I'm not an electrician but trying to figure out what's important when selecting generic batteries. I know some will argue that buying OEM is the only way to go, but I am curious about specs. $39 vs $240 is a fairly large difference in price for roughly the same spec.
I assume Voltage (V) is most important followed by capacity (mA) ?
I assume that if Voltage doesn't match then you shouldn't even use it (?). The Kastar below is 8.4V where Leica is 7.2V.
I also assume the more capacity (mA), the longer it would last (?).
3.6 and 4.2 V are typical discharged and charged voltages per Li-ion cell.
It is impossible to completely judge the quality of the battery based on marketing specifications:
They do not tell you about the internal resistance and quality of the cell; voids and lamination thickness etc. Though as a rule the higher the stated mAh capacity specified on 3rd party batteries, the worse they will likely be - thin laminates are more prone to shorting, and higher internal resistance - meaning output droop at high currents.
Nor does it include information on protection circuit ratings or of temperature monitoring thermistors.
Stick to Leica unless you can be sure of all safety features, and the use of first tier batteries e.g. by Panasonic or SAFT.
I wonder if someone has experience to share here with these third party batteries and how they performed in Leica cameras. Until I read this post, I was unaware that these third party batteries as potential alternative to Leica ones existed. In the past I have used generic batteries for my Sony A7R very successfully without issues for much lower price point compared to Sony branded ones (the generic ones only discharged a bit quicker when not being used which wasn't an issue for me). I wonder if the same is true here!
There was a bit of discussion about 3rd party batteries at the end of this thread (last two pages). Fred himself purchased one and seemed pleased with it at the time. Not sure if there has been any further updates about it.
formula4speed wrote:
There was a bit of discussion about 3rd party batteries at the end of this thread (last two pages). Fred himself purchased one and seemed pleased with it at the time. Not sure if there has been any further updates about it.
I remember this thread, but it preliminarily focuses on the M10 batteries (but good info in there though, agreed!). I kept an eye on it on the last page to inquire about M240 based batteries which don't seem to exist as third party ones.
retrofocus wrote:
I remember this thread, but it preliminarily focuses on the M10 batteries (but good info in there though, agreed!). I kept an eye on it on the last page to inquire about M240 based batteries which don't seem to exist as third party ones.
The batteries are definitely an over charge (but they keep their charge) by Leica.... but on the other hand 10K camera (plus big spendy optional lenses), 240 battery, in for a penny in for a pound..or the other other way around- plus you can charge the M11 family Leicas via USB via a brick so one extra battery and a cheap brick that also does phone does it for me. The Nikon batteries already seem over the top to me, the Leica batteries are another level of cost.
I'm just to chime in with this - if you spend premium dollars on a camera, why would you risk that investment with cheap third party batteries? If any reason stands out against doing so, a voided warranty might better inform your decision.
Just my $.02 and yes, Leica batteries are overpriced.
gregfountain wrote:
I'm just to chime in with this - if you spend premium dollars on a camera, why would you risk that investment with cheap third party batteries? If any reason stands out against doing so, a voided warranty might better inform your decision.
Just my $.02 and yes, Leica batteries are overpriced.
I can't speak for everyone, but I can't find official Leica batteries for my M240 and the warranty is long since gone. If Leica can't provide batteries, I'm willing to look at third party (which don't seem to currently exist for the 240 line, so it's purely academic).
formula4speed wrote:
I can't speak for everyone, but I can't find official Leica batteries for my M240 and the warranty is long since gone. If Leica can't provide batteries, I'm willing to look at third party (which don't seem to currently exist for the 240 line, so it's purely academic).
There's an exception to every rule. Thanks for point it out. Yeah, legacy gear opens up our willingness to compromise to allow us to enjoy our valued gear! Sorry you can't seem to find the battery you need to do so.
gregfountain wrote:
I'm just to chime in with this - if you spend premium dollars on a camera, why would you risk that investment with cheap third party batteries? If any reason stands out against doing so, a voided warranty might better inform your decision.
Just my $.02 and yes, Leica batteries are overpriced.
I heard this saying before when I used a few hundred dollar M lens on a $$$$ Leica M camera. I wouldn't spend premium dollars on a M camera in the first place - I always buy used and not the latest generation either. Cheaper third party batteries which work reasonably well - assuming they don't cause an overcharge and potential damage, this is why I was asking here - are a good alternative to me nevertheless.
retrofocus wrote:
I heard this saying before when I used a few hundred dollar M lens on a $$$$ Leica M camera. I wouldn't spend premium dollars on a M camera in the first place - I always buy used and not the latest generation either. Cheaper third party batteries which work reasonably well - assuming they don't cause an overcharge and potential damage, this is why I was asking here - are a good alternative to me nevertheless.
I think my point is more towards modern cameras that have firmware that can tell if the battery is non OEM and might disable some functions the engineers felt might pose a higher risk of failure from an unvetted battery. There's alway exceptions, especially with older gear. At the end of the day, people should do what they are comfortable with knowing there might be risks.
gregfountain wrote:
I think my point is more towards modern cameras that have firmware that can tell if the battery is non OEM and might disable some functions the engineers felt might pose a higher risk of failure from an unvetted battery. There's alway exceptions, especially with older gear. At the end of the day, people should do what they are comfortable with knowing there might be risks.
Do you have a camera example where this actually occurred with generic batteries as you mentioned?
retrofocus wrote:
Do you have a camera example where this actually occurred with generic batteries as you mentioned?
Nope. Just a thought that the extra pins on the batteries is used to send information to the camera, and well, it's Leica.....so for me, it's OEM batteries.
For what it's worth, I grabbed a third-party M10 battery from Amazon and it seemed fine at first, but it stopped holding power pretty quickly. Definitely not as reliable as my Leica batteries.
Fred Miranda wrote:
For what it's worth, I grabbed a third-party M10 battery from Amazon and it seemed fine at first, but it stopped holding power pretty quickly. Definitely not as reliable as my Leica batteries.
This observation is consistent with my previous experience with third-party batteries (Wasabi) for my Sony A7R camera. They work fine but holding power is clearly weaker compared to the original Sony branded battery.
I've noticed that when a third party battery is left in my M10-R, it slowly discharges to zero over time, even with the camera turned off. If I remove it from the camera, it holds its charge just fine. With genuine Leica batteries, in body discharge is very slow and almost negligible in terms of capacity loss.
