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    Batteries – a word of caution

    Back in 2014 I bought a LP-E6 battery on eBay. It was cheap in comparison to UK camera shops, but not so cheap as to raise ‘alarm bells’. It worked fine.

    It was when I bought another LP-E6 battery on eBay a year later that I realised something was amiss. Both of the eBay batteries had the same serial number, so I could not register the second one in either of the cameras I had at the time!

    These batteries were both fakes – but very, very 'good' fakes. I have asked loads of people to decide which of these 2 batteries, and 2 genuine Canon ones, are the fakes. Most get it wrong. The date stamp is actually clearer on the fakes, which is what misleads people. It is also the case that the date stamps on the 2 fakes are different, with both being within a reasonable time frame for when I bought the batteries. Whoever makes these fakes is going to a lot of trouble.

    So what you may ask. My 3 Hahnel HLX-E6 batteries all have the same internal serial numbers and, like the fakes, they all still show 3 green blobs on the battery info screen even though they are now old enough to have deteriorated to being well less than perfect. The “so what” is that one of my fake LP-E6s fell apart the other day and, although I’m not an electronics expert, I do have some serious misgivings about what is inside the casing. There are photos of the innards of genuine LP-E6s on the Web, and the fakes have nothing like the circuitry in a genuine Canon LP-E6 - in fact it they have virtually nothing at all.

    I do have a genuine Canon LP-E6 from 2011 which now shows a red blob in the battery info screen. It still works OK and holds a charge more than long enough to be useful. But I can’t really trust it and I’m thinking about opening it up (I do know the risks) to compare the real thing with the fake.

    So I don’t buy cheap batteries any more. I don’t even buy 3rd party ones, even though my Hahnel batteries have been OK and I have no reason to believe that they may be unsafe in the way the fakes appear to be. But I’ve recently spent £3000 on a 5D mk 4 – so why would I even contemplate saving £30 on a battery which might possibly be dangerous – to me and/or my new camera.

    I’m sure others will have a different point of view, but if anyone is an expert on Lithium-Ion batteries and wants a potentially dangerous fake one to look at, I do have 2 which I no longer have any use for – and one is already in bits so you won't even have to carefully pries open the casing!
    Last edited by Jennifer; 07-10-2017, 20:45.
    Jennifer

    Photos on Flickr

    #2
    Re: Batteries – a word of caution

    Originally posted by Jennifer View Post
    .. so why would I even contemplate saving £30 on a battery ...
    Could not agree more! An excellent post.

    Comment


      #3
      Re: Batteries – a word of caution

      +1. Totally agree.
      https://www.flickr.com/photos/150977425@N05/

      Comment


        #4
        Re: Batteries – a word of caution

        I fully endorse your view.

        To spend a small fortune on a good Camera and lens and then to trust them to a battery that you have "saved" a few pounds on is too much of a gamble for me. Without a functioning, reliable battery, I am left with nothing short of a very expensive paperweight. I can't risk that when the next photo I could have taken would have been a stunner.

        The same holds true for memory cards. I only buy from my Canon Pro shop and I stick to the same brand. I know fellow photographers that have had that brand fail on them and on further discussion, they have all been sourced from a well known auction site.
        Colin

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          #5
          Re: Batteries – a word of caution

          I can never understand people that spend 100's or not 1000's on a camera and then try to save £30 with getting a cheap battery - its just stupid
          :- Ian

          5D Mk III, 24-105 / 70-200 f2.8 L / 100-400 Mk II / 100 macro / 16-35 L / 11-24 L / 1.4 & 2x converters and a bad back carrying it all ;o)

          :- https://www.flickr.com/photos/fotosespana/

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            #6
            Re: Batteries – a word of caution

            not sure what lots of circuitry in a battery would actually do ,i.e a few years ago someone was producing a long range metal detector that was all the rage at the time ,locate gold and buried treasure at 1/2 mile or more range etc ,I was in a main dealership for genuine detectors with the owner one day he had just got hold of one and when we dissected it the tangle of wires inside looked the business but weren't actually connected to anything .

            your battery charger is the power source and theres no reason I can think of for the battery to have circuitry inside .unless someone can come up with a genuine reason ??

