M9 and battery problems

[mbeo]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

Hello,

 

are an owner of the M9 from the beginning of November.

The M9 is exceptional in quality but bad as reliability. In fact, the batteries will last 2 days if not using the M9 or allow you to take pictures only 30/40.

I have 2 batteries but the problem is the same for both.

Has anyone had this problem?

I apologize for my bad English.

Merry Christmas

[delander †]

That does not seem right. My M9 has very low battery consumption when not used.

 

There could be something wrong with the batteries or the camera.

 

Jeff

[Advertisement]

The Leica Q3 is available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video and Adorama

[Ario Arioldi]

This is not normal, are you using original batteries?

Cheers,

Ario

[dwind]

Do you leave the switch on and hope for auto power off? It defaults to off so leaving the switch on will drain the battery. Take some pictures and check the info display after each.

Dennis

[k-hawinkler]

Do the M8 and M9 use the same batteries? I would like to buy an additional battery before my M9 shows up. Thanks for your help.

[James R]

Do the M8 and M9 use the same batteries? I would like to buy an additional battery before my M9 shows up. Thanks for your help.

 

Yes, they are the same. Spare batteries are a necessity. I have two batteries and will add more next week.

[jaapv]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

After recharging the new battery three times the performance on my M9 is the same as it is with my old M8 batteries, that is about 300 to 400 shots per charge. It depends of course, on the usage. Autoreview is off on my camera and it is set to autoshutoff. 2 min, if memory serves.

[250swb]

I've not had any problems with the battery, about 250 - 300 shots (uncompressed .dng), no auto review but some chimping. When not in use the battery still retains its charge OK.

 

Steve

[air]

I must admit, that M8-battery-Performance was much better. I expect improvement when the new firmware is available

[jaques]

I have been having some battery issues- completely dead after only a few dozen shots.... I am not sure if it was because the camera was somehow getting switched on in the bag and I didn't have the auto-off enabled (I have now) I will keep an eye on it- but I am a little concerned. I wish there was a lock on the on/off switch- it seems quite easy to accidentally turn the camera on...

[jaapv]

Nothing new there - the M6 killed off batteries at an alarming rate, as it had no switch-off and the camera bag contstantly activated the metering circuit.

[vanhulsenbeek]

After recharging the new battery three times the performance on my M9 is the same as it is with my old M8 batteries, that is about 300 to 400 shots per charge. It depends of course, on the usage. Autoreview is off on my camera and it is set to autoshutoff. 2 min, if memory serves.

 

Same with me: I love the M9!

[JMacD]

M9 using batteries slower than my experience with M8

Only one time did battery drain down, and I suspect I left the switch on.

Yes the batteries are the same.

 

I do let the batteries drain all the way down if I find a battery not holding a charge as it should. This was an issue with the M8. I thought my batteries were just dying and bought two fresh new ones, then read on this forum to cycle them. That brought the old ones back fully.

[d2mini]

I was on my 3rd charge yesterday and popped off 170 shots and still had 50% battery left.

[Nathan127]

Same thing with my M9. It was 75% full on Friday, and when I turned it on today (Sunday) it said the battery is low. I was unable to do anything. The auto power was on and the switch was in the off position. I took only 10 pictures and the battery is already empty. This has never happened to any of my other cameras and is horrible!!! If Leica doesn't do anything about this problem they are going to have a BIG issue.

[wieni]

My batteries work fine.

[scott kirkpatrick]

Using one of my old M8 batteries, I took 150 shots yesterday and ended with better than half a charge. 2 sec auto-review, 2 min auto-off. DNG uncompressed, A priority and auto-ISO, so I have the M9 thinking pretty hard. I suspect the problems reported could be from leaving things running over one or several nights. Suggest checking INFO before you start shooting on a given day. The new gauge is pretty accurate.

 

scott

[carbonadam]

I think the battery life is unacceptable and should be double or triple what it currently is. The battery does not even have to autofocus or image stabilize the lens as my Canon 5DM2 does and it's dead in 1/2 the time. The M9 battery should have been redesigned to be larger and hold more juice. With all the manual on the M9 camera it is unacceptable. I never carry an extra battery with my 5DM2 and with the M9 I can see that for a day of heavy shooting and LCD viewing I will need 2-3. If you re-format or download with a USB cable that drains juice even more. I HATE taking off the bottom plate and like using USB to download pix. I hope a new battery comes out some day that will at least double the juice on the current one. Also, the current price for such an innificent battery is outrageous. The Canon 5Dm2 battery is 1/2 the price, 1/3 larger and holds at least twice the juice. I can see the extra cost of Leica bodies & lenses, but this battery being so costly and with such a short life is unacceptable.

[tdtaylor]

I think the battery life is unacceptable and should be double or triple what it currently is. The battery does not even have to autofocus or image stabilize the lens as my Canon 5DM2 does and it's dead in 1/2 the time. The M9 battery should have been redesigned to be larger and hold more juice. With all the manual on the M9 camera it is unacceptable. I never carry an extra battery with my 5DM2 and with the M9 I can see that for a day of heavy shooting and LCD viewing I will need 2-3. If you re-format or download with a USB cable that drains juice even more. I HATE taking off the bottom plate and like using USB to download pix. I hope a new battery comes out some day that will at least double the juice on the current one. Also, the current price for such an innificent battery is outrageous. The Canon 5Dm2 battery is 1/2 the price, 1/3 larger and holds at least twice the juice. I can see the extra cost of Leica bodies & lenses, but this battery being so costly and with such a short life is unacceptable.

 

Every once in a while the battery on the M9 would drain in a day or two when I was not using. I found that one of the User Settings banks had the auto off feature to none. This happened several times, could not find out why because I had switched to another bank. End result I found it, and have not had a problem since.

 

But the batteries really don't last very long, especially when compared to SLRs. I can get 3,000 shot with a good amount of chimping from my D700 while powering the AFS on a 600mm. Hopefully upcoming firmware will improve the situation.

[Advertisement]

Hallo,

Look here: Leica M