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M9 battery life


Stein K S

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I guess this is an "old topic" being discussed quite a few times before. But I ask for comments anyway. My M9 bought in 2011 with two batteries has from te beginning given the warning signal about Low Battery when the battery status show appr 50% left... and then closes the camera immediately after a few seconds...

 

I have read comments suggesting that this is part of the "personality" of the M9... but should it really be like this?

 

PS: as described... been like this since both batteries where new...

 

Thanks for all advice... Would Solms be the right way to go...?

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I know there was a firmware update that changed the response to battery level, but I think it made the camera shut down sooner, as some had their batteries go flat without warning. I avoided that update as my earlier M9 has always done fine.

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Charge when possible. 50% means...uhohIndividual OEM batteries vary once you've had them a while.

Yes, and that is what I have got used to (charging at any opportunity... and this is actually never a true problem). But woke up this morning still curious on what after all should/could be expected... ;-)

 

As mentioned; new battery do not change this fact.

 

Regards

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I have never had problems with batteries in my M9 and I have never needed more than 2 in a day even if I was shooting all day long, they last forever, nothing like the new mirrorless cameras that run out of battery very quickly. I have 6 batteries in total for my M9 which means I can have 2 sets of 3 on two different bags and whichever I take is ready to go, just choose camera and lenses and off I go (more lenses = bigger bag, less lenses = smaller bag). (also my batteries are all originals, no copies)

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Hi folks and thanks to all!

 

I feel confident that the batteries are original. And I did the sortware update, however, this "behaviour" was the same before and after.

 

I guess I have got used to this... and in practice I am always ok with two batteries along. i just find it annoying that the camera shuts down more or less without warning and when the green status bar show 50% left...

 

The best to all

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These batteries are almost 6 years old - worn out, just buy a new set and you will be good to go again.

Hi Erik

I know... now they are. But, as stated the camera & batteries have behaved like this from new (as stated previously)... and I was curious if anyone else have the same experience. It seems like no one do...

 

I`ll buy new ones to ¨verify¨...

 

regards, Stein

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Maybe giving it some rest might bring it performance back. I have fifteen years old shaver and battery in it was not as good as new, I left it unused for few months and it it helped. My 2008 DSLR original battery was not holding charge well, I added three non OEM, kept original unused and now it is back to normal. 

 

But it depends on battery quality. My M-E OEM Leica clearly labeled as made in China and it doesn't sounds promising. My DSLR and shaver batteries were made in Japan...  

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I have four OEM batteries for my M9. Three of them vary from 2-5 years old and typically show just short of 100% when fully charged (8+hours in the charger). The 4th battery is one I just purchased brand-new from B&H last month and charges to 100%.

 

The more you use them, the better job they do of holding a charge/lasting more shots. I tend to use my M262 more so if I use the M9 after an extended time, it usually take 2-3 charge cycles for them to "build up", but their life per charge still falls well short of the higher capacity battery used in the M262.

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I still have a couple of batteries from when I bought the M8 and they still seem to work ok in my M9s. At minimum they must be at least 8 years old and may be as old as 10. If I'd bothered to number them properly I would know. Yes the M9 does give a low battery warning, then shuts down, though in practice I can't say that battery capacity has ever been a huge issue and I've rarely needed 3 batteries in a day. So far, after 10s of thousands of shots on 5 digital Ms (I sold the M8s and then the M8-2 to upgrade to M9s) I've only had one battery die and that refused to recharge, oh yes and I dropped one and of course it bounced and shot straight down a drain ;)

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Hi and thanks again to all!

 

And to pgk: you confirmed the quick shut down (which actually makes the shut down warning valueless...)... Thanks and I agree... With two batteries I have always been ok after all. I just find it strange that Leica being so absolutely presice on most issues seems so "off" concernings batteries...

 

Stein

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  • 3 weeks later...

I've had similar issues with two batteries I got with a used M9, one always displays 100%, the other always displays "turn camera off". 

 

I emailed Leica Wetzlar and they asked me for photos of the two batteries then sent me two brand new ones with no questions asked. 

 

I have not had a chance to test the new batteries yet as the M9 is also with Leica for a sensor replacement. 

Edited by yeahyoung
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  • 1 month later...

I burn through a lot of m9 batteries clicking through hundreds of images per day. I have 1 original m8 battery that is still holding its own. 2 out of 3 Leica batteries that came with my m9 have kicked the bucket. I started buying the $20 knock offs and found that they will not display an accurate state of charge, they will make your charger flash like a disco but they work. So i just have as many as i can fit in my pockets while shooting and blast away until they're dead, and do a battery reload on the fly.  Depending on the temperature and my chimping frequency I can usualy get about 3-400 snaps out of a battery.  So far I have not had a total failure with a knock off.

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