Pre-Packed Picture Power In Little Parcels - Toshiba Batteries

So many things in our lives are taken for granted - clean water, electricity, and rhinestone poodle collars for instance - that we rarely look into where we are to get them from when we are not in our normal environment. The wise amongst us make provision for a steady supply - even when the shops are shut.

We'll leave you to seek your own sources of water and rhinestones but direct you to the thought that you really ought to get yourself some portable electricity that you can store safely in your camera bag.

You might argue that you only need AA batteries for flash guns and portable LED light blocks. Not so - more and more radio triggers are being designed to use standard AA's rather than button cells. There are still cameras that use AA cells for system power. And they can be called on the juice up any number of digital devices by means of simple converters and battery chargers - there are a number of these devices available right now.

At this juncture we can chime in with some advice from Ernest - there are some rechargeable AA's on the market that sound like a good idea for flash guns but don't prove to be. If you want to ask him for the details next time you see him by all means go ahead - he makes a good argument for decent alkaline AA's.

Well - here they are. We've been selling the Toshiba AA's in 40-battery boxes as well as 2-battery packs for as long as I can remember in CE. They are the go-to battery for sales demonstrations of speed lights and it is no wonder that when I started using the Nikon and the Fujifilm guns I should load up with them. My experience with them has been good - as opposed to the results from AA's purchased in supermarkets around the state.

Not all batteries are the same and not all are good - Ernest again and his dramatic demonstration of bending no-name batteries double with his fingers. Even some of the nationally-known brands from Coles, Woolies, and IGA can be sad little cells and poop out well before a reasonable number of shots.

Speaking of which, my experience with the Toshiba AA's in Nikon SB700 and Fujifilm EF-42 speed lights has been that they will put out about 220-240 flashes before becoming exhausted. This is good to know if you are going to budget for an event that requires a lot of flash and need to know when to change batteries so as not to be caught flash-less at the wrong time.

The other good thing about Toshiba is I have yet to see a Toshiba leak into a flash gun - even if it is unused for months.

Buy a box. You'll use them up eventually and the assurance that you always have power is invaluable.