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General discussion

Battery Options for HDC SD9 Panasonic

by Ssvanti May 6, 2009 11:32PM PDT

I've purchased the HDC SD9 from Panasonic and so far I've been very happy with the purchase. I am however having issues locating Battery Options for my camcorder it came with a VW-VBG130(1320 mAh). I tend to like to shoot everything in 1920x1080i using the HA mode (highest quality) So I only get a little over 80 minutes of battery usage.

I currently have an 8gb and two 16gb memory cards for the camcorder and will shortly be acquiring a couple 32gb cards as some other people I have contacted have apparently had success with some Kingston and Sandisk cards in that capacity.

This however still leaves me at a severe disadvantage with mobile power for the camcorder. I won't have issues with storage, but I will run out of juice if I'm not near an automobile or outlet to feed the hungry critter.

Other listed options were VW-VBG260(2640 mAh) and VW-VBG6 (5800 mAh requires VW-VH04 to use)

Currently I cannot find either VW-VBG6 or it's kit(VW-VH04)on Panasonic or any other 3rd party vendor sites for sale. Even attempted pricewatch and newegg. I am definetly looking for a higher capacity battery as I really don't want to lug around a load of smaller batteries and then have to buy additional chargers to keep them all up.

Panasonic refers to some batteries offered by other merchants that are known to work with the HDC SD9 but do not give manufacturer names, part numbers or even capacities of the batteries. They only state that even if the batteries were certified to work with this particular camcorder they would be covered under warranty should something happen to the camcorder while a non-Panasonic battery was used.

Can anyone give me some insight since Panasonic hasn't responded to any of last couple of inquiries? Just looking for longer lasting batteries that will fit HDC SD9

Discussion is locked

3 Posts
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Error.
by Ssvanti May 6, 2009 11:36PM PDT

"They only state that even if the batteries were certified to work with this particular camcorder they would be covered under warranty should something happen to the camcorder while a non-Panasonic battery was used."

Should read as

"would NOT be covered" instead of "would be covered" I apologize for the error.

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amazon.com
by chickenorfish May 7, 2009 12:33AM PDT

amazon.com has both those models

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I am in the same boat
by manchesterjohn Jul 1, 2009 3:43AM PDT

I recently bought the Panasonic HDC-SD9 camcorder [it records onto SD cards - doesn't have a hard-disc] - and I am thrilled with my purchase.

But hunting down reasonably-priced extra batteries is proving a task all-of-its own!

I bought a cheap, generic battery from a well-known auction site; but, after charging it and inserting it in the camera, I am greeted with the message: 'THIS BATTERY CANNOT BE USED IN THIS CAMERA'. So take care!

I have seen advertised the midrange battery [the 2640mAh option, a step up from the basic battery supplied with the camera] on, I think, an American site - with an amendment saying that it has been upgraded to run for 5 or 6 hours [as opposed to the modest 2 hours described in the handbook] - but I am blowed if I can find where I saw it! [The site containing pricing in GBP as well as USD].

And I cannot track down the attachment which seems to be necessary for the larger-capacity batteries used with the SDF9 - the VW-VH04.

It's frustrating - and disapppointing!

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