We will be using a HP digital camera that uses 2 AA photo batteries. We use rechargable batteries with our HP dock in the US. We would have to purchase a 220/240 volt charger to use there so we thought we wouldn't mess with recharging for our 16 day trip in Germany then we looked at the price of the one time use--very expensive for what I think I will use. Has anyone purchased batteries for digital cameras in Germany? Do you remember the cost? Does anyone have suggestions on the type of recharger to purchase to use in Germany? We have a digital wallet ordered to down load our photos on to so I plan on taking many many many photos.

I bought an eight pack of AA photo batteries in Germany for about 8 euro and they lasted about 32 pictures or so. I could have saved battery power by chosing a lower quality setting. It depends on how many many many pictures you want to take and save. I also took along a small traditional camera because I'm old fashioned.

I use rechargable Ni-MH AA photo batteries for my camera and use a Olympus Camedia Battery Charger BU-300, it has input voltages of 100V-240V. You may need to take an adapter for wall socket or purchase a European cord. I use a digital wallet, it also uses AA batteries. The charger paid for itself in one trip. I purchased my charger in Russia at a cost of about $50 US, which included 4 batteries.

There is nothing magic about photo batteries except that they may last a bit longer than reglar ones and perhaps perform better in very cold weather. My Olympus digital camera takes 4 AA batteries. I just buy a big pack of AA batteries at Costco, and these have worked fine for trips to England, Costa Rica, Bonaire (including 100 feet under water), but was a bit slow on a ski trip to Colorado. They don't take up much room in your suitcase so I'd just buy them here so you don't have to worry about it on vacation.

I have to agree with Garfield. Ours eats alkalines in less than a dozen pics. The NiMH will last through 4 times as many between recharges. The metal hydrides resist the quick drain, high draw of the cameras, where alkalines are better suited to low pull, long use applications like flashlights and radios.

I wonder if I get long life from regular alkaline batteries because I almost never use the LCD screen, just the regular viewfinder. I know I have taken over 50 pictures on a set of batteries many times when flash is not needed.

Get an adapter from this place. Only $10.50. Highly recommended all over the digital camera world.<BR><BR>http://www.thomas-distributing.com/maha-adapters.htm

fb - you are right about the LCD screen. it will suck up all the life out of the batteries. also, i think that your problem in colorado with the cold was more due to the camera mechanism not working under such conditions rather than the batteries.<BR><BR>what digital wallets do you use Garfield and Kmarie? We are looking at purchasing one for our trip to Italy in April and have heard mixed reviews about them. Any advice or info?

Thanks all!!<BR> I don't use the LCD much at all. Take all my pictures through the view finder<BR>We are getting the MindStor digital wallet. It wasn't my first choice because it doesn't have a viewing screeen. The difference in cost between it and the Delkin eFilm Picture Pad with a viewing screen made our minds up for us. I'm going to look into the Olympus charger and the adapter mentioned. I think I will take a few batteries along for safety but mainly go with the rechargables. <BR>

My camera (Sony) will drain a pair of AA in less than 12 shots. I bought two pair of NiMH batteries and a charger. With my LCD turned off one pair will last through a day (shooting upwards of 80 pics) while the other pair are charging and then I switch out. The charger is 110/220 with an adaptor so it works anywhere. I switched to this technique after burning through $50 worth of batteries in Australia last year. Now if I could only find a way to not have to carry my laptop with me to download the pics!

to Mitchrc:<BR> Get a digital wallet, 10, 20 or 30 Gig, they weigh about 12 oz --down load to that with out a laptop. You can then use it as a hard drive on you laptop when you arrive home. My understanding is you can even down load MP3 files on them.

If you are going to buy a charger for the trip, I'd suggest buying it before you leave home. Virtually every electronic from cameras to TVs are significantly more expensive over here (usually at least 25%). Look for a charger that switches between 110-220v and then you'll just need the plug adaptor. To buy regular alkaline batteries here is fairly comparable to home or a little more expensive. I agree with the poster who said to just get a box of AA's at Costco before you go. <BR><BR>Fortunately, I have a Canon G1 and the charger converts automatically and fully charges in about 2 hours. I can take a full day's worth of pictures and look at them repeatedly during the day and have only run out of battery juice once.<BR><BR>If you are having trouble finding a charger there at home, post here again with the camera model and I'll try to find out the price here in Germany.

I have a plug in the wall NiMH recharger that fit in the shaver plug of our Paris hotel.<BR>Memory cards are so cheap (maybe $0.50/MB) now that buying a digital wallet would seem to be unneccessary. We have a PhotoShow (which I think is no longer made) and hardly use it any more.<BR>Using the LCD viewer is a battery eater.<BR>Personally, I can compose much better using the viewfinder.

Gretchen:<BR><BR>On a recent 9-day visit to London I used 3.5GB of memory - that would have required well over $1000US in memory cards. For me (and many others) a $250 digital wallet IS necessary.<BR><BR>kazzawary:<BR>There are several new digital wallets on the market now. In addition to the Mindstor, here are some other popular choices:<BR>Tripper: http://store.yahoo.com/insidecomputer/tripper.html<BR>Image Tank: http://store.yahoo.com/insidecomputer/imtanwitpowb.html (no HD included)<BR>Digibin: http://store.yahoo.com/insidecomputer/superdigibin.html<BR><BR>You can find comments on most of these at www.dpreview.com, in the &quot;Storage and Media&quot; forum.<BR>

Well, I would have to agree if you have to take that many pictures you need something. I have recently found that extra memory cards suits my needs and offer it as an alternative. I have enough Olympus cards that I can use themfor the camera features that must be done on those specifically (panoramic, etc.). The other thing that happens with digital is 'WAY too many pictures. Since I no longer have to deal with stacks of prints/developing costs there seems to be a wallpaper effect. But I DO love it. Hope everyone is paying attention to long term storage/ability to retrieve issues/posterity issues.

FYI, the tripper mentioned above also does NOT include a hard drive.

For many a digital wallet would be the best option - depending on what you plan on using your photos for. I exclusively on take photos for the web and thus do not need to take high resolution pictures. I have 1 gig of memory sticks on which I can put several thousand photos.<BR><BR>As far as batteries go - buy a 1 hour NIMH charger ($29 a Walmart), buy 4 sets of batteries ($6 a set), and buy the adapter ($15) to plug it in. That is all you need.<BR><BR>I have a Sony Cybershot that can suck the life out of a pair of AA batteries in less than 5 minutes. Using NiMH 1800s I can take hundreds of photos before they need recharging. I usually keep a fresh set in the camera and two spare sets in my pocket. <BR><BR>I've been using the same batteries for the past 18 months - having recharged them countless times, and they still work perfectly. I can't even imagine how much money this has saved me from purchasing disposable batteries.

The cheapest NiMH batteries I have found are at the Costco web site - www.costco.com. They sell 24 Energizer AA NiMH batteries for just $45. They also sell a charger for $11.50. You can also buy a 4 pack of Lithium AA batteries from them for $7.

Jack: thanks for the info. I want to make a note about chargers - the cheaper ones tend to require 12-14 hours to charge a set of batteries. This is fine for charging overnight in a hotel room. But I think it is a good investment to buy a 1-hour charger. I'm often forgetful about charging my batteries - this way I can get up, plug it in, and have 'em charged by the time I've showered and had breakfast.

JPM<BR> The one hour NiMH charger from Walmart--Is it for 220 volt since you said by an adapter not a converter? Also, the NiMH 1800 battery are all NiMH batteries 1800 or is that a specific kind? <BR>Thanks for all the help!