            Comment


              #7
              Re: Batteries – a word of caution

              I believe the circuit inside would have a regulator to avoid excessive current being drawn from the charger and some reverse polarity protection diodes....also I believe they put a chip in so that the charger can detect if its a genuine battery or a copy.
              I once bought Excell batteries for a fuji....wouldn't work in the fuji charger...had to buy a generic charger......but they worked fine with that.

              On the one hand the OEM is protecting their gear but on the other hand they are cleverly securing the after market for themselves...OEM batteries are very expensive.....you can change your car battery cheaper than your camera battery!
              Brian Vickers LRPS

              brianvickersphotography.com

              Comment


                #8
                Re: Batteries – a word of caution

                Here's a link on the subject for all to see.
                http://www.imaging-resource.com/news...kes-with-risks

                Paul
                EOS 1Dx, - EF 24-105L f4,- Sigma 135 f1.8 Art - EF 400L IS f2.8, - Speedlite 430EXII.
                Freelance Sports Photographer for local Press - https://twitter.com/P_linton99

                Comment


                  #9
                  Re: Batteries – a word of caution

                  Originally posted by paul linton View Post
                  Here's a link on the subject for all to see.
                  http://www.imaging-resource.com/news...kes-with-risks

                  Paul
                  Interesting link Paul thanks for posting it


                  Sent from somewhere in Gods County using Tapatalk
                  Peter

                  Feel free to browse my
                  Website : www.peterstockton-photography.co.uk
                  Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/the_original_st/

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                    #10
                    Re: Batteries – a word of caution

                    interesting read Paul ,the only conclusion I can come to though is if canon and Nikon and others dropped there price to a reasonable price level then it would be a no brainer ,bad marketing really

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Re: Batteries – a word of caution

                      They probably make their monies on the extras as opposed to the cameras, if that makes sense, sell the cameras at a lower profit margin and the rest of the range at a premium...
                      Canon 1DX, 50D, EF500 F4.0 L, EF100-400 f/4.5-5.6L I , EF100-400 f/4.5-5.6L II, EF70-200 f/2.8L II, EF180 f3.5L Macro, EF 24-105 f/4L, EF17-40 f/4L, EF2.0X III, EF1.4X III, 430EX II, MR-14EX...

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Re: Batteries – a word of caution

                        I have bought and used third party batteries on my previous Canon 60D without any problems. However, the one incident I encountered put paid to my buying third party batteries. I was recharging a third party battery when there was a flash, a small bang, and all the lights in my house went out. It had blown a fuse in my electricity mains. Since then, I now use only proper canon batteries in my present cameras. I have had no problems now and I have noticed that these canon batteries hold their charge far longer than my previous third party batteries.
                        Canon 6D; Canon 760D;Canon G15;Canon 40mm f2.8(Pancake);Canon 50mm f1.8(ii); Canon 17mm-40mm f4L;Canon EF-S 10-18mm f4.5-5.6 IS STM;Canon EF-S 55-250mm f4-5.6 STM lens;Canon 24mm-105mmf4L IS;Canon 70-300mm f4-f5.6 L IS USM;Kenko 1.4x HD TC;Canon 430EX ii flash;Giottos tripod;Manfretto monopod;Cokin P filters + bits and pieces!

                        www.flickr.com/photos/nathaniel3390

                        North Wales where music and the sea give a great concert!

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Re: Batteries – a word of caution

                          Batteries fall into the same category as inkjet ink and laser toners, cost very little to produce but OEM charge a fortune for their "official" replacements, not surprising that people buy alternatives at a fraction of the cost in spite of dire warnings and threats about voiding your warranty. I read somewhere that it costs about £7 to make a battery, selling cost is often 10 times that. Don't be fooled into thinking that Canon make their own batteries from scratch, there are only a few companies in the world that manufacture the actual cells that provide the power and the ones in a Canon battery and a third party model may well have come from exactly the same source.

