Ideal battery charger?

I just bought a Nikon Coolpix S8200. It came with a charger that can
only charge the batteries in the camera. They sell a separate charger
that can do stand-alone charges.

These two devices are opposite in almost every respect. The EH-69P,
which comes with the camera, charges the battery inside the camera using
the USB cable. It plugs directly into the AC outlet, which means no
separate power cord to pack around and/or lose. The MH-65, has a cradle
to charge the battery outside the camera, but it has a separate power
cord (does not plug directly into the AC outlet).

I suppose Nikon is trying to satisfy different needs, but why can't they
combine these into one universal adapter? Here are the specs, more or
less in order of importance.

1. Charge a battery outside the camera, like the MH65. This is critical
for those who use multiple batteries.

2. Plugs directly into the outlet, like the EH69P. This eliminates the
need for a separate power cord. To make this more usable, have the plug
flip out from the edge, instead of the back.

3. Charge the battery inside the camera, like the EH89P. Ideally, it
could do both at the same time. This requires a cable, but if it's the
USB cable, it's not an extra cable. If I don't need this feature, I can
leave that cable home.

4. Has a separate power cable to the AC outlet for cases where there is
not enough space to plug the adapter directly into the outlet. If I
don't need this capability, I can leave the power cable home.

Oh, and if you use the search box on this site to locate these products,
be sure to spell them EXACTLY. The site is not smart enough to find
"mh65". You must type "mh-65".

Jennifer Murphy writes:

> 2. Plugs directly into the outlet, like the EH69P. This eliminates the
> need for a separate power cord. To make this more usable, have the plug
> flip out from the edge, instead of the back.

I FAR prefer chargers with a separate cable. Since they're removable,
they make it wasy to use the charger overseas (the charger itself is
usually 110-240V 50-60Hz rated, it just needs to be connected somehow).
Chargers that plug in directly fall out of some outlets (they're big and
heavy with batteries in them), and are inconveniently located in many
scenarios. And often cover adjacent outlets, reducing the number of
available outlets (always too small in hotels). I've taken to carrying
short pigtail cords with me when I have to use wall-wart chargers, to
get them OUT of the outlets and down on the floor at least (up on the
desk is better).

> 3. Charge the battery inside the camera, like the EH89P. Ideally, it
> could do both at the same time. This requires a cable, but if it's the
> USB cable, it's not an extra cable. If I don't need this feature, I can
> leave that cable home.
>
> 4. Has a separate power cable to the AC outlet for cases where there is
> not enough space to plug the adapter directly into the outlet. If I
> don't need this capability, I can leave the power cable home.

Ah, okay, you do see that problem. I don't find the power cable a
problem, personally, and supporting BOTH is complicated and expensive.
--
David Dyer-Bennet, dd-b.TakeThisOut@dd-b.net; http://dd-b.net/
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