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Rupert · 07-22-2011, 07:05 PM

Seems about like my K20D.....it all depends on how much I use the LCD for viewing and showing others the photos, but it seems adequate for sure.
Like all lithium batteries, as in my power tools, it can be fully powerful...and the next instant fully dead. I never view the level meter...they seem worthless to me.
Best Regards!

Biro · 07-22-2011, 07:22 PM

Not directly comparable, but my K200D with four lithium-ion AAs will give me 1500 shots or more before replacement. Granted, not the most-economical option over the long haul, but I love the way they work.

**Ash** · 07-23-2011, 04:41 AM

It may also have to do with the age and authenticity of the battery (Pentax OEM or not).
My batteries are either old originals or non-OEM, and they don't last as long as even 1,000. Then again, I don't often shoot over 500 shots in one day, so my batteries will not last much beyond that due to the time and idle discharge factor.

**Fries** · 07-23-2011, 05:30 AM

The K-5 is definitely more powerhungry then my K200D. Especially with Live View and filming the six lithiums I used in the battery grip couldn't really cope. But those were more than a year old. But I was impressed with the authentic battery.

**jerm1386** · 09-03-2011, 05:57 PM

Just got my k-5 last week so i could shoot this week at the baltimore grand prix. shooting in JPG (***) on manual focus lenses, today I burned through 5,167 pictures over 9 hours on the standard battery (the last 300 over the course of half an hour in live view, only stopped by the sensor temperature warning), and had it on for 45 minutes on the train ride home to review and delete pictures. the battery only had one bar left, but it never shut down on me and i kept the camera on the entire day except a couple brief instances.

Yesterday shooting RAW but still the manual lenses and no live view i replaced the battery after ~3,500 shots (but it wasn't dead, just close)

Sounds like the internal AF motor might be the power-hungry part here...keep in mind it's your battery's job to push around solid chunks of glass inside your lens every time you give the shutter button a half-press, and you want it to move those chunks of glass as fast as possible.

The past 2 days at the BGP I've only seen 2 other pentaxes. So if you saw someone rocking an adaptall 80-200/2.8 there, it was me

RonHendriks1966 · 09-04-2011, 01:26 AM

Originally posted by jerm1386

Just got my k-5 last week so i could shoot this week at the baltimore grand prix. shooting in JPG (***) on manual focus lenses, today I burned through 5,167 pictures over 9 hours on the standard battery

Yesterday shooting RAW but still the manual lenses and no live view i replaced the battery after ~3,500 shots (but it wasn't dead, just close)

Wow that are a lot of pictures.

Well it is true that powerconsumption differs a lot when you use different methods. Using SDM and AF-C extensively drains a lot of power. Making RAW uses more power then JPG. Using liveview drains battery also fast. Reviewing and deleting pictures also use some power.

I did make on one occasion 3.000 pictures. Having a spare battry is a good idea for you I think.

Can we see some of the pictures? In de sportspicture thread maybe?

**Rondec** · 09-04-2011, 04:08 AM

A lot depends on how much chimping and live view I do. I will say that I seldom use live view on K7, cause it's much slower, but that and video really soak up battery life on the K5. Without using those, I get 600-ish shots with the K5. Might get a few more with my K7, but not a whole lot.

mysticcowboy · 09-04-2011, 10:22 PM

That's funny. With my K20D I get between 400 and 500 images on a charge. I shot 932 this weekend, plus one three minute video, on my K-5 without changing the battery (3 1/2 - 8 gig cards). A lot of the shots were taken pretty quickly so they didn't show as previews. I do turn off my camera between shots. This is all raw, so no special effects or dynamic modes.

philippe · 09-04-2011, 11:15 PM

What stroke me is that the genuine K5 battery's need more recharging than these of my K20 (genuine too).
After spending a few weeks, unused, in my bag, the spare K5 battery always needs a little recharging.
I am used to check the charge regularly and particularly before getting out by putting them in the charger. Each time the green light turns on and there is more ore less half an hour of charing needed before completion. Sometimes all three of them, the ones in the camera, the grip and spare, even unused, need some recharging.

Although, when new, I formatted these batteries as I am used to do withe the one in my MacBook, I do not know if it's of any use, but I did it never the less, just to be sure...