                          I've used both Canon and third party batteries (different from fake Canon ones) and as Nat says, the others do seem to hold less charge (though some makes are much better than others), but if I can get five of them for the price of one Canon original, I don't care. If inferior batteries were exploding and destroying cameras, it would be all over the internet, but it isn't because they're not, it's a very rare event. Fires with batteries are usually down to carelessness, leaving the contacts uncovered so that they are shorted out by keys or coins in your pocket can give you a nasty surprise, even a single AA battery can be shorted out and start a fire, I've seen it done (deliberately, of course).

                          The LP-E17, as used by the 200D and several others, is chipped so that the camera can't tell you how much charge is left in a third party battery, which also can't be charged with the Canon charger. Obviously trying even harder to force people to buy their own overpriced battery, but if you try to get hold of one practically every supplier at present says "awaiting stock" so Canon can't even supply enough to meet demand.

                          If you can afford £3,000 for a camera, £70 might not seem much, but the same battery is used in cameras that cost below £1,000. For the 200D the battery costs about 13% of the original price I paid for the camera (which included a battery and charger of course) which seems very excessive.
                          EOS 6D, 6D Mk II, 80D, 70D, 100D, 200D, M50, M100. Canon 10-18, 18 - 55, 55 - 250 IS STM lenses, Canon 16 - 35 mm F4L, 35 mm EF-S macro, 50 mm F1.8 STM, 60 mm EF-S macro, MPE-65 macro, 85 mm F1.8, 200 mm F2.8 L II, M 15 - 45 mm, M 22mm F2, M 32mm F1.4. Sigma 24 - 35 F2 Art, 135 mm F1.8 Art, 17 - 50 F2.8 DC, 105 mm OS macro, 100 - 400 C, 150 - 600 C.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Re: Batteries – a word of caution

                            Originally posted by Richard W View Post
                            Fires with batteries are usually down to carelessness, leaving the contacts uncovered so that they are shorted out by keys or coins in your pocket can give you a nasty surprise, even a single AA battery can be shorted out and start a fire, I've seen it done (deliberately, of course).
                            Which implies that batteries falling apart is a very rare event, since a battery in bits in your gadget bag is definitely a fire risk. So maybe I was just unlucky, or maybe there are counterfeit batteries out there, with defective glue holding the casing together, which are all about to fall apart and catch fire ...

                            I can't comment on batteries which cost at 20% of Canon ones. My fakes were almost 50% of the Canon price and the only 3rd party ones I have are Hahnel were are getting for 2/3 of the Canon price.

                            I take your point about battery costs being proportionally higher for the cheaper cameras. I guess I'm lucky that my last 4 bodies have all used LP-E6 batteries, so at least I haven't lost out on the cost of spare batteries when I've bought a new camera.
                            Jennifer

                            Photos on Flickr

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Re: Batteries – a word of caution

                              I'd never buy counterfeit batteries, I think 3rd party is a different thing altogether.

                              I have several bodies, most bought used, I need 4 different battery types and have about 15 3rd party batteries, never had a problem. It is true that they have lower capacity than Canon originals, but I can afford to carry more spares.

                              Here's an example of what I buy, obviously one person wasn't happy, but lots of satisfied customers like me.

                              EOS 6D, 6D Mk II, 80D, 70D, 100D, 200D, M50, M100. Canon 10-18, 18 - 55, 55 - 250 IS STM lenses, Canon 16 - 35 mm F4L, 35 mm EF-S macro, 50 mm F1.8 STM, 60 mm EF-S macro, MPE-65 macro, 85 mm F1.8, 200 mm F2.8 L II, M 15 - 45 mm, M 22mm F2, M 32mm F1.4. Sigma 24 - 35 F2 Art, 135 mm F1.8 Art, 17 - 50 F2.8 DC, 105 mm OS macro, 100 - 400 C, 150 - 600 C.

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