaper than most other brands. If you plan on shooting any video, or shoot in raw+ jpeg, you might want to consider bumping up to at least one 16GB card.

soppy · 12-06-2010, 11:29 AM

About how many shots can I expect to fit on an 8GB card, leaving 2-3 shots as room for the "RAW buffer"? I don't plan on doing any serious video and I usually only shoot in RAW, as that is easiest for my workflow.

RonHendriks1966 · 12-06-2010, 02:02 PM

Well RAW is between 14 and 32 MB depending on the picture filling, light and iso-setting (hi-Iso moore MB).

11-30-2010, 09:33 AM	#1
soppy Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Gainesville Posts: 347	Battery Life Any idea how many shots the battery will last for in the K5? I shoot RAW if that matters. Probably won't be doing much with video but if you know how long it lasts for that, I'd love to know as well. Trying to get an idea of if I need 1 or 2 extra batteries. Thanks!

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11-30-2010, 09:39 AM	#2
JeffJS Inactive Account Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Michigan, USA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 7,484	Originally posted by soppy Any idea how many shots the battery will last for in the K5? I shoot RAW if that matters. Probably won't be doing much with video but if you know how long it lasts for that, I'd love to know as well. Trying to get an idea of if I need 1 or 2 extra batteries. Thanks! For what it's worth, the camera shoots RAW regardless of your settings. The difference is whether or not it's saved. I have 3 batteries, 2 in the camera and one spare (using the grip) and I'm able to fill an 8Gb card several times between charges. Two of the batteries are $10 generic aftermarket batteries and all 3 are over a year old (gave my new battery to the guy who bought my K7). I typically use the viewfinder unless the camera is on a tripod and the auto-review is set to 5 seconds. If you use the live view a lot, the life may be somewhat shorter of course.

11-30-2010, 09:45 AM	#3
soppy Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Gainesville Posts: 347 Original Poster	So how long does it take to charge the battery? If you can fill an 8GB several times over, I'll likely be fine with one extra. I'm looking at a 16GB to live in my camera (as I currently have a total of 3, 2GB regular SD cards that I never fill in a single shoot) but I'm guessing tripling my current number of pixels will take up substantially more space. By the way, does the speed of the card affect shooting at all? Will I get bottlenecked if I don't buy a class 10 card? P.S. Thanks for the bit on it shooting in RAW first, I was unaware of that but it makes total sense now lol.

11-30-2010, 09:49 AM	#4
Didgeridoohan Inactive Account Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Gothenburg Photos: Gallery Posts: 5	My first charge lasted through a lot of fiddling with the controls, 350 or so photos (PEF) and a 90 minute exposure with a following dark frame subtraction. On my second charge I'm currently on photo number 772 (total since I got the camera) and the battery indicator is still full. Yay!

11-30-2010, 09:56 AM	#5
JeffJS Inactive Account Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Michigan, USA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 7,484	Originally posted by soppy So how long does it take to charge the battery? If you can fill an 8GB several times over, I'll likely be fine with one extra. I'm looking at a 16GB to live in my camera (as I currently have a total of 3, 2GB regular SD cards that I never fill in a single shoot) but I'm guessing tripling my current number of pixels will take up substantially more space. By the way, does the speed of the card affect shooting at all? Will I get bottlenecked if I don't buy a class 10 card? P.S. Thanks for the bit on it shooting in RAW first, I was unaware of that but it makes total sense now lol. Unless you are doing a lot of machine gunning with the camera, a class 6 card should be fine. I don't have any bottleneck problems though I do use a class 10 (Sandisk Extreme III 30mb/s) card. It takes about 60-90 minutes to charge a battery. I have the camera set to use the one in the grip first and I just keep that one topped off. Once in awhile, I'll pull the one out of the body and refresh that one as well.

11-30-2010, 10:23 AM	#6
soppy Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Gainesville Posts: 347 Original Poster	Alright well I might be doing sports for my school so I would be doing machine gunning lol. I will be fine with one extra battery then, and when I do get a grip (for the camera) I can throw the extra in there instead of buying another one. Thanks for the help guys!

