What is DC input on a camera?

[FeaR]

i have a camera/video camera that has a jack called dc input (3 volt) what is it and what is it used for?

im wondering if it is a slot where i can hook it up to my computer so it wont use up the battery and instead run off the computer power? is this what this is? thanks

 

[GoozerMcDoogan]

No, that's actually where you plug the power adapter in to charge the battery. And the camera won't run on computer power (unless there's some adapter I haven't heard of yet). If the camera doesn't have an AC power adapter, they're pretty cheap at Wal-Mart.

 

[singletrack65]

If it's a video camera, it came with a power cord that plugs in the DC input to charge your battery while the camera is turned off. It stops charging when you turn the camera on. The battery isn't used until the cord is disconnected from the camera or the wall plug.

If it's a still camera it's an optional accessory (for most cameras) that powers the camera so you don't drain your batteries while shooting or connected to your computer. In most cases, there is a separate charger included since the batteries usually don't charge in the cameras.

Cameras that charge the battery inside are mostly Kodak & Casio (usually via a base) and Sony (and some Casios) via a cable connected to the bottom of the camera. There may be other low-end cameras that do that, but most use AA batteries. These will never charge by a cord to the camera since you might have alkaline batteries in it & they would explode if charged.

 

[CrimLiar1]

It does depend on the camera. On video cameras it's common that you can charge them this way, but on most still cameras you still need to remove the battery to charge them. However many Professional and Prosumer DSLRs can run off (but not charge) off a low voltage dc input. You might use such an input if you were shooting indoors on a set or at a wedding reception. Or they enable the use of a massive external battery pack that pretty much means you can keep the camera on all day such as you may need for a sporting event where even carrying a few extra batteries would be insufficient.

 

[sashazur]

The DC input is where you would plug in an AC adapter to charge the camera battery, and/or just run the camera off of AC power (AC power is the plug in your wall).

This is NOT a connection to the computer, it has to be to an adapter that plugs into your wall.

You can buy an exact adapter from the company that made the camera, or you could get a generic adapter that has a switch to control the voltage and a bunch of different plugs (one of which would fit your camera). The latter you could probably get at an electronics store or camera store.