Sorry Graham, I obviously read too much into what you posted.

I have two Canon branded batteries, one 6 years old from my XM1 purchase, the other new from my recent XM2 purchase. Both are labelled "CANON INC. Made in Japan".

This does not, of course, mean that they were actually made by Canon.

I recently purchased two BP 945 batts here in the states. Both marked PANNASONIC. And yeah, they last longer than my Canon or Lenmar Batts.

What do you use and how has your experience gone?

How much should I be paying for a 2 hour (or so) battery?

Are some brands more reliable than others or does it matter?

Any reccomendations for e-tailers or well-known stores?

Please comment.

Thanks,
Bruce

I guess were not allowed to post info on retail stores here (kind of like free advertising or product endorsement) but you can do an online search for this :

Delkin eFilm DD BP-930 camcorder battery - Li-Ion 2 $40.95 *

This is the battery that I use exclusively in my GL2 and have had great luck. The only strange thing is, when the battery is fully charged, the camera will show 1/2 full for quite a while (quite a few hours) before dropping to 1/4 or lower. After it drops below 1/4 I replace the battery. I have been on only a few longer shoots, but I always seem to run out of DV tape before I run out of battery. You can never have to many batteries or tapes....

Most third party batteries work well with the XL/GL series, but you hmay hve to give up some of the battery life display otions. Do not know if anyone has published a reliability study but we read very few horror stories about batteries failing.

It is difficult to spot the diffence between 90 and 110 minutes of available battery in the process of a shoot when changing tapes, managing talent, sitting in pause waiting for action, conisdering the normal vairation in batteries as they age, etc.

I mainly use Lenmar LIC 941 these days, but cannot tell you what their runtime is other than a fresh charge lasts longer than a blank tape during my typical shoots.

As to vendors, read the reviews and when you settle on a candidate vendor, check the web site of the local (to the vendor) Better Business Bureau to see if there are complaints anout it, as well as checking any on-line reviews.

The first BIG battery I bought was a GENUINE Canon, packaged as such CANON BP945 - it said "Hahnel" on the plastic casing. Subsequently I purchased same spec battery from a supplier, it TOO said Hahnel on the casing. I subsequently bought 2 further BP945s, this time directly from Hanel in Ireland. Go figure! My belief is that Canon don't actually - shock horror - "make" batteries! Possible? I suppose it must be far cheaper to make and transport Canon BP945s all the way around the Globe to the UK, than to have the Irish company, who makes the same, have them post them to me at a 1/2 the price? Or do you think I've got this incorrect.

So:-
Japan > Uk OR Ireland > uk - which do you think? Tricky? . .and ALL have Hahnel on their casings.

For the record, my first BP945 cost nearly £100GBps; subsequent batteeries have cost from £60 down to £53. And NOW I can get the Hanel's at £39.99 !

http://www.fotosense.co.uk/manufacturer_results.asp?oldID=19&ID=165&offset=16

Tricky hey?

Buy lots - what you can afford - and keep 'em perky! There is nought more sadder than a videographer WIHTOUT power . . .Well, there is . . but I'm keeping this jovial ..

Grazie

I had a GL1 for 5 yrs. My experience with the battery supplied as follows, after a year of use the 915 would no longer hold a full charge. I obtained two 3300 ma. units that I used for the next 4 yrs. They always took a full charge
& never gave any trouble, good quality; the price was also very affordable.
The 3300ma. were $36- apiece & the 5500ma. $49.95.
I obtained them from www.sabahoceanic.com

I am about to purchase 2 more for my GL2.

Grazie (and other Brits),

I've bought a number of BP945 equivalents for well under £20 inc P&P from eBay. Here's an example link http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Canon-BP-945-Battery-NEW-ES-G-MV-UC-BP945-6000mAh-UK_W0QQitemZ7609573643QQcategoryZ43434QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem . It's one of many.

No idea who the manufacturers are but at these prices I have to say I'm quite happy to buy a new one every few months! I took four with me to a shoot yesterday which lasted just under four hours. I didn't need to use more than one battery. I have done absolutely no tests to see how well they perform in different conditions but to be honest I don't really care at that price! Using third party batteries won't hurt the camera so I'll save my pennies for more exciting things (like apres-shoot beverages - did a few of them last night, hic).

Nice weekend to you all!

Ian . . .

Wow! That IS cheap . . Thanks Ian . . I'll keep it mind. g

Bruce,

You can never have to many batteries. I prefer the 945.

I recently bought a jobber battery for pretty cheap. I dropped it once on the floor and the bottom plate broke loose, it was two days old (not happy). I glued it back together and it works fine. I wondered if the jobber was not as well made but I did not want to run further testing.

Even in car batteries I think it is something like three companies that makes all the batteries.

