Generic EN-EL3e batteries.

[roypanos]

<p>I have been using both Canon and Nikon generic copies (including EN EL3e equivalent) plus original batteries for about 5 years. So far one Canon generic battery has failed. No explosions though... The Nikon generics show the same performance as the Nikon orginals. I'd bet money that if you were to crack open the batteries' cases they would all contain two third party Lithium ion AA cells. And a couple of connectors. Maybe there are some passive electronic components too, but I doubt even that. The whole practice of constantly changing batteries' mechanical formats even within a single manufacturer's range, is just another way of wringing out a little extra profit from their customers.<br>

There's room to argue about third-party add-on components like battery grips, but I feel that batteries are ridiculously overpriced. No doubt that there are better and worse examples on sale, but the current UK RRP for a Nikon EN EL3e is £66! Discounted they are still £50.<br>

Remember, if you bought a Sony Vaio laptop a few years ago it may have been subject to a recall as the batteries tended to catch fire. So battery problems happen to major manufacturers too.<br>

Roy</p>

[ShunCheung]

<blockquote>

<p>Remember, if you bought a Sony Vaio laptop a few years ago it may have been subject to a recall as the batteries tended to catch fire. So battery problems happen to major manufacturers too.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Roy, that is the whole point. If the likes of Sony and Nikon discovers a battery problem, they will recall it and in case it burns down your house, they are responsible. If a "no name" battery causes a fire at your house, you don't even know who to complain to.</p>

[dave_green5]

<p>I personally wouldn't give to much credence to the alarmist posts about batteries buring your house down - the name brand ones as well as the generic ones all have a roughly equal and entirely infinitessimal likelihood of actually starting a fire. More to the point is, do the generics actually work? My experience is, that it completely depends upon the camera. I had a couple of generic clone batteries that were rated at 1800 mAh, and they worked BETTER (as in, they lasted longer, and they were never susceptible to a D80 firmware sensing bug that the battery was dead - even when fully charged) compared to the OEM EN-EL3e battery, when I used them in my D50 and D80. If I was using the D80, I wouldn't think twice about using the clone batteries.</p>

<p>But then I upgraded to a D90, and low and behold, the D90 can and does sense the difference between the Clone batteries, and the genuine EN-EL3e, and it only works with the genuine battery - always giving a dead battery readout with the clones, even when they were fully charged. And the fact is, most clone batteries that work fine in a D50 or D80, don't work in a D90. So, I bit the bullet and got two genuine EN-EL3e batteries as spares.</p>

[trevans]

<p>Here's the EN-EL9 batteries I bought for my D40:<br>

<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Nextop-2-EN-EL9-1800mAh-COMPATIBLE-Battery/dp/B0016AQ930/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1246366747&sr=8-2">http://www.amazon.com/Nextop-2-EN-EL9-1800mAh-COMPATIBLE-Battery/dp/B0016AQ930/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1246366747&sr=8-2</a><br>

As I said, they work... and I presume they work longer than the stock (1000mAh) battery but I can't say for sure. Honestly as soon as the indicator says it's not showing full charge I switch it out for anther, so I've got my rotation of three going (in an attempt to prolong battery life and preserve capacity).<br>

I notice when i look at them... there's no brand, no serial # or otherwise identifying marks on them. Just as the pic shows, they indicate they are EN-EL9 type, 7.4v Lithium-ion batteries (they don't even say 1800mAh on them... hmm). No I haven't tested them as I don't have the facilities or patience to do so.<br>

I'm still sticking with my theory that el-cheapo Nextop-2 is just a reseller that takes manufacturer's word for it, whereas Nikon puts their name on the battery so they make sure it meets/exceeds specs.</p>

[joseph_leotta]

<p>I posted a report on the Ebay batteries from china<br>

<a href="http://www.photo.net/nikon-camera-forum/00Tny7">http://www.photo.net/nikon-camera-forum/00Tny7</a><br>

Looks like the real deal.</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>And another thread on this topic: <a href="http://www.photo.net/nikon-camera-forum/00Tx0p">http://www.photo.net/nikon-camera-forum/00Tx0p</a></p>