Cheap FZ50 battery from Ebay

[amskal]

I was just searching on ebay for replacement battery for my FZ50. Instead of getting the original battery, they have a bunch of cheap replacement battery for only 3 bucks a piece. I bet it's some cheap imitation product from China.
Anyone ever tried this cheap batteries? I would consider of buying them, even if the battery life is just half of the original..:p

br,
db

[genece]

If you do not expect too much then go for it.....There are many here that will tell you they are as good as the original.........but after 7 years of using the OEM and the 3rd party I feel safe in saying you get what you pay for.

Of the 3rd party batteries I purchased at least 2 years ago not a one is still alive today.........while I have OEMs that are 7 years old and still functioning.

I have not heard of a 3rd party battery causing any serious problems but I have had 2 that were very difficult to remove from the camera......they swelled a good bit in one day in the battery compartment.

I quit buying them, but I have bought about a dozen or so over the last 7 years. The last 2 I bought were for a FZ30 in october of 2005 and one of them is shot and I would expect the other to go belly up shortly.

That is only my experience with them , and may not mean a thing.

[amskal]

Thanks Genece.
So, they won't last long. Maybe I just get the OEM then, though they cost arms and legs :D.

[genece]

As I say there will be others along telling you different.......There are some other options....there are energizer and duracell replacements (and I am sure others).....while I have not tried any, I would expect them to be a good alternative. And while they make no claims of super power they do carry a warranty.

http://www.batteries.com/productprofile.asp?appid=386862&utm_source=Google_Base&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=DMC-FZ30%2BEnergizer%2BER-D798%2BLi-Ion%2BReplacement%2BCamcorder%2BBattery%2Bfor%2BPa nasonic%2BCGA-S006&utm_campaign=Google_Base%2Bdigital%2Bcamera%2Bbatt eries

[Mike63]

I agree with Gene. I have purchased one that was rated with a higher mah yet it only lasted half as long as the oem batteries. As time goes on it lasts even a shorter time.

[amskal]

yeah, I checked the link you gave me. I guess Energizer is better and more reliable than other third parties. In batteries.com the price is $30, so it's about $20 cheaper than the OEM. The cheapest price I got was $24, from eebay though. I might get two of those, which still cheaper than one OEM battery in BH :D

[PixelPacker]

Unfortunately, there are a lot of liars and scammers on Ebay. I am finding that out more and more every day. One of the biggest things to watch out for is the great prices on items, then the rip off on handling and shipping costs, like 5 or 6 times what they should be. Ebay needs to find a way to weed them out and save the sight for legidimate users.

[RichardBlank]

You get what you pay for, period.

I do not take the chance.

[azttttommy]

I bought OEM batteries for my FZ20. In less than a year they failed to hold a charge. I missed a couple of good pics too.

[Ambriel]

I tried the cheap alternative with my last digital, a little Nikon, and found that the battery rapidly deteriorated by comparison with the genuine article.

When I switched to my FZ50 I bought a genuine spare battery and haven't noticed any difference between the two.

I'd steer clear of unknown brands and stick to those you recognise. As others have mentioned, you don't want it to let you down in the field.

[bazzap]

Maybe I am one of the lucky guys but I bought a cheap back-up battery off eBay for my FZ7 about 18 months ago. About $10 delivered to Australia.


It is still going strong but I get slightly less shots with it per charge


The same battery also works perfectly on my recently purchased FZ50.


We will just have to see how long it lasts but till now I have no complaints




:)

[genece]

I am sure there are companies making good alternatives but how do you sort them out......I would even suppose its possible to get a good battery from a company that had no intention of making a good one...
Most seem to be worth the price......
One of the things that got me wondering about 3rd party batteries is ,,,about the time I bought a DSLR, Nikon had a recall of its own batteries some just failed and some caused damage to the cameras........Nikon replaced the batteries and repaired any damage done by them.........what would the EBay vendors do?
I do agree Panasonic did charge too much for their batteries but at a price near 35 dollars I will stick with the originals

[jckm2000]

Have to agree with Bazzap, I bought a cheepy for my DMC-Fx9 and it's fine as a back up battery, doesn't hold as much power as the OEM but keeps me going 'till I can recharge the Panasonic one.

Damn sight cheaper than buying a second 'real' one too.

Jon.