well i decided to give them ia try out.
in a SB900
the good
they recycle just like an external power pack. neat stuff...to a point
the bad.
in manual flash the cells heat up rapidly along with the internal temp of the flash. takes 14 full shots to set off the temp alert and shut it down. the cells come out greater then warm to the touch.
in TTL mode it takes longer to temp it up and is distance dependent due to flash output
personally i don't see these as the best option for flash longevity.
sjms wrote:
standard alkaline cells are nominally 1.5vdc, NiMh are 1.2vdc. most alkaline cells start off at 1.55-1.60vdc out of the package.
i will use them in my SB flash units along with a few other items
I just checked and new lithium batteries run 1.8 volts. I use them in my F4 and flashes for long shelf life. The only item damaged by lithium cells is the mini-maglite. The bulb life is shortened drastically.
The L91 voltage drops quickly under load and the cell has a current limit well below most NiMH cells today. In their initial marketing campaign, Eveready guaranteed that products would not be damaged by the L91 cells. Aside from some incanmdescent lamp life issues the main problem I've had occasionally with the L91 is reduced battery life in some unregulated low current applications. In such devices the voltage may remain at 1.7-1.75V and battery life is reduced from 12 months to 3 for example.
for the light issue i suggest going to a pelican LED light 2360 and you can drop any of the AA cells in . the higher voltage just overdrives the LED a bit. most are regulated. $28 or so
I found an LED kit for the maglite. Replaces the entire light and reflector. It will probably outlive me. I found an Energizer Lithium flashlight at Target' that takes 4 AAA lithium cells in a holder. A short squat thing. Maybe 4 inches long and about 1 1/2 inches diameter. Bodyshops use them because the light is very close to sunlight. The LED is so bright you cannot look at it. Makes a maglite look like it's burning a candle.
It says Energizer Lithium on it.
I just shined it into the D700. Meter said 1/2500 to 1/3200 of a second f5.6 at ISO 200. That is daylight bright. Flashlight was about 14-16 inches from the lens.
