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General discussion

Can a new battery destroy a camcorder?

May 13, 2005 3:06PM PDT

Hi, I wonder if you can help.
The following is the story but first: I'd like to think that the camera was older and IT failed and was not the battery's cause. It was working fine till I put the new one in.
I have a Sharp VL AH 150 camcorder. It was working perfectly. I ordered the large BT-H32 battery. When I put it in, the camera instantly went on(switch in off position). As a result. I cannot now turn the camera off. When I put it in VCR mode, it stays there and won't go into camera mode or off even though the switch is in the proper position. The camera will no longer charge a battery via the power supply(red light no longer goes on).
Now this is how it works now: Being I cannot turn the camera off I either have to take out the battery (if power supply is not connected) or unplug the power supply if it is connected AND take out the battery. To turn on I can either plug in power supply or put battery in. It will automatically turn on to whatever position the switch is in (but not off). In essence, if i'ts in camera mode I can record fine. If I put it in VCR it will play fine, but it will not go back to camera mode(or turn off).
Obviously the battery blew out a certain circuit in the camera and I wondered if this rings any bells. It's pssible the battery is not shorted and simply sent a surge that jumped past the "on-off" circuit and did its damage? The battery is a Powermart 3.6V 5400mAH Package says " replace BT-H32". Tlhe smaller battery I was using before worked fine and held its charge fine.
I've finally received my charger in the mail and the new battery and old works just like above. No more camera charging.
Also, does the guy who sold me the battery (new at ebay) owe me a new camera?

John

Discussion is locked

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It sure looks like it did some damage.
May 14, 2005 2:46AM PDT

At least you've got a work around. If the guy didn't say the battery would work in your camera, it's hard to see how he's at fault. It appears that he did live up to his end of the bargain. Perhaps you should have looked at the battery specs to see what it works with? Even if he's at fault, he probably would owe you only the current value of your camera rather than a new one.

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As Above
May 14, 2005 5:14AM PDT

Yeah, he had alot of cameras listed but not this one. Then again, it wasn't on his ''don't wok with'' list. I think he said ''and others''. This is a standard batterry and he listed it with the same numbers recommended in my manual for the camera. Yes, I've got a workaround, and that's good. He's got alot of ''positives'' on ebay. I just thought there would be somethng I could do to nail the fixing of it. Maybe my camera was ready to go and this double battery did it? Maybe not. Yes, not ''new'' but maybe used. I'm using that battery now and it works fine. Thanks for your help.

John

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Here's a clue.
May 14, 2005 7:41AM PDT

Look at the camcorder maker's site and see if they offer a 5400 mAH battery or larger. Its possible your camcorder doesn't support charging a larger battery.

Bob

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Once agian
May 14, 2005 10:06AM PDT

Although my camcorder is not specifically mentioned, the VL AH 160U is (mine's a 150U) and my manual is for both the 150 and 160 so they are both virtually the same. My single cell battery is an original Sharp and is 2700mAH (1/2 size). So it stands to reason that twice the size = 5400mAH. Here's from sharp site on the battery I have:

BT-H22U
Standard Battery Pack
Extend recording and playback time with a battery pack.
Buy Online at SmarterMall>>
COMPATIBLE WITH MODELS
VL-A10U, VL-A110U, VL-A111U, VL-AH30U, VL-AH130U, VL-AH131U, VL-AH500U, VL-AH1500, VL-AH1510, VL-AH60U, VL-AH160U, VL-AH161U

So it's the right battery-right?

John

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Battery
May 14, 2005 9:48AM PDT

The mAH seems to vary from 5400-5600. They all are 3.6 volts.
Heres what I got from the Sharp USA website and they send me to "Smarter Mall for the battery. Here's the copy:

BT-H32U
Extended Battery Pack
Extend recording and playback time with a battery pack.
Buy Online at SmarterMall>>
COMPATIBLE WITH MODELS
VL-A10U, VL-A110U, VL-A111U, VL-AH30U, VL-AH130U, VL-AH131U, VL-AH500U, VL-AH1500, VL-AH1510, VL-AH60U, VL-AH160U, VL-AH161U

And the specs at Smarter mall:
Smarter Mall:
Capture all the fun with this extended time battery. Up to 3 hours of extended battery power.
This 3.6v, 5500 mAh nickel metal hydride battery suffers no memory loss. It is always ready for a re-charge!

And another on Ebay:
Ebay:
NEW Lenmar Sharp BT-H32U Equivalent Camcorder Battery NMH-32U
# 5600mAh
# NiMH
# 3.6 volt
# Fits Sharp 8mm Viewcam camcorders including VL-RD1U, VL-SW50U, VL-SE20U, VL-SE10U, VL-E765U, VL-E760U, VL-E665U, VL-E660U, VL-E610U
# 3 year warranty
# Sharp BT-H3TU eq.

I've emailed the seller 5 times but he hasn't returned the messages. Because of that I made complaint at Ebay. I also asked for his phone as he's 50 miles away. I don't want to try to scre hinm but also not myself.
Also in his add he calls it BT H32U but when I received it , the package doesn't have a "U" on the number, just BT-H32. I dont think this matters.

Thanks, John

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Frankly?
May 14, 2005 10:27AM PDT

You will never recover a dime. Your camcorder could have had an issue from day one as to charging a new big battery. Since the battery did charge in the charger, I see nothing and no one at fault or at risk of paying up.

Bob

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Cam
May 14, 2005 2:44PM PDT

Yeah, that's what it seems like. I appreciate your response. So my camera had unseen issues which had been exposed when the larger battery was put in. It seems strange that a battery perhaps 2/3s full could jump and burn circuits. Right? Thanks Bob, for your advice.

John

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Sharp begs to differ
May 16, 2005 1:40AM PDT

I talked to "technical", and they say, if the camera worked fine before you put the "new' battery in, then the new battery was not an "exact" 100% replacement as guaranteed by vendor. There was something that wasn't quite right in its design.

Thanks, John

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Yup and why it's too bad it wasn't the makers battery.
May 16, 2005 3:42AM PDT

At least then you could complain to one person.

Bob

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Exactly
May 16, 2005 10:39AM PDT

Sharp sends you to an aftermarket maker on their website anyway. Anyhow, I'll let you know. But I'll think twice when buying batteries next time.

Ciao

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Surprise!
May 20, 2005 1:36PM PDT

Phase 2:
The seller of the battery seems cooperative. He says bring it to a shop for assessment and or repair,and they will "help" or whatever. I'll send it off to Sharp, I think in the midwest. Their tone seems cool.

John