Memory cards

[zetec]

I will be buying my new camera in the next week or so (hopefully) It will be a Nikon coolpix 5700. It comes with a 32mb card which I think is a bit puny. My problem is with the camera set at the fine setting the compression ratio is 4:1. According to Jessops catalogue that means I can store 48 pictures on a £30(128mb) memory card.

What do I do??

Buy 3 or 4 128mb memeory cards or 1 512mb card??

Also the battery life is quoted as being 90mins. Does this seem short to any of you??

[luca brazzi]

Personally, I'd get a larger card, like a 512Mb, rather than smaller ones. It works out cheaper this way anyway I think.

The best 512Mb cards have great data transfer rates (they're not all the same...be warned by buying anybrand memory card). Sandisk Ultra II and Lexar WA 40x are the fastest. Basically, the faster the picture can be written to memory, the sooner you can take more pictures.

Also a 512Mb card like the Ultra II is only £120 odd from Picstop.co.uk (incl vat.) Either buy from there, or print and get Jessops to Price Match it.

Don't bother with the 1Gb microdrives, they're too fragile when compared with compact flash 1, and speed is now in CF I's favour rather than CF II, and CF I uses less battery power.

As for 90 minutes, this would be a conservative estimate, as it all comes down to how much you use the LCD screen, which drains the battery real quick.

LB

[zetec]

So will a 512mb card preform faster and better than a 128mb card??? The reason I ask is that I read somewhere that memory cards are not infallible so I would rather lose a £30 card than a £120 one.

[SGirl]

The disadvantage with buying one big card is that if it gets corrupted, broken or lost, all your photos go with it. I've got several 256 MB cards for my Coolpix 5700, and I find that's quite handy. If there are any problems with one card, there's always another standing by. Personally, I wouldn't even consider a Microdrive, for the reasons Luca Brazzi's already given you. I've never had a problem with CF card reliability.

90 minutes for a battery seems like a bit of a conservative estimate - I think mine last longer than that (though not a lot longer...), and I use the LCD all the time. I've got two batteries. There's one in the camera, then if that's running short on power and I need to take the camera out, I charge up the other one, use up the first one as required and then put in the newly charged one. Never get caught short that way.

>> Edited by SGirl on Sunday 21st December 12:27

[stc_bennett]

I personally have a selection of 128 and 256 cards for mine. just think if you only have one card and it currupts.

All your current photos gone. if you have a few cards you only risk losing a some photos

Steve

[stc_bennett]

if you look at some of the reveiws www.dpreview.com it state there how long the batterys last in number shot with and without lcd.

also steves digicams site has god reviews and info

steve

[simpo two]

How can the battery life be rated in minutes? This is a still camera - it should be in frames.

Have you thought about using one setting below max res? On mine the number of pixels is the same but I get 750Kb files instead of 2Mb ones. I can't tell the difference on a 17" TFT monitor, and if you plan to reduce image size anyway, you may be fretting over nothing. Try it!

[agent006]

Always a good plan to get a card reader for the PC. Faster, easier and better than using whatever interface is on the camera.
Also, seeing as corruption is the topic today, you can do clever repairing things on the PC that you can't do with the camera.

[stooz]

if its any comparison, I have a Fuji finepix 602.

I took 170 flash photos over an 8 hour period, on one set of (rechargeable) batteries without recharging.

I dont use the LCD screen..