Canon Batteries vs 3rd party batteries

[C_Dave45]

So I'm thinking the problems with my old Rebel XT might just be batteries. For the first time ever, neither of them will even turn the camera on, and they were fully charged just a few days ago.

Are third party batteries as good as Canon's?

Canon NB-2LH - $85 each.

3rd Party online - $7.99?? With a one year warranty.

WTF? I'm a firm believer in "you get what you pay for"....but ten times the price???

[taemo]

where did you see that price?
on bhphoto the NB-2LH is US$50 which with taxes and shipping may be around 60-70 CAD$

but anyhow, I bought Pearstone batteries for my 5Dc in the past and it was holding charges pretty well even after almost a year of usage so I would recommend this
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...tery_Pack.html

buy 2 and call it a day

btw have you tested another battery on your camera and did it turn on?

[dragonone]

i'm using 2x 3rd party ones in my 550d and 1x in my s95. all work just as good. i probably wouldn't cheap out if i had a 5Dii/iii but on an XT, i wouldn't get a genuine one. if ur worried try the pearson ones from BH.

[ricosuave]

dave, ive got the same camera, and have 2 canon, and one no name battery...

they all work equally well - have had no issues with the no name, bought from dealextreme I believe

[Clever]

My wife bought me up a Miele(?) aftermarket grip from ebay for my 60d and it came with 2 batteries, the grip started to fall apart but the batteries worked well.

[D'z Nutz]

I've been using the third party ones and they last just as long as the actual ones and I'm not just talking about off a single charge. I still have third party China made ones running strong well after 5 years.

Dave, I have 3 NB-2LH batteries that *do* work on my cameras (including my Rebel XT). If you want, I can let you try them out on your camera to determine if your problem really is battery related.

Also are you using a grip on your camera? If you are, try taking the grip out and seeing if it turns on with just the one battery. I know for some of the older cameras, if the grip doesn't make full contact with the battery terminal or if the contacts develop a bit of corrosion, the camera won't turn on.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Third party batteries usually work just fine, but there are more reports of batteries rupturing inside the camera, etc. than with OEM stuff.

Also, third party batteries completely void your warranty, so if you ever own a camera still on warranty, just remember to throw a Canon battery back in there before it goes off for service.

They are cheap enough out of the states I'd just go OEM but I think third party is fine overall.

[D'z Nutz]

Originally posted by Mitsu3000gt
Also, third party batteries completely void your warranty

Wrong. Using third party batteries does not void your warranty.

If your camera malfunctions and they suspect that it's because of the third party battery, then yes they are within their rights to void your warranty but under normal working circumstances using a third party battery alone is not enough reason for them deny any warranty covered repairs.

[C_Dave45]

Originally posted by taemo
where did you see that price?
on bhphoto the NB-2LH is US$50 which with taxes and shipping may be around 60-70 CAD$

btw have you tested another battery on your camera and did it turn on?

http://www.battdepot.ca/model/canon/...xt/dca008.aspx

I haven't tried another battery on the camera, yet. (Thanks for the offer D'z!) I've cleaned all the contact points, yet when I put in one of my "fully charged" batteries (or both of them with the grip) the display window shows a full charge...but as soon as a snap a pic, or try to play back recorded images, everything locks up and the lcd display goes dim. Just like when you're batteries are too low to do one full shutter release. Then a few hours later, there's not even enough charge to light up the LCD display window.

For the price of battery depot's batteries, I thought I'd just order two of them and see how it goes.

If that fails...then its TIME FOR A NEW BODY!!!!! woohooo!!! except "boourns...$$$"

[Thaco]

Originally posted by C_Dave45


http://www.battdepot.ca/model/canon/...xt/dca008.aspx

I haven't tried another battery on the camera, yet. (Thanks for the offer D'z!) I've cleaned all the contact points, yet when I put in one of my "fully charged" batteries (or both of them with the grip) the display window shows a full charge...but as soon as a snap a pic, or try to play back recorded images, everything locks up and the lcd display goes dim. Just like when you're batteries are too low to do one full shutter release. Then a few hours later, there's not even enough charge to light up the LCD display window.

For the price of battery depot's batteries, I thought I'd just order two of them and see how it goes.

If that fails...then its TIME FOR A NEW BODY!!!!! woohooo!!! except "boourns...$$$"

did you try without the grip? maybe the grip is faulty.

[C_Dave45]

Originally posted by Thaco
did you try without the grip? maybe the grip is faulty.

Yup. I thought of that too. Took the grip off and tried each battery, one at a time. Same thing. The batteries are very old. Probably the life of the camera... 7+ years?

[Thaco]

Originally posted by C_Dave45


Yup. I thought of that too. Took the grip off and tried each battery, one at a time. Same thing. The batteries are very old. Probably the life of the camera... 7+ years?

yeah, prolly just dead batts then.

[AccentAE86]

I just bought a new BP-511A for my 40D a couple days ago. $125. Man what a rip!

But I've tried the third party route before, and it never ended well. ALL of them failed a lot earlier than my genuine batteries. I JUST retired a 7 year old Canon battery that originally came in my 20D. Meanwhile, every third party battery I've owned has failed before the two year mark. (And some failed in less than 3 months!) I've also noticed that my knockoffs weigh a bit less than the Canon ones.

Bear in mind, my batteries go through professional torture. They probably get drained and charged two or three times a week for half the year. So if you are a casual user, maybe you won't notice the diff between a knockoff and a genuine unit. But I most definitely *do* notice a diff. It's actually cheaper (and less headache) for me to just buy genuine batteries.

FWIW, the knockoffs that worked the best for me were Sterlingtek. Still not in the same league as genuine batts, but were the best of the third parties for me. Obviously, I haven't tried all the knockoff brands.

[cdnsir]

I've had bad luck with 3rd Party batteries, the one I got barely lasts for a day. I just keep it in my bag as an emergency battery and that's it.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by D'z Nutz


Wrong. Using third party batteries does not void your warranty.

If your camera malfunctions and they suspect that it's because of the third party battery, then yes they are within their rights to void your warranty but under normal working circumstances using a third party battery alone is not enough reason for them deny any warranty covered repairs.

That's what I meant - I assumed that much was obvious. Just placing a battery in your camera and taking it out again clearly wouldn't void warranty. If there is any chance the tech might think a non-genuine battery contributed to, or was the cause of the damage, you're still better throwing a genuine battery in before it goes off for service.

[D'z Nutz]

Originally posted by Mitsu3000gt



That's what I meant - I assumed that much was obvious. Just placing a battery in your camera and taking it out again clearly wouldn't void warranty. If there is any chance the tech might think a non-genuine battery contributed to, or was the cause of the damage, you're still better throwing a genuine battery in before it goes off for service.

It wasn't really implied in your posting. Believe it or not, some people actually thinking just using a third party battery voids the warranty, nevermind any faults that may or may not come with it

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by D'z Nutz


It wasn't really implied in your posting. Believe it or not, some people actually thinking just using a third party battery voids the warranty, nevermind any faults that may or may not come with it

You're right, I should have been more clear.

If I were sending anything off to warranty for ANY reason, I'd still throw a genuine battery in there just in case! Too bad OEM's are so expensive, especially here in Canada.