Yesterday came back from an all day shoot. Started 9:00am, ended 5:00pm. Lotsa of interviews; PUSH focus on a LANC; ZOOMs for framing and slows for effects; volume control adjusts; lots of adjustments and ONs and OFFs. Took 4x 945s. Changed 945 once. Most likely COULD have gone all day on the one - maybe not. Changed just to be sure. Didn't even bother to unpack the other two 945s. Apart from that once, the only other battery I had to change was a non-rechargeable 9v for my Senni Rx.

All batteries were "Canon-Type" from Hanel.

Went easy . .

Grazie

Grazie,

I was filming Aircraft Carriers last week and I shot all day with only one 945. I carried a few others for safety and only tired myself out more carrying excess weight.

Looking to buy a second battery for my GL2.

On B&H's website they have a Canon BP930 for $74.95

Then they have an Impact BP930 battery for $49.95.

Whats the difference? Is Canon really that much better? Which should I buy.

Also I have a total of $200 to buy a battery and some protective filters/lenses. Any good suggestions on screw on filter kits for the Canon GL2?

Anyone hip to the Tiffen Soft FX3 58mm filter for the GL2? Its like $40.

Looks good, but has anyone had practical use of it?

Steve,

I can't say for sure what the diff is really other than the Mamps are a little different.

I just bought 3 Impact batteries for my GL2 yesterday so well see how they work.

Nathan

You can get generic BP-945 knockoffs for $20 on Ebay. I have been using them for about 2 years, and they work every bit as well as the Canons. There's absolutely no difference, other than the Canon logo.

There are plenty of other dvi members who use these batteries as well, and I've never heard of anyone having even a tiny problem with them. Even if one of them were to go bad after a while, at $20 it's nothing to just buy more. Seriously, pick up a couple of these and spend your money on quality glass.

edit: by the way, I know you're not asking for advice about filters, but just for the benefit of anyone else who might be looking I thought I'd add that you should buy double-coated glass whenever possible... the coating does a pretty good job of cutting out reflections.

Been using 1/3 party 945s for 3 years. Recently been using them to power an 12volt External 16:9 cheapo monitor - via a step up device - and they are still 50% full after 3 hours of use. Their refresh rate is well within convenience too.

Grazie

i recently got the impact from B&H, and while the battery works just like it should, i have a real problem getting it to line up and lock in when i move it from charger to cam...its only this one battery though, and my old batt. fits fine as does the stocker canon so i know its not a problem with the cam...

once you get in locked in its fine but getting it there can be a hassle, and you don't want to force it and break something...

I am a supporter of 3rd party batteries. I bought one for HK$500 which has been working fine for 3 years. There is no sign of going weak. My friend told me that it can be cheaper if I buy it in China. It is just half the price of a Canon battery but one and a half longer video time.

Kenneth

I have a warning for those who purchase batteries from anywhere. There is a huge business out there in substituting used batteries for new ones. This is generally done by carefully opening the package, exchanging the new battery for a used one, and resealing the package. I have experienced this at Fry's Electronics, and by mail order form Etronics. In the latter case, I strongly suspect that the company itself was doing the switch. It took me three tries to get a new, unopened battery from Etronics. The substitutes that arrived the first two times had been opened and the batteries had multiple scratches and other evidence of significant use. Buyer beware - this is a real problem.

Hope I'm not contributing to the switch. I recently bought a 4000ma from Frys, and it just would not hold a charge. After a lot of arguing, they finally swapped out for a new one. No telling what the did with the one I returned. I'm currently looking for a 6000ma+, thinking about the one that Adorama advertises as their house brand.

Mark's comment makes me remember my experience of my purchase of 2 3rd party batteries for my Sony Hi-8 years ago. One battery has double life time but the other one was not so good. It's like gamble.

I bought 2 "generic" BP-945's made by Impact from B&H--saved about $80 all together--and that's all I've ever needed. I use my camera primarily for weddings and other events with the LCD screen open 95% of the time, and canon lights that use the battery and have never had an issue. I still have the spare battery that came with the camera but have never had to use it. And I'm talking about shooting all day-- up to 12 hours, with almost 5-6 hours of footage.

Ive been using off brand canon batterys for a while now and i have found no problem with them.

They're so cheap that you can't go wrong. If you buy one and it craps out a month later, so what... it's $20 for another. That said, I've had one of my cheap knock-off 945's for three years. I've used and recharged it 100's of times, and I've never had a single problem with it. OK, so when charging on my older CA-910 you have to jam some paper under the battery to get the contacts to touch down on the charger in order to get a charge, but so what? That might even be the charger for all I know, and it doesn't bother me in the slightest when I think about how much I saved on the battery.

The two constants I have heard of third parties manufacturer's batteries are:

1) The milliamp capacity ratings are estimates. There is very high variation on the actual capacity because quality control is one of the areas where third party companies save money. The BP-945 equivalent battery advertised as a 5500 mAmp battery could be as much as 6500 mAmp or as low as 3300, you just don't know for sure and usually have no guarantee.

