Will a 4.5v charger work for something needing a 5v charger?

[KhoriA]

I lost the battery charger for my digital camera. I found a replacement charger but it only comes in 4.5v or 6v. My camera needs a 5v charger but the guy at radio shack said the 4.5v might work. I don't want to ruin my camera but I need a new charger right away and really can't wait for a new one to be shipped. Is it going to ruin my camera if I use the 4.5v charger?

 

[prakdrive]

You won't ruin anything by running it under voltage, the worst that can happen is that the circuit won't work. You should never run anthing over design voltage unless you know for certain you can get away with it, so steer clear of the 6V business.
The current depends on the voltage (V=I*R) and you're running at 10 % less. The educated guess is that what will happen is that the battery will take longer to charge.