johngault007 wrote:
And meanwhile there are several of us that ARE using 3rd party batteries and haven't encountered any of the issues you have read about.
The Wasabi batteries do require a separate charger, which is included in most of their package deals. But in the grand scheme of things, it's worth the savings to have an extra battery charger laying around the house, at least for me.
Just to be clear, I'm not saying the 3rd party batteries don't work... just that you have to be careful with them. Don't charge the Wasabi battery in a Canon chargers and vice versa.
These aren't just "issues I've read about".... They are warnings from the battery manufacturers themselves:
"
About this item
COMPATIBILITY - Works with these popular Canon cameras that use LPE17 batteries: Canon EOS RP, EOS M6 Mark II, M6, M5, M3, EOS Rebel T8i, T7i, T6i, T6s, EOS Rebel SL3, SL2, EOS 77D
NOTE - Batteries are NOT DECODED and will not display the remaining time; Batteries must be charged with Wasabi Power charger
BATTERY & CHARGER SPECS - Premium Grade-A cells rated at 7.2V, 1040mAh for longer run-time and battery life; Outputs 500mA
INCLUDES - 2 batteries, 1 wall charger, and a European plug adapter for the Canon LP-E17 so you always have the power you need
USA WARRANTY - All items include a 3-year manufacturer warranty from Wasabi Power and 100% US based customer support in Pomona, CaliforniaThe above is copied directly from the Wasabi LP-E17 listing on Amazon.
If you forget and accidentally charge the batteries in the wrong charger, best case you'll be buying replacement batteries and/or charger. Worst case, well I hope you have a fire extinguisher handy!
Usually the batteries that aren't compatible {"decoded") are considerably cheaper.
A single Canon OEM LP-E17 costs $56. In comparison a Wasabi kit of two with their own charger costs $20.
There
are fully compatible LP-E17 now being offered, which can safely be charged with the Canon charger. For example, Vidpro LP-E17 is a significantly higher capacity than the OEM Canon battery (1400 mAh vs 1040 mAh). At $49, this battery is only a little cheaper than the OEM.
EDIT:
I've also used third party batteries at times, to make my $ go a bit farther. I bought BP-511 in bulk for $8 each when Canon OEM were costing around $45 apiece. Those worked fine. But it was different with the older, less capable NiCads. They were much more safely substituted.
It's different with today's "smart" lithium batteries that have built in controller chips and circuitry. To keep the cost down, 3rd party replacements don't have the same smart circuitry, which affects both charging and functionality in camera.
Keep in mind that lithium batteries are potentially flammable if improperly charged or damaged. While these are small sizes with fairly low risk, I wouldn't want to be responsible for someone being injured or losing a camera or worse in a fire.
You just need to be careful with them, is all I'm saying.