Battery and SD card options for FS100

[Mihai Nicolau]

Hello,

I would like to know what is the speed requirement for this camera to be able to keep up for 60p 1080 shooting ?
I found one for a very good price the brand is A-Data, ADATA SDHC Class 10, Description, SDHC (Class 10), SD Series, Memory Card, Welcome to ADATA . The price for a 32GB class 10 claiming a 20MB speed is about 65 dollars. The 30mb/s Sandisk Extreme goes for more than double. Should I go for the brand name ? Is 20mb/s (16mb write as stated on their website) fast enough for the FS ?
Is there any advantage on using MemoryStick pro DUOs ? They are about the same price as the highend Sandisks ?

Also it seems this camera doesn't want to accept non-original batteries. As far as I can see the 2 original batts that fit would be the Np-f770 which comes with the camera and the bigger NP-F970. Any other tested cheaper batts that work with this camera ?

I found a couple but not sure if they work or not. This one from Ikan. They state it's bigger even than the 970 ikan IBS-1170 - ikan Sony "L" Series Style Ultra-High Capacity Battery

The one from SWIT S-8970 DV Battery for SONY NP-F970/770 and they also have one with a DC output.

[Mike Watson]

I have used Transcend and SanDisk. IMHO there is no better name in SD cards than San Disk, and at $40 vs $60, it is hard for me to save $20, when I've got a $6000 camera with a $1000 lens on a gig where I'm making $1000/day.

It's one thing when can buy a brand-name jib for $5k or an Indian knock-off for $800, the $4.2k would really make a difference in my wallet. But it would be really hard for me to say to a client who is paying full-rate that I bought a knock-off SD card instead of the brand name to save $20, and a two-day shoot is now lost forever.

For the batteries I am less of a stickler, I do have some knock off batteries - my FS100 doesn't seem to have any trouble with them. With the batteries, if a Chinese knock-off dies mid shoot, I just replace it with another. SD cards - not so easy.

LA Color Shop is a sponsor here, and he sells 970 knock-offs.

[Cees van Kempen]

Originally Posted by Mihai Nicolau

Hello,

Also it seems this camera doesn't want to accept non-original batteries. As far as I can see the 2 original batts that fit would be the Np-f770 which comes with the camera and the bigger NP-F970. Any other tested cheaper batts that work with this camera ?

I bought a few SWIT S-8972 batteries, because they have a power socket at the back of the battery, that I use for powering my nanoflash. But also when you don't need this socket, the batteries are cheaper than the original NP-F's. I just only started working with these, but so far it works fine. The camera even gives a good indication of remaining power, even better than the battery does itself with the push buttons at the back.

[Matt Davis]

A little note about non-Sony NP-F970 copies:

The FS100's charger will only 'trickle charge' some of them (well, the ones I bought) - taking days to reach full charge. They power the camera just fine, but will take forever to charge using the supplied unit.

I had a couple of single bay non-Sony chargers that work just fine, although one has just died whilst being used abroad (at 200V instead of the expected 240V), but my Sony dual-bay charger isn't fussy either, with two batts charging (sequentially) overnight.

The Sony batts seem to charge quicker and give more feedback whilst they charge. Then again, I have 5 LED lamps that use NP-F style batteries too - and those suckers don't particularly care where the batts come from, just that they're full of juice.

[Lee Mullen]

Originally Posted by Mike Watson

where I'm making $1000/day.

Nice if you can get it!

[Cees van Kempen]

Originally Posted by Matt Davis

I had a couple of single bay non-Sony chargers that work just fine

Matt, Thanks for your additional information. It does inded take ages to charge my Swit batteries with the charger that comes with the FS-100. Can you tell me what non-Sony charger(s) worked fine for you? I am particularly interested in a charger with 12V car plug.

Cees

[Ryan Creason]

Sony NP F970 Camcorder battery - Li-Ion 6600 mAh

This is the one that I bought. It does take a while to charge, but done in less than 24 hours. Cheapest I've found for that mAh.

[Jean-Philippe Archibald]

I use these cards: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/692820-REG/Lexar_LSD32GCRBNA133_32GB_Professional_133x_SDHC.html
for 44$ per card, hard to beat. I always used Sandisk and Lexar cards. IMO these two brands are the top! I never had any problem. Fast enough for the FS100.

BTW, 60p mode is not hard on card, it's just 28mb/s. 24p overcranked to 60p via S&Q mode need a faster card since 60mb/s is written on the card.

As for batteries, I can't comment. I have a few knockoff batteries, but I use them only as a backup or in rare occasion when I need to use the cam stripped down. Other than that I rely on AB bricks.

[Kevin Dooley]

Anyone ever used this (or something like it) with an FS100? I've got some old Gold Mounts lying around and was thinking of picking one up:

Anton Bauer Gold Mount Battery HDMI Splitter Power Station for DSLR Rail System

and then adding one of these:

IDX Cable for SONY HVR Ccamcorders (D-Tap for FS100) P/N: DC-DC

[Mike Watson]

A 970 will last me all day and have juice left over. They're $100 a piece, and they fit inside the FS100 without protruding. By my calculations, you could buy three of them before you met the cost of the AB Brick mount (sans batteries), and not have FrankenCamera getting in your way. That's what I'd do, but to each his own.

[Kevin Dooley]

My thinking was:

A. I already own the ABs and charger
B. I need to power an outboard monitor
C. I need to power an external recorder
And
D. The HDMI splitter helps connect both B. and C.

And since I'll have the FS100 on rails, there's a perfect way to mount it.

[Bryan McCullough]

Originally Posted by Mike Watson

LA Color Shop is a sponsor here, and he sells 970 knock-offs.

I bought two and they do not work with my FS100. After about 20-30 seconds I get an error on the camera that says the battery it too hot and power will shut down. I'm not sure what's going on, as the batteries aren't hot, must just be some communication problem between the camera and the battery.

I've got an old Power2000 970 knock off that does work with it.

I've decided to just get legit Sony 970s.

For the record, Taky at LA Color Shop is being very helpful and accepting the batteries back (his offer). :up: