Calumet LP-e4 Batteries $19.99

[aerosolcheese]

Calumet has a very good deal on 1D and 1Ds Mark III and IV batteries...

[Hogleg 44]

That's a darn sweet deal. Of course those won't give you the battery status readout that the Canon brand will...but I rarely look at that anyway.

[aerosolcheese]

Originally Posted by Hogleg 44

That's a darn sweet deal. Of course those won't give you the battery status readout that the Canon brand will...but I rarely look at that anyway.

Just curious if you are stating that from experience or not. I called calumet before I ordered and they told me that it will operate my camera in exactly the same way as the Original LP-E4

[Hogleg 44]

I hope they will, but from what I was led to believe at the time I purchased my camera, only the Canon brand batteries were chipped to give that type of status info. That's why I only bought the Canon brand.
Stay tuned, and let us know. I would really appreciate knowing.

[aerosolcheese]

I just got these from calumet and sure enough, they work exactly like the canon LP-e4's... battery meter and all. They have the rubber sealing just like the canon. The finish does not seem as high quality, and they seem to snap in a bit more snugly, maybe its just because my batteries are over a year old and they are worn in... Anyway, they work, and for $20 a piece, not a bad deal. I would buy more, but they are back up to $99 a piece already!

[lokerd]

WoW!!! This post was for a $100 battery for $20? That WAS a sweet deal!!! I sure could use a couple more for my D3.

But I have to share with you that my experience with the off name brand batteries is VERY iffy. I have even tried to steer clear of the REALLY cheap off names only getting ones that are supposed to be the GOOD off name, and I have gone through quite a few generics. It is just not worth the risk in an expensive camera. I even had one that was suspect in taking out a D200 immediately after a battery change. Since then I hjave DEFINITELY avoided the generics.

[Hogleg 44]

Thanks for the update. I'm very happy they work as advertised. Good deal!

[Howard Barlow]

Hope they hold up. I bought one with the Energizer logo for my Mk2n. Paid about $40. It lasted for a couple of charges. Unfortunately, I couldn't find my receipt. Canon brand only, from now on.

[lokerd]

Actually, I haven't had ANY generics work as well as the name brand.

As for the specific batteries for at least 7 different camera types, including four Nikon styles (D100, D2h, and D40 and D300), Kodak and two different Canon battery types. NONE have done as well as their name brand.

You would think I would have learned my lesson a long time ago. Actually, the reason I have continued to try them over the years is two fold. One, some cameras are not as specific about their battery...and the generic has still worked as an ok backup battery. Two, I continued to believe that I could find a good replacement...as surely they are made by the same company.

But, then I had one generic that CLEARLY was the root of a camera failure a couple of years ago. Fortunately, it was covered under an extended warranty from Circuit City, and they didn't deny the claim. Shortly later, I traded out a D2h and get a D3. The batteries were supposed to interchangeable. The Nikon branded was interchangeable. But the generic that sort of worked with the D2h completely did not power up the D3.

I still have a few generics around, namely at school for some canons (I have two different styles of Canon video camera batteries), a Kodak point and shoot and the Nikon D40. With EACH generic battery, I only consider them to be a spare backup to the backup. NONE of them last as long...and they all die with out warning. I don't understand this...but I do know I have enough experience with different distributors. Some have come from more official outlets, like buying the generics at AtBatt.com or trying to differentiate between the sellers on Ebay. I buy or have bought batteries for over 70 cameras including 25 Pentax DSLRs, 20+ Canon P&S, 15+ Canon and Panasonic video camera, and 10+ Nikons, etc.

For one camera, I had a really good merchant on Ebay. I had tried two different batteries from other merchants. So, on the third one, I explained the challenge, that I was having a hard time finding a battery for the D2h that would work. He said he would be willing for me to swap them out until we found one that did work. Even with this battery, the first two did NOT work. We finally got one that did work...and eventually it failed to perform as the Nikon did.

I even tried name brand non-Eneloop LSDs...like the Kodak LSD that is available at Walmart. I dunno...somethings happens when a company tries to copy another company's design. Actually, I even tired three other different brands of LSDs to compare to Eneloops, and NONE of them have compared well.

It's like buying off name brand food at the grocery store, like Kroger vs. Del Monte. There IS a difference.

As far as batteries, they seem to behave fine when fully charged, but they tend to die differently. So, for less critical equipment, I still do have some generics...and I keep them charged and in the bag but only to use for a short period of time if the primary batteries die.