11-30-2010, 01:47 PM	#7
RonHendriks1966 Banned Join Date: Jan 2009 Photos: Gallery Posts: 9,675	I have now with K-5 and K-7 4 battery's, two original and two other brands. When you turn of everything that is consuming energy, like screens, lights, SR, review of a picture after you make one, you can easily make 2000 pics. So doing video, liveview and stuf filling a 32GB card is no problem.

12-03-2010, 10:51 AM	#8
Tom S. Veteran Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Michigan Photos: Albums Posts: 4,317	Battery life is dependent on many factors. I believe the manual says the battery is good for about 1000 shots. However, this number will decrease depending on how much you use live view, how many times you use the menu, whether you use the built in flash, and even the ambient temperature (cold temps decrease life). Also, as batteries age, they will not hold a charge as long. The first purchase I make when buying a new body is at least one extra battery. With my K-5, I have ordered two extra.

12-03-2010, 12:54 PM	#9
bats Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: San Francisco Photos: Gallery Posts: 102	So I have a battery-related question. Does the battery indicator on the K5 accurately show how much the battery is depleting? On my K10D the indicator always showed as fully charged, even up to the moment when the battery was about to go dead. I never saw it display any intermediate value.

12-03-2010, 04:09 PM	#10
JeffJS Inactive Account Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Michigan, USA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 7,484	Originally posted by bats So I have a battery-related question. Does the battery indicator on the K5 accurately show how much the battery is depleting? On my K10D the indicator always showed as fully charged, even up to the moment when the battery was about to go dead. I never saw it display any intermediate value. It works much better on the K5. I don't know exactly how accurate it is but you at least get Some warning that you're about to run out.

12-04-2010, 03:48 AM	#11
Cannikin Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: SW Washington Posts: 833	Both of my official Pentax batteries put out about 1000 shots before they die, but I'm only on their second cycle, so who knows what it'll end up? Brand new Li-ion batteries often need to be cycled a few times before they reach their full capacity. At about 900 shots, the indicator turns red, and that's when it starts to become flaky. My Sigma HSM lens would occasionally cause a premature "battery depleted" warning (I got a good 100 shots after that). At about 30-40 shots before it really died, live view became unusable; it would say depleted right after any shot was taken. At about 20 shots left, the pop-up flash became unusable (just putting it up killed it). Recently I shot about 30 minutes worth of video. I lost track of exactly how many still shots I got on that same charge, but I estimate it to be a little over 800. As memory space, the K-5's files are pretty darn big. DNG raws range from about 16 MB to nearly 30, depending on the ISO and scene. On average, they take up twice the space of my K-x's photos. The video files are massive; a 1 minute 1080p file is well over 500MB.

12-04-2010, 02:11 PM	#12
soppy Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Gainesville Posts: 347 Original Poster	Well I'm planning on getting 2, 8GB 30mb/s SanDisc Extreme III's or something like that so I'm thinking I'll be safe on the memory side. I'm used to haveing 8GB total for my K100 and I never filled up more than 2 cards in one shoot (saved as .PEF)

12-06-2010, 10:44 AM	#13
Tom S. Veteran Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Michigan Photos: Albums Posts: 4,317	Originally posted by soppy Well I'm planning on getting 2, 8GB 30mb/s SanDisc Extreme III's or something like that so I'm thinking I'll be safe on the memory side. I'm used to haveing 8GB total for my K100 and I never filled up more than 2 cards in one shoot (saved as .PEF) My biggest problem with cards is I often forget to unplug it from the computer and stick it back in the camera. After doing this once, I started carrying at least one extra in the bag. FWIW: I have used Transcend cards with no issues whatsoever and they are usually cheaper than most other brands. If you plan on shooting any video, or shoot in raw+ jpeg, you might want to consider bumping up to at least one 16GB card.

12-06-2010, 11:29 AM	#14
soppy Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Gainesville Posts: 347 Original Poster	About how many shots can I expect to fit on an 8GB card, leaving 2-3 shots as room for the "RAW buffer"? I don't plan on doing any serious video and I usually only shoot in RAW, as that is easiest for my workflow.

12-06-2010, 02:02 PM	#15
RonHendriks1966 Banned Join Date: Jan 2009 Photos: Gallery Posts: 9,675	Well RAW is between 14 and 32 MB depending on the picture filling, light and iso-setting (hi-Iso moore MB).