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06-04-2021, 11:54 AM   #1
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Battery Icon/ Battery life.

Hi

I’ve owned the K3iii for a few weeks now and taken around 300 shots.

The first 20 or so shots were taken with the 55-300 PLM and every other shot since then with a 70-210 f4. SDM

At around a 100 shots the battery icon has shown half charge, (neither my KP or my previous K70 have done that) and not having a spare battery I’ve had to recharged the original every time before leaving home.

I’ve struggled finding a genuine replacement battery, they seem in very short supply at the moment but I have managed to locate and order one now.

My question is, has anyone else noticed the icon showing half charge after such a small number of shots or is it the case that the 70-210 is a heavy drain on the battery or perhaps something is wrong with either the camera or the battery.

Of course the icon level maybe normal for the camera after 100 shots, I just don’t know.

Can anyone offer any insight.

Thank you.

Regards

Barry

06-04-2021, 02:00 PM - 1 Like   #2
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I charge my battery after each use and do not keep it in my camera when not in use. I also use only Pentax brand batteries. I am not sure if you are using live view while shooting, but of course it will use more power than if not using it. This is a quote that I read: "The K-3 III uses the same D-LI90P battery as the K-1 Mark II. This is rated to deliver 800 shots per charge, per the CIPA standard test methods." If you have tested with a fully charged battery and found that by the end of the charge on that battery that the amount of shots is not near the rated 800, you may want to consult with your dealer or Ricoh/Pentax customer service to see if they may be able to provide a new battery for you (if under warranty still).

I have never had a problem with the D-LI90P batteries that my Pentax cameras use (K-1 II, K-5IIs, and K-3 II).
06-04-2021, 02:19 PM - 2 Likes   #3
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Obvious question … have you got the camera set to not "Auto Power Off" and/or the "Meter Operating Time" set to "Hold"?
I know from experience that these features eat batteries in my KP, but I've been using the default settings with my K-3iii and not had any noticeable problems, using Pentax original batteries.
06-04-2021, 05:26 PM - 1 Like   #4
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I'm fortunate to have three batteries. But I put a fresh one in each morning and then spend the day from 7 am to 8 pm with the camera in my hand, taking shots, chimping, and downloading images from Image Sync to my iPhone. I also have my phone feed GPS coordinates to the camera all day. I probably do a couple of hundred shots a day. By end of the day the battery shows yellow or red, but rarely do I have to put a new one in until the next morning. Most shots are on the DA*300mm.

06-05-2021, 01:05 AM   #5
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QuoteOriginally posted by C_Jones Quote
I am not sure if you are using live view while shooting, but of course it will use more power than if not using it.
No I dont use live view, thanks for the input.

---------- Post added 06-05-21 at 01:08 AM ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by kypfer Quote
Obvious question … have you got the camera set to not "Auto Power Off" and/or the "Meter Operating Time" set to "Hold"?
I know from experience that these features eat batteries in my KP, but I've been using the default settings with my K-3iii and not had any noticeable problems, using Pentax original batteries.
Like you I have it on default settings and yes ibdoes auto power off. Many thanks for the suggestions though.

---------- Post added 06-05-21 at 01:13 AM ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by MikeStnly Quote
I'm fortunate to have three batteries. But I put a fresh one in each morning and then spend the day from 7 am to 8 pm with the camera in my hand, taking shots, chimping, and downloading images from Image Sync to my iPhone. I also have my phone feed GPS coordinates to the camera all day. I probably do a couple of hundred shots a day. By end of the day the battery shows yellow or red, but rarely do I have to put a new one in until the next morning. Most shots are on the DA*300mm.
Thanks Mike, it looks like your probably getting better battery life than I am.
06-05-2021, 03:00 AM - 1 Like   #6
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QuoteOriginally posted by bigbaz Quote
Hi

The first 20 or so shots were taken with the 55-300 PLM and every other shot since then with a 70-210 f4. SDM

At around a 100 shots the battery icon has shown half charge, (neither my KP or my previous K70 have done that) and not having a spare battery I’ve had to recharged the original every time before leaving home.

Barry
I was out a couple of times the last weeks with the Mark III for 1-3 hours. Taking more than 300 shots, mostly with continuous shooting. All with the DFA 150-450. GPS transfer via Bluetooth on (as long as it was connected to my phone, but that's another thing...). Kept the camera at least in standby all the time and never had less than 2/3 of battery (one of the three segments off). I don't think that the 70-200 drains the battery more than the 150-450.
I have the back lcd on, but with energy savings to high (don't know how the menu is titled in english, the thing where the back lcd shuts off faster). Also a lot of replay of the images.

And: I have different batteries (original D-Li90). I don't know which one is in the camera. Some of them are more than 5 years old and still work fine.


Two things that come in mind: Do you have the the latest 1.01 firmware? They say they improved stability when battery power is low. Maybe it also changed the display of battery power (haven't looked at that before and after updating).
And how often did you charge that battery by now? New LiIon batteries need a few cycles before getting full power.


From what I know by now of that camera and previous models (K-5, K-1) i'd expect at least 500 photos from one battery without any problem (maybe except if you constantly use live view). I even 'managed' to leave the camera switched "on" (it switched to standby of course) when putting it in the backpack and noticed the next day... Without any big drain of the battery.

I would suggest to update to fw 1.01 if not already done and make a few (3-5) cycles of using the battery until the camera says "empty" and then fully charging it again.
06-05-2021, 02:26 PM   #7
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Original Poster
QuoteOriginally posted by 0x4243 Quote


Two things that come in mind: Do you have the the latest 1.01 firmware? They say they improved stability when battery power is low. Maybe it also changed the display of battery power (haven't looked at that before and after updating).
And how often did you charge that battery by now? New LiIon batteries need a few cycles before getting full power.
Yes I do have the latest firmware, I updated as soon as it was released and the battery has been charged think 4 times.

My spare battery should arrive later this coming week so I’ll run this one until it’s completely flat and see how many images I get.

Thank you for your help.

06-11-2021, 04:58 AM   #8
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QuoteOriginally posted by bigbaz Quote
Yes I do have the latest firmware, I updated as soon as it was released and the battery has been charged think 4 times.

My spare battery should arrive later this coming week so I’ll run this one until it’s completely flat and see how many images I get.

Thank you for your help.
Please refer, if you have new information abaut it. Thansk
07-18-2021, 09:42 AM   #9
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Right it’s taken me a while for various reasons but I finally got to completely deplete the original battery and it managed 409 shots.

Time now to upgrade again to the latest firmware and try again with a different battery.

As a point of interest when I bought a new KP a few years ago I went out and took over 700 images in a day and the battery icon was still showing a charge.
07-18-2021, 10:27 AM   #10
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QuoteOriginally posted by bigbaz Quote
Right it’s taken me a while for various reasons but I finally got to completely deplete the original battery and it managed 409 shots.

Time now to upgrade again to the latest firmware and try again with a different battery.

As a point of interest when I bought a new KP a few years ago I went out and took over 700 images in a day and the battery icon was still showing a charge.
I'd guess that simply shows how much difference there can be between users and setups
My K-3iii doesn't even blink after 400 exposures and would probably do the same again without problem, whereas my KP never got close to 700 exposures under "normal" usage. These comparisons assume similar usage and the same lens (obviously), which in my case is a Sigma 150-500mm being used for "general wildlife photography", mostly birds, about 50/50 "walk-around" and bird hide. So, much autofocussing checking subject ID etc. between actual bouts of exposures, which are usually individual presses of the shutter button, I'm not a fan of the "spray and pray" approach.
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