BTW, what I find sad is that there is no more plastic protective cover for the K5 battery's contacts as there was one for the K20's battery's, now I need to pack the spare one in a little plastic bag, no point but wrong economy by Pentax...

Smeggypants · 09-05-2011, 02:13 PM

Originally posted by Ash

It may also have to do with the age and authenticity of the battery (Pentax OEM or not).
My batteries are either old originals or non-OEM, and they don't last as long as even 1,000. Then again, I don't often shoot over 500 shots in one day, so my batteries will not last much beyond that due to the time and idle discharge factor.

I've noticed no difference whatsoever between the 'genuine' Pentax K-5 batteries and 3rd party brands. the petnax battereis are 7 times the price of the 3rd party batteries

mikeSF · 09-08-2011, 11:35 PM

I've no actual data to share but i'll share anecdotal information...when i first got my K5 i was using the status screen as well as a 3 sec image display and really noticed how quick the batteries were draining. i'd use 2-3 batteries shooting a single event. I've since shut all that off and am surprised that i can go on a couple of outings before changing a single battery. i also turn my LCD brightness all the way down unless i am in bright sun.

Francis · 09-09-2011, 01:03 AM

With my 18-250 lens, which uses the body to AF, probably around 450-500 shots on a charge. I obviously wouldn't let it go completely flat so that's best guess estimate. Doesn't the K5/7 have a sleep mode after x minutes? I thought it did.

figmental1978 · 09-09-2011, 03:15 AM

I was pretty worried about only having one battery and having to photograph a music event. I was mainly using a 50-135 with AF on, I turned off preview mode and any screen settings. I shot over 500 photos, checked most of them in preview for a few seconds and the bar didn't even move. Nothing to worry about after all but I'll still be getting a knock off battery just in case.

09-04-2011, 11:15 PM	#24
philippe Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Flanders Fields Posts: 463	What stroke me is that the genuine K5 battery's need more recharging than these of my K20 (genuine too). After spending a few weeks, unused, in my bag, the spare K5 battery always needs a little recharging. I am used to check the charge regularly and particularly before getting out by putting them in the charger. Each time the green light turns on and there is more ore less half an hour of charing needed before completion. Sometimes all three of them, the ones in the camera, the grip and spare, even unused, need some recharging. Although, when new, I formatted these batteries as I am used to do withe the one in my MacBook, I do not know if it's of any use, but I did it never the less, just to be sure... BTW, what I find sad is that there is no more plastic protective cover for the K5 battery's contacts as there was one for the K20's battery's, now I need to pack the spare one in a little plastic bag, no point but wrong economy by Pentax... Last edited by philippe; 09-05-2011 at 02:30 AM.

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07-22-2011, 07:05 PM	#16
Rupert Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Texas Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 25,123	Seems about like my K20D.....it all depends on how much I use the LCD for viewing and showing others the photos, but it seems adequate for sure. Like all lithium batteries, as in my power tools, it can be fully powerful...and the next instant fully dead. I never view the level meter...they seem worthless to me. Best Regards!

07-22-2011, 07:22 PM	#17
Biro Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 1,200	Not directly comparable, but my K200D with four lithium-ion AAs will give me 1500 shots or more before replacement. Granted, not the most-economical option over the long haul, but I love the way they work.

07-23-2011, 04:41 AM	#18
Ash Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Toowoomba, Queensland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 23,920	It may also have to do with the age and authenticity of the battery (Pentax OEM or not). My batteries are either old originals or non-OEM, and they don't last as long as even 1,000. Then again, I don't often shoot over 500 shots in one day, so my batteries will not last much beyond that due to the time and idle discharge factor.

07-23-2011, 05:30 AM	#19
Fries Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Gauw Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,582	The K-5 is definitely more powerhungry then my K200D. Especially with Live View and filming the six lithiums I used in the battery grip couldn't really cope. But those were more than a year old. But I was impressed with the authentic battery.

