10/22/09 .... Clear Battery Door Available
A new clear battery door allows you to see when the battery compartment is properly sealed. The clear battery door assembly #9440.45 is available for purchase to carry as a spare or to update older M, 50, DS50, DS51 and AF35 strobes.

6/22/09 .... DS125 and DS160 Battery Packs
Several broken battery packs for DS125 and DS160 strobes have been traced to a material inconsistency. Battery packs produced between Sept '07 and Nov '08 are subject to this flaw in the central black plastic mounting piece.

A date code with the format MM/YY is etched on each pack opposite the product number #4066.5. Packs produced after Nov '08 or which have been returned to Ikelite for any reason since Dec '08 have been updated to a newer style toggle pawl. This appears to have corrected the issue.

We recommend the updating of these battery packs as a preventative maintenance measure. If you have a broken toggle pawl or a battery pack within the above date range in its original condition, toggle replacement kits are available. Within the U.S., Canada and Caribbean please contact the office at ikelite@ikelite.com or 317.923.4523. Overseas customers please contact your local Ikelite Distributor. Please have the date code(s) of your battery packs ready when calling or e-mailing.

As always, battery packs may be returned directly to Ikelite for updating with no prior authorization required.

6/22/07 .... Wide Angle Lenses for Canon GL2 / XM2
There are now two different Canon WD-58H Wide-Angle lenses for the GL2 / XM2 on the market. Use of the #6042 housing requires the correct WD-58H lens. See the housing webpage for photos and descriptions of the two lenses.

4/2/07 .... Olympus SP350 Flash Settings
Olympus SP-350's flash mode must be changed for strobes to operate properly in manual power settings. Correct camera settings for external strobe use explained here.

10/14/06 .... Nikonos Strobes and dSLR Housings
Use of Nikonos Strobes with current dSLR housings requires a special two-conductor sync cord to isolate the Nikonos ready light voltage, preventing auto firing of the strobe.

8/15/06 .... Depth Limit for Original 8" Dome Port
Depth limit of early 8" dome ports announced and the availability of new body with 200 foot capabilities.

11/05/05 .... Nikon and Olympus Hotshoe Issues
Hot shoe and iTTL issues with Nikon and Olympus explained here.

10/24/05 .... Sync Cords for Digital TTL Systems
#4103.51 and #4103.52 Digital Sync Cords are identified by a blue band, and MUST be used with most of the new TTL systems. Older 4-conductor sync cords look similar, but can not power the TTL circuitry included in the housings.

4/15/04 .... Nikon D70 Mode and Zoom Gears
Revised mode and zoom gears with associated shafts for early #6807 Nikon D-70 housing and explanation of precautions available here.

11/15/04 .... Sync Cords for Non-Ikelite dSLR Housings
The new digital SLR cameras from Nikon and Canon require a special sync cord only if used with housings from other manufacturers. This cord allows our SubStrobes to operate in manual mode and also provide fractional powers. Conversion circuitry for TTL operation is now available in Ikelite housings for some Canon and Olympus models, and we are working on iTTL for Nikon.

8/01/01 .... Testing Strobes with a Flash Meter
Erroneous instructions have been published stating that the flash meter should be set on 1/500th of a second shutter speed to eliminate available light in the measurement while testing a strobe. Wrong! This does not allow enough time for the very powerful underwater strobes to reach peak intensity, yielding a reading that is off at least one f/stop.

2/12/98 .... Sync Cord O-Rings
We have reported a problem that some lubricants may cause the "O" ring on our sync cord connectors to soften and swell to the point that waterproof insertion is impossible. This same phenomenon can occur with SLR Port and strobe battery door "O" rings.