2) Many name brand batteries have "intelligent" circuitry in the battery used to better communicate it's actual remaining energy level to the camera, and hence, the operator.

Of course, I got two off-brand batteries for my Canon GL2 when I got it, and they work just fine, but you have to watch out for junk out there.

I agree with the Amazon idea. They monitor their third party sellers pretty well to rule out junk dealers (third party dealerships, that is, not as much for used/personal sellers).

To answer your Question any Third party battery made for your XM2 should fit your camera and do no damage what so ever I have had an XM2 for 4 years have always used third party batteries and had no problems I won't pay canons exorbitant prices.

Regards Alan

OEM = Original Equipment Manufacturer. That would be Canon and mean batteries sold with the Canon nameplate, no matter who makes them for Canon.

Third party batteries would have a differnt brand name on them (e.g., Lenmar, Sunpak, and generic or no names) and are sometime labeled as OEM-equivalent. They should work OK without damaging gear. But as noted in the old posts in this thread, your results may be somewhat different than with Canon batteries. Also, some OEM batteris may include automation features (e,g., remaining charge or runtime indicators) not found in third party batteries.

You pays your money and takes you choices.

Don thanks for correction I was always led to believe that the O stood for other.

Best regards Alan

The two constants I have heard of third parties manufacturer's batteries are:

1) The milliamp capacity ratings are estimates. There is very high variation on the actual capacity because quality control is one of the areas where third party companies save money. The BP-945 equivalent battery advertised as a 5500 mAmp battery could be as much as 6500 mAmp or as low as 3300, you just don't know for sure and usually have no guarantee.


You are partially right :-) they are off, but always in one direction. They usually 50%-75% of what their label claims. There are only a few good cell vendors out there: Sanyo, Panasonic, Sony. They actually deliver what the spec. calls for, and they use them for their own battery packs. Everything else is made in China, with little quality control, low price being the only goal.
The reason they can get away with this is it is hard for an average user to evaluate a battery. Reports like "it lasts long" are not very scientific...

Has anyone had any luck/experience with the Anton Bauer ElipZ 10k Under Camera Mounted Battery Kit for the GL1/2? It looks like a great replacement for the standard battery changing woes if you want to limit camera downtime on day shoot.

I found it here: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?A=details&kw=ANELIPZCK&is=REG&Q=&O=productlist&sku=437763 and think it might be thhe answer to long day shooting.

This and a FireStore FS-4 Pro with 100 GB drive, and you never need to shut the camera off again!

Yup, I got this in one of my mags I get . .

Hmmm .. . ?

#1 - What wattage? I didn't/don't read a definitive reference to the amount of watts available? It says 75 watt hour. Is that 10 watts for 7.5 hours? I'm also presuming it is 10k as in kelvins?

#2 - Is the shoe mount needing to be in the HOT shoe? I don;t see a trailing wire? If so then that kinda defeats the object for me.

I really DO like the overall design - design IS important to me, but hopefully my 2 concerns above will be answered.

Graham Bernard

The 10 K is for 10,500 mah. (7.2 volts X 10.5 ah = 75 watt hours) If you have a 10 watt camera it will run continously for over 7.5 hours.

If you are using the large OEM batteries that are 5400 mah and still run all day, then you should still get twice the run time of a fully charged ElipZ.

Or, be able to run the 10 watt camera and 10 watt Elightz for almost a full day. Personall usage will vary depending on shooting style and light use.

No it is not a "Hot Shoe" The shoe allows a quick release so the battery can be removed from the camera in a coule of seconds for easy breakdown/stowage.

The ElipZ 10K battery also has the exact hole configuration on the bottom of the battery so you can attach you tripod plate.

Is anyone using Anton Bauer products (this or other series battery) with their GL2? Are they worth the investment? How is performance vs. stock options and real world MTBF (Mean Time Between Failure)?

Hello,
i've just bought a brand new bp-945 (6000mAh) battery for my canon GL2... and i've a weird problem - although I have fully discharged and recharged the battery, the camcorder battery indicators says it's only half-full. what does it mean? is it not fully charged? is the indicator wrong ?

TIA,
Alon.

Hello,
i've just bought a brand new bp-945 (6000mAh) battery for my canon GL2... and i've a weird problem - although I have fully discharged and recharged the battery, the camcorder battery indicators says it's only half-full. what does it mean? is it not fully charged? is the indicator wrong ?

TIA,
Alon.

In the title, you say "Impact". I assume this is the brand name of the battery? What makes me ask, is that I've noticed that my generic batteries will cause the GL-2's battery indicator to show about half capacity after only a couple minutes worth of usage. I get the expected amount of use time from the batteries, but the meter isn't right. Maybe that's what you're seeing?

that's exactly what happens... so I guess it doesn't effect the battery performance, just the indicator, ah? so how do you know when the battery is going to be exhausted ? (it stays on the half-full indicator until it gets really half-full, or does the indicator has no meaning at all?)

quite annoying I must admit ... makes you feel that technology ain't that perfect yet ;)

thanks for the answer.
alon

so how do you know when the battery is going to be exhausted
The battery indicator is probably based on battery terminal voltage, which depends in part on the internal resistance of the battery as well as the charge state.

Experience is the best approach. Do some tests and watch what happens to the display as you run the camcorder, and watch when the camcoder shuts down on low battery. Can't expect Canon to have matched their display to correspond to third party battery characteristics.

Good evening,

I have three canon catteries and three jobber batteries. All of them in fact show fine on the in camera meter. Go figure???

Hi, quick question.. I'm looking into getting extra batteries for my GL2.. the one the came with is.. just doesn't cut it. It's brand new, but after being fully charged, and filming for five minutes, the batter is down to 3/4th full.. and I don't get it. I need to be able to film for a least 2-3 hours, without having to worry about my battery dying in the middle of something important.

So.. are there particular batteries that are reliable? (I'd like model numbers to if possible)

I also would like to know.. if the charger that I have will work with any battery I buy, or will I have to buy a new charger? I have the Canon ca 920 battery/power adapater, and my battery is a 915.

Any help is greatly appreciated

BP-945's. You can get generic ones for $20 on Ebay, and yes, they work just as well as the Canon-branded ones do. At about one-fifth the price of the "official" batteries, you really can't go wrong.

but will i need to buy a new charger for that battery, or will it fit my canon charger?

You can use the standard canon charger you already have for the BP945 battery also.

You can use the standard canon charger you already have for the BP945 battery also.

Being doing this for 5 years with the BP945s. No problem.

When I first started out, there was ENOUGH power/time in the slim/supplied battery to allow me to do a quick "top-up" of my 945 and get going again. Now I have 2 XM2s and four BP945s - but with the extra camera I got that extra charger unit too.

Grazie

BP-945's. You can get generic ones for $20 on Ebay, and yes, they work just as well as the Canon-branded ones do. At about one-fifth the price of the "official" batteries, you really can't go wrong.

I agree. I've gotten 4 this way so far. The standard charger works well. I have a second charger for whenever I need to charge 2 batteries at once, or I need a charger at the studio as well as in the field.

Mark

The reason I asked about the charger, was because I was looking at a canon gl2 battery on ebay.. Dont' remember the model number, but it was a B "9$$" .. and it said 'works with a b 9$$ and 9$$ charger".. so I assumed that meant that the battery would only work with that particular charger..

But I assume if it fits on my camera, it should fit on my charger, right?

Technically i have two batteries right now, but they both are lower B ... numbers.. so I assume that means.. earlier models? or less powerful? I haven't used the second battery yet, but it came with the "package" of gl2 stuff i bought on ebay, and most of the accessories they gave me where.. not what they made them out to be, so I assume it's no good..

Ok, since we are on the subject of batteries, and this is a bit off subject, but of course the GL2 didn't come with an on board light.. they sell a gl-2 light, but it runs off of the battery of the camera.. But I think they sell lights that come with some type of battery pack that you stick in your pocket?
What type of camera light do you have? I don't want one that eats my battery, unless it's not that bad...

thanks :)

As long as it is a Canon BP9xx battery, it will work fine with the charger you already have.
Lower numbers (ex BP915 compared to BP945) means less capacity.
Other batteries like the BP500 series will NOT work with your camera.
I recommend you get at least one BP945 battery.
(There has been some non Canon batteries, equally or more powerful, than the BP945, mentioned in earlier threads some time ago. But I can't remember the names right now)

Lights:
The VL-3 light that draws power from the onboard camera battery is a 3watt light. It is okay up to about 7-10ft from the camera, but not as the only light source.
The VL-10 is a 10watt light that would need a separate battery. (BP9xx series, same as the GL2) This light can in some cases be too bright, and ex. blow out the forehead of people.
I have used both these lights, but only have the VL-10 right now.
With this light, I use the battery that came included with my XM2, and I use the BP945 for the camera.

I've had success over a number of years with Lenmar LIC941 batteries with both GL and XL series.

I've had success over a number of years with Lenmar LIC941 batteries with both GL and XL series.

Don, how is this battery (capacity) compared to the Canon BP945?
The 945 is 4500mAh.

Lenmar rates it at 6000 mAh, no doubt a best-conditions rating.

I've never done a definitive comparison test, but subjectively it has lasts at least as long as the Canon BP945, if not longer, on a full charge. But I rarely shoot more than a tape's worth in a single session, and if I do change tape, I usually change to a fresh battery at the same time.