09-03-2011, 05:57 PM	#20
jerm1386 Site Supporter Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Baltimore, MD Photos: Albums Posts: 45	Just got my k-5 last week so i could shoot this week at the baltimore grand prix. shooting in JPG (***) on manual focus lenses, today I burned through 5,167 pictures over 9 hours on the standard battery (the last 300 over the course of half an hour in live view, only stopped by the sensor temperature warning), and had it on for 45 minutes on the train ride home to review and delete pictures. the battery only had one bar left, but it never shut down on me and i kept the camera on the entire day except a couple brief instances. Yesterday shooting RAW but still the manual lenses and no live view i replaced the battery after ~3,500 shots (but it wasn't dead, just close) Sounds like the internal AF motor might be the power-hungry part here...keep in mind it's your battery's job to push around solid chunks of glass inside your lens every time you give the shutter button a half-press, and you want it to move those chunks of glass as fast as possible. The past 2 days at the BGP I've only seen 2 other pentaxes. So if you saw someone rocking an adaptall 80-200/2.8 there, it was me

09-04-2011, 01:26 AM	#21
RonHendriks1966 Banned Join Date: Jan 2009 Photos: Gallery Posts: 9,675	Originally posted by jerm1386 Just got my k-5 last week so i could shoot this week at the baltimore grand prix. shooting in JPG (***) on manual focus lenses, today I burned through 5,167 pictures over 9 hours on the standard battery Yesterday shooting RAW but still the manual lenses and no live view i replaced the battery after ~3,500 shots (but it wasn't dead, just close) Wow that are a lot of pictures. Well it is true that powerconsumption differs a lot when you use different methods. Using SDM and AF-C extensively drains a lot of power. Making RAW uses more power then JPG. Using liveview drains battery also fast. Reviewing and deleting pictures also use some power. I did make on one occasion 3.000 pictures. Having a spare battry is a good idea for you I think. Can we see some of the pictures? In de sportspicture thread maybe?

09-04-2011, 04:08 AM	#22
Rondec Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Gladys, Virginia Photos: Gallery Posts: 27,666	A lot depends on how much chimping and live view I do. I will say that I seldom use live view on K7, cause it's much slower, but that and video really soak up battery life on the K5. Without using those, I get 600-ish shots with the K5. Might get a few more with my K7, but not a whole lot.

09-04-2011, 10:22 PM	#23
mysticcowboy Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: port townsend, wa Photos: Albums Posts: 968	That's funny. With my K20D I get between 400 and 500 images on a charge. I shot 932 this weekend, plus one three minute video, on my K-5 without changing the battery (3 1/2 - 8 gig cards). A lot of the shots were taken pretty quickly so they didn't show as previews. I do turn off my camera between shots. This is all raw, so no special effects or dynamic modes.

09-05-2011, 02:13 PM	#25
Smeggypants Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 1,536	Originally posted by Ash It may also have to do with the age and authenticity of the battery (Pentax OEM or not). My batteries are either old originals or non-OEM, and they don't last as long as even 1,000. Then again, I don't often shoot over 500 shots in one day, so my batteries will not last much beyond that due to the time and idle discharge factor. I've noticed no difference whatsoever between the 'genuine' Pentax K-5 batteries and 3rd party brands. the petnax battereis are 7 times the price of the 3rd party batteries

09-08-2011, 11:35 PM	#26
mikeSF Pentaxian Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: East Bay Area, CA Photos: Gallery Posts: 6,622	I've no actual data to share but i'll share anecdotal information...when i first got my K5 i was using the status screen as well as a 3 sec image display and really noticed how quick the batteries were draining. i'd use 2-3 batteries shooting a single event. I've since shut all that off and am surprised that i can go on a couple of outings before changing a single battery. i also turn my LCD brightness all the way down unless i am in bright sun.

09-09-2011, 01:03 AM	#27
Francis Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Hilversum Photos: Gallery Posts: 215	With my 18-250 lens, which uses the body to AF, probably around 450-500 shots on a charge. I obviously wouldn't let it go completely flat so that's best guess estimate. Doesn't the K5/7 have a sleep mode after x minutes? I thought it did.

09-09-2011, 03:15 AM	#28
figmental1978 Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Melbourne Posts: 789	I was pretty worried about only having one battery and having to photograph a music event. I was mainly using a 50-135 with AF on, I turned off preview mode and any screen settings. I shot over 500 photos, checked most of them in preview for a few seconds and the bar didn't even move. Nothing to worry about after all but I'll still be getting a knock off battery just in case.

Battery life of K5

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