Camera Genuine Brand Batteries (Page 9): It is a little known fact that Nikon puts a bit of horseradish into each battery. Yes it’s true. That is precisely why Nikon batteries have...

dennis2146 Loc: Eastern Idaho

John Garpstas wrote:

About the horseradish grinding, as a Teen I had the job of cranking; just keep your back to the fan!

It is a little known fact that Nikon puts a bit of horseradish into each battery. Yes it’s true. That is precisely why Nikon batteries have more power than any other known battery.

Dennis

DaveyDitzer Loc: Western PA

chrissybabe wrote:

Although it isn't completely infallible you can of... (show quote)

Interesting exercise. I weighed all 5 of my Nikon Batteries. Weights reported in grains: OEM Nikon Df=743.5; Nikon D5300=742; Nikon P7800=737.4; Nikons bought on the internet weights are both 640 gr. The poor performer and the mid level are both 640 - a 13.5% lower weight. Guess the "NIkon" markings can mean less than expected.

tenny52 Loc: San Francisco

rjaywallace wrote:

Camera manufacturers got wise to competition and t... (show quote)

So I guess you probably do your car maintenance by the dealer using OEM air/oil filters.
The same strategy is being used by Apple products which require using its own memory cards, and everybody knows how expensive they are.
I can't say if you are right or wrong, but I always like more choices; I bought new Vivitar battery for $20(two batteries with charger) instead of $40 for a single OEM battery.

Silversleuth Loc: San Francisco Bay Area

Tried Vivitar brand replacements for genuine Nikon batteries. They didn't last long, wouldn't hold a charge nearly as long as the real deal. Suggest avoiding that brand. Others may hold up better but I'll stick with OEM from now on.

Ed

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

tenny52 wrote:

So I guess you probably do your car maintenance by the dealer using OEM air/oil filters.
The same strategy is being used by Apple products which require using its own memory cards, and everybody knows how expensive they are.
I can't say if you are right or wrong, but I always like more choices; I bought new Vivitar battery for $20(two batteries with charger) instead of $40 for a single OEM battery.

Right! I buy my filters at a discount house and the guy next door does all of my maintenance in his barn. I save whatever I can when it comes to my valuable cars.

tenny52 Loc: San Francisco

I have Vivitar batteries and they last pretty decently probably over 200 shoots on a single day.
I always carry a second one if I remember, the same way I remember to charge my OEM battery day before a big photo session.

dukepresley

I use a Nikon D700 and while I mainly use Nikon-brand batteries, one day I thought I needed an extra battery and went to a place called "BatteryPlus" to buy an aftermarket battery. It has worked well for several years. Just one man's opinion.....

sirlensalot Loc: Arizona

I doubt the cost of OEM batteries will ever exceed the value of 3rd party replacements. I have purchased 1-2 3rd party batteries that do not last as long as OEM's, but most perform as well. Will never use OEM batteries and will never buy a camera that uses proprietary batteries.

broncomaniac Loc: Lynchburg, VA

I have after market batteries for both of my cameras. Vivitar has never let me down.

cjc2 Loc: Hellertown PA

sirlensalot wrote:

I doubt the cost of OEM batteries will ever exceed the value of 3rd party replacements. I have purchased 1-2 3rd party batteries that do not last as long as OEM's, but most perform as well. Will never use OEM batteries and will never buy a camera that uses proprietary batteries.

Well, I guess that limits you to Double As!

dennis2146 Loc: Eastern Idaho

I can’t believe we have 9 pages of this discussion. If people are happy with only OEM batteries then they should buy them. For people who want to buy non OEM batteries then they are welcome to buy those instead. All of us can positively say a battery either worked well or it did not, no matter who manufactured the battery. How many pages do we need to decide the exact same conclusion?

Dennis

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

dennis2146 wrote:

I can’t believe we have 9 pages of this discussion. If people are happy with only OEM batteries then they should buy them. For people who want to buy non OEM batteries then they are welcome to buy those instead. All of us can positively say a battery either worked well or it did not, no matter who manufactured the battery. How many pages do we need to decide the exact same conclusion?

Dennis

Two more.

drklrd Loc: Cincinnati Ohio

rgrenaderphoto wrote:

A 3rd party battery won't damage your camera. The issue is that, over time, sometimes in as little as 6 months, they loose the ability to hold a charge for extended time. So you will not get anything like the battery life you do from an OEM battery.

The key to aftermarket batteries is buy higher amp hour and make sure it is lithium or better. The old niCads would take a set if used infrequently and would not charge properly. The newer lithium's don't do that but never short out a lithium or charge it in a charger that is not for lithium use. Why? Because lithium's tend to explode if improperly charged or shorted out. If you can buy a higher amp hour then your camera will operate longer on the higher amp hour battery. To see the amp hour there is usually marked for example as 75mah and one marked as 100mah will last longer then the one marked 75mah. The "mah" means "mili amp hour" and is always stamped someplace next to the voltage marking and the stamp 7v would mean 7 volts like a 9v means 9 volts or 12v means 12 volts. just never short the positive and negatives terminals by putting a battery in your pocket full of change. I have seen a few burnt legs from that action. A lithium will get hot or explode if shorted out as coins are metal and are great conductors of electricity. I have seen a few military batteries that exploded by being shorted out. Any brand is a good brand you just pay for brand name and the same goes for car batteries.

dennis2146 Loc: Eastern Idaho

DaveO wrote:

Two more.

PAGES???

Groan.

With an Eeyore voice, OKKKKKKKK.

Dennis

OddJobber Loc: Portland, OR

chrissybabe wrote:

Although it isn't completely infallible you can often judge the capacity of a battery by weighing it and comparing the weight with an OEM battery. The amount of plastic in the battery can affect this a little bit. But all things being equal a similar weight will give a similar time.

Interesting. Do batteries lose weight as they're used? I just weighed the EN-EL15's on hand. Results in grams.

89.4 Nikon Aug 2012
80.0 Nikon Jan 2016
80.0 Wasabi Oct 2014
80.0 Nikon Feb 2016
79.7 Nikon May 2014
74.9 Wasabi Oct 2014

So I don't really know what that tells me.