Don't buy the Duracell charger for the C-Lux/Panasonic TZ200

[wlaidlaw]

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I wanted an external charger for the two batteries I have for my Panasonic TZ200 (C-Lux equivalent). I bought the second battery and the charger from Duracell UK on the grounds that it was a reputable company. The battery was hopeless not holding a charge and having a very poor in use life compared with the original Panasonic branded battery. I returned it for a refund. The charger seemed OK if rather slow as it uses a Micro-USB low current lead as its power source, rather than having mains powered transformer and rectifier system. I subsequently bought another OEM Panasonic battery. I have never like charging digital camera batteries in the camera, since my son's Canon Sureshot's Lion RCR123A battery went on fire when being charged in the camera. However when this morning I came to put a fully charged battery in my TZ200, I found that the battery which I had charged up a couple of weeks ago and,  which had been sitting in the charger was flat. It appears that the charger has fairly serious back leakage, so you cannot leave the battery in the charger after charging. The Panasonic OEM charger is about 4 times the price of the Duracell but maybe still actually value for money. 

Wilson

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