external power for digital cam/camera/webcam

Clarifications

Mainly because the risk of damage to the camera is way too great. While you can get a 6 V Plug Pack you will then need to add a Bridge Rectifier to it to produce DC and not AC power or if it already has a Bridge Rectifier in the Plug Pack it will need to be rated fairly low as the Amperage required to run the camera will be very small.

If you get things wrong here you will cause damage to the camera that may be impossible to fix and if this particular camera doesn't come with an external Power Source I wouldn't try to adapt one to make it work. Though it may work off a USB Connection which may supply the power required to keep it running.

Col

Radio Shack used to sell fake battery adapters for just such a purpose.

Have you tried using the camera with just the batteries. Many of todays battery powered electronics work for quite some time from a fresh set of batteries.

If you try this you do want to make sure the adapter is appropriately rated. ANd that the polarity is correct.

You don't sound to experienced with this type of modifaction. I would recommend you stick to the batteries. You will probably save yourself the price of buying a new camera.

DC adpaters don't push amperage. The device pulls it. Amperage is the amount of power flowing at any given time. Thats why it is referedto as "Current Draw".

Volts is pressure. The higher the voltage the higher the pressure. To much voltage WILL fry the circuit.

Too high an amperage/wattage rated adpater is a waste of power. To low is a fire hazard. A 1 amp device on a 250ma power source will try to pull more power than the adpater is capable of delivering. IT will overheat and/or fail

An under powered adpater will usually cause a device to not operate or to behave erratically or in an undesirable fashion.

I repeat my recommendation that you stick to batteries.

The easy way to do this, is to build up a fake battery pack with contacts for just the main battery posts.

Keep in mind that you must be VERY careful when choosing a power source. Most wall adapters are not regulated and put out a much higher than rated voltage into a light load.
You NEED a regulated power source to avoid damaging the camera.

There used to be companies that made remote battery packs for popular professional camera flash units. They used nylon rod for the battery pack that went inside the flash. Then, a modified battery cover routed the wires out to belt mounted "D" or gel-cell battery packs. I have a couple of battery powered devices that chew through button cells very quickly. Mounting an external AA battery allows for nearly unlimited battery life.

It is an easy task for a tech to look at the battery terminals to see which lines are the actual power feeds.

Myself, I would use NiMH rechargeable batteries and have 3 sets.

Alternately, see if the camera has a power jack, or can run off of the USB connection.

If it will run off of the USB connection, buy a USB charger and use that to power the camera.

Chas

for the prompt and courteous replies. The idea is tempting, but I think I will back off. More to it, it seems than voltage, amps, and polarity. Appreciate the advice, and thank you again.