Using 2 different batteries in battery grips?

[chrsgrhm]

<p>I have 2 Wasabi batteries for my Canon battery grip, and one Canon battery that came with the camera. Can I use the one Canon battery and one of the Wasabi batteries in the grip?</p>

[btmuir]

<p>Yea, I mix generic BP-511a's (5D1 & early cameras) with genuine Canon BP-511a in my Canon BG-E4 grip without issue.<br>

They even have unmatching mAh ratings.<br>

No problem</p>

[chrsgrhm]

<p> Thanks. Everybody else agree?</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>I have done it with the older "dumb" batteries.</p>

<p>Don't use a grip with the newer (5Dii) so haven't seen if the Canon ones will work with the 'smart' substitutes (ones that will display correctly).</p>

[Marcus Ian]

<p>It works with mixed results on the cameras requiring LP-E6 batteries. As long as the grip is OEM, and the batteries are all 'smart' there aren't any problems. If the grip is 3rd party, then sometimes there is 'communications' failures regardless of the battery/batteries. If you mix non-smart, and OEM batts, that can also cause communication problems.</p>

<p>what kind are you using?</p>

[chrsgrhm]

<p>Marcus, they are Wasabi batteries. They got the best reviews of third-party batteries. </p>

[Marcus Ian]

<p>Wasabi makes a variety of different batteries, in a variety of form factors (such as BP-511, and LP-E6 to mention just 2), I was wondering what kind of battery (BP-511, LP-E6, NB-2lh?) your Wasabi's replaced, because that would determine whether the camera is expecting to see a 'smart' battery.</p>

<p>It appears that Wasabi's LP-E6 clones are NOT MC equipped (according to Amazon reviews), so they will <em>not</em> communicate with the camera. In that case, it doesn't matter which kind of BG you use, the camera will not read charge level, or communicate with the battery. If you mix and match OEM batts, while it won't hurt the OEM unit, it also will give you a communication error.</p>

[chrsgrhm]

<p>The batteries are for a 5D Mark II, which uses, I think, the LP-E6. But they are communicating with the camera, and the reviews I read said as much.</p>

[keith reeder]

<blockquote>

<p>Thanks. Everybody else agree?</p>

 

</blockquote>

<p>Yep - I use any of several different brands of LP-E6 replacement and/or the original in my 7D grip.</p>

 

[maciej_m__281_czy__324_ski]

<p>Hello!<br /> I think if You use cheap battery it can cause some problems, but if you have good quality different battery, it is ok. I use replacement battery grip and mix canon and delkin battery in EOS 7D without problem. But the delkin is "smart" battery with capacity info that can be checked in camera menu. The only minus is smaller capacity but quality is ok.<br /> All the best</p>

[nico_morris]

<p>Seems to me in practice that you just need similarly charged and similar capacity batteries together in the grip. A half-charged and a full-charged battery set doesn't give three-quarter charge, the whole grip seemed to work at more like the level of the weakest battery.</p>

[Marcus Ian]

<blockquote>

<p>...But they are communicating with the camera, and the reviews I read said as much....</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Good to hear, maybe they've fixed em up since other reviews were written, maybe those reviews were written by crackpots... ;-)<br>

Well, in that case, how well they will communicate with the camera, even in a 'mixed load' is going to depend on the BG. With an OEM BG, I wouldn't expect any problems (I use 3rd party Batts and OEM batts w/o problems in OEM BG). With a 3rd party BG, you <em>may</em> have communications problems, you <em>may</em> not (I also mix batts in a 3rd party BG, and <em>sometimes</em> the camera gets confused).</p>

[angkordave]

<p>in my experience 3rd party batteries do work in a grip with the Standard Canon ones. I tried a cheap LPE6 which came with a charger. The spare charger still works but the battery did not last 6 months. I have ha the same issue with other camera or Laptop batteries where I was unable to obtain an original.<br>

I'd avoid 3rd party batteries.</p>