There is a very long thread (hundreds of posts) in this forum about the 280's battery issue. The firmware updates improved the situation so at least the camera doesn't start flashing low battery and shut down a minute after you shoot video with a fresh battery. However, the battery life indicator is still pretty unreliable to the extent that you cannot really predict how much time you have left, especially if you are shooting video. In my trial run I had the camera flashing low battery when shooting video and continue to flash when I switched back to stills mode. I would power cycle the camera and it would come back showing full battery charge (yes, with firmware updated and GPS off). So do I have a full battery or not? If not, how much time do I have left? If you can function with the uncertainty then the 280 is a great camera.
Powershots: A80, SD1300is, SX280 (returned)
