Can a higher voltage 'make up' for a low current?

DerBen · 2009-02-06T23:21:12+00:00

Ok, I have a very basic knowledge of electricity. I have a digital camera that runs on 4 AA batteries and also has a DC input that says 4.3 volts. Some research on the adapter tells me it's 4.3 volts at 1.5A Currently I have a universal adapter that has 4.5 volts at 1A which only powers the camera enough to say change battery pack. I can up the voltage to 6 volts and the camera works. Is this at all recommended ? I have noticed that 6 volts at 1A is less wattage than 4.3 at 1.5A, but I am unsure what that all really means. Can a higher voltage 'make up' for a low current? If so can it cause any damage to circuits?

Can a higher voltage 'make up' for a low current?

DerBen
@derben-XKTHs5

Updated: Oct 22, 2024

Views: 1.2K

Ok, I have a very basic knowledge of electricity. I have a digital camera that runs on 4 AA batteries and also has a DC input that says 4.3 volts.

Some research on the adapter tells me it's 4.3 volts at 1.5A

Currently I have a universal adapter that has 4.5 volts at 1A which only powers the camera enough to say change battery pack. I can up the voltage to 6 volts and the camera works.

Is this at all recommended ?
I have noticed that 6 volts at 1A is less wattage than 4.3 at 1.5A, but I am unsure what that all really means. Can a higher voltage 'make up' for a low current? If so can it cause any damage to circuits?

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ashuashi

Member • Feb 7, 2009

Hi DerBen,

I will not recommend you to operate your camera at 6V. Giving higher voltage (approx 25% high) to the circuit may damage the electronic components. You can give it 4.5 V input through an adapter.

Also check, if you can what is the voltage drop when you input 6V to the camera i.e. the operating voltage at load when camera is connected because sometimes voltage drops at load as your current rating required is higher than the input one.

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DerBen

Member • Feb 7, 2009

Thanks for your reply,
I figured it was too high.. but 4.5 volts when it only asks for 4.3 doesn't let me use the camera, probably because the current is too low. .. maybe a pot or a resistor could drop the voltage, but would that limit the current too?
4.5v is the 5% range so I'd have to drop the 6v back to 4.5v which seems ambiguous.
The thing I was also considering was that 4 AA batteries at 1.5 volts would be 6 volts.

I don't have anything to measure voltage drop as far as I know.. just a basic multimeter. However i'm sure the digital camera does create quite a load since I had to buy the most expensive batteries I could find to run it for more than 30 mins.

Guess I can always buy a proper adapter.

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DerBen

Member • Feb 7, 2009

at 6.1v it drops to 5.7 to 5.9v in use.
at 4.6v it dives to 4.2 and 4.4v but only starts long enough to complain

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ashuashi

Member • Feb 8, 2009

Could you please check this with the manufacturer or provide the make & model no. of the camera.

I will check the specifications and confirm you.

If it is working on 4AA batteries, then it should not create problems on 6V. But to confirm this we need to check the complete details.

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DerBen

Member • Feb 8, 2009

the cannon a60,
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It seems like other people are having the same problem.
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sauravgoswami

Member • Feb 8, 2009

can you mention the battery specifications provided by canon!!!

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