"Check Battery Age"

[harmen]

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In case you'd like to take particularly good care of the battery when not using it for a while, discharge it to 30% and keep it in a fridge (well sealed). On the other hand, I'd be surprised if everyone here isn't a heavy and frequent user :-). I can attest to the effectiveness of this approach as a large capacity lithium ion battery that I use once or twice a year has not lost any of its capacity over a period of 7 years.

 

Btw, this is my first post after a few months of excitedly reading and learning from all your discussions. Gratitude!

[mirekti]

I just got this message today. I have been using two batteries for the last two years, and the camera had "regular" hours in my hands. I am not professional so this is not too much.
I noticed one thing, though. Two days ago the battery was at 50% and I decided to charge it. Usually I would wait for it to become almost empty and only than I would swap it with the other one. This could have caused issue with mine. That night I shot some 60-70 shots and the battery is still at 80%. It's just I got the red message.

 

Anyhow, what does this actually mean? Can I still use the battery safely or...? 

Edited November 3, 2015 by mirekti

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[pop]

That must be an epidemic of some kind. My M says the same since last Saturday, and I can not observe any deterioration of the battery. It appears as if there was just a due date in the camera or the battery which has been reached, regardless of the battery state.

[Hey You]

Same here.  

[Mashimaro]

I just got this warning on mine as well this past weekend. I have a spare battery, but I'm surprised to see this warning when I check the battery status on the menu.

[Paulus]

Hi all, I just got a "Check Battery Age" in red on my nearly 2 year old M. While I do use the cameras (professionally) a lot, it does seem to be a bit early for a battery to get close to end of life! By the way, with two bodies I use four batteries, which I have numbered so I can rotate my usage. Has anyone else got this message?

 

 

In contrast, the 6 batteries for my  Canon 5D Mark IIs' which I have used since 2009, are still going strong. Are the, way more expensive, Leica batteries build to a lesser standard or was there a bad batch?

 

 

 

John 

Until now I did not get that warning. I have two batteries bought together with my M 240. I think I was one of the first M 240 buyers in the Netherlands so they must be 3 years old. I never drain them. I heard from a friend that you must not do that with lithium.better to charge the up every time when they are still half full.

[Exodies]

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<snip> they must be 3 years old.

<snip>

 

Another year to go.

 

I wonder if there is a time stamp in the battery which says when it was made or if the camera is looking at the condition of the battery and deciding it isn't good enough. Either way the warning message doesn't have to be so terse.

 

ETA

Reading the f. manual I notice that we should only charge the batteries to 80%:

 

Note:

The 80% LED lights up after around 2 hours due to the charging characteristics.

The charger should then be disconnected from the mains. There is therefore no risk of overcharging. 

 

Also:

 

• Even when used in optimum conditions, every battery has a limited service life. After several hundred charging cycles, this becomes noticeable as the operating times get significantly shorter.

• The battery should be replaced after a maximum of four years, as its performance deteriorates and reliable operation can no longer be guaranteed, particularly in cold conditions. 

Edited November 4, 2015 by Exodies

[jaapv]

I've got four batteries I got for te M8 in 2006 and 2007. They still work well, I would say 80 % of the original capacity.

[edwardkaraa]

Lithium batteries do not like to be fully charged or fully depleted. So it is recommended to charge them to 80% max and switch batteries when the camera warning lights up at 20%. I always fully charge my batteries to 100% and haven't noticed any deterioration though.

[mirekti]

Ok, so should I fully empty the battery now to reset it or not?

Edited November 4, 2015 by mirekti

[edwardkaraa]

Ok, so should I fully empty the battery now to reset it or not?

 

Only once every 25 cycles

[Schrödinger's cat]

This article on prolonging the life of lithium batteries might be of interest.

 

http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_prolong_lithium_based_batteries

[Mornnb]

Ok, so should I fully empty the battery now to reset it or not?

This will calibrate the battery capacity sensor. But it is not helpful in terms of prolonging the batteries life.

Edited November 5, 2015 by Mornnb

[chris_tribble]

Clearly we all bought around the same time.  Just got the red message on one of mine.

 

QUESTIONS - it's not clear from the preceding discussion if it's good or bad to drain the battery fully to re-set it.  Really grateful if anyone can advise.  Also - has anyone found a way to clear the message, or are we stuck with it once the battery reaches a certain age?  I've got four batteries and they've been rotated between two bodies.  I would have expected a better life than this - cerainly the batteries for my Canon 5D2 seem to keep going for ever.  At £110 a pop, I'd rather not just send them for recycling!

[jdlaing]

Clearly we all bought around the same time.  Just got the red message on one of mine.

 

QUESTIONS - it's not clear from the preceding discussion if it's good or bad to drain the battery fully to re-set it.  Really grateful if anyone can advise.  Also - has anyone found a way to clear the message, or are we stuck with it once the battery reaches a certain age?  I've got four batteries and they've been rotated between two bodies.  I would have expected a better life than this - cerainly the batteries for my Canon 5D2 seem to keep going for ever.  At £110 a pop, I'd rather not just send them for recycling!

Not fully drained..... i.e. Dead. Just to where it won't power on the camera. Then a full recharge.

[chris_tribble]

Thanks - done this, and as others have said it has no impact on the "check battery age" message.

 

I assume that I just live with it until the battery ceases to function?  It feels like a  useless bit of nagging information. Heigh ho...

[jto555]

Right, I had a camera repair to go back to Leica so I sent the battery back as well. It was replaced for me under warranty. Somehow I can't see most other camera manufactures doing that with a 2 year old battery! So I am very happy.

[chris_tribble]

Kudos to Leica... Unfortunately my M240 was bought in March 2013.  Heigh ho!

[Rick]

Kudos to Leica... Unfortunately my M240 was bought in March 2013.  Heigh ho!

 

Same here.  Same message.  Same purchase date (3/2013).

 

Rick

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[david perry]

Ditto Rick