Note that some third party batteries, e.g., some Lenmar LIC 941, may be a very tight fit in the XJ A1 battery compartment, requiring some gaffer tape to pull it out.

Thanks for the replies. J

The battery, BP941, from my older GL-1 also slips right in and works fine with my A1. The reason that I tried it was because it looked identical to the extra Li-ion battery that I purchased with my new camera.

Don

I purchased a 6000mAh aftermarket battery (price was too good to pass up), and thanks to this forum, I knew ahead of time that it would be a tough fit. What I did BEFORE inserting the battery, was to put some thin 'Scotch' type tape across the top and the rear, attaching them so that they create an artificial 'pull-tab' at the rear of the battery. I don't believe it will last a long time, but it makes the battery removal much less stressful. I'm thinking of gluing some sort of pull tab on the back that would fold (so as not to interfere with the battery door). Anyone have other suggestions?

Oren, the scotch tape bit won't last. I did that in the beginning until it just couldn't cut it anymore.

Use a good quality gaffer tape (not duct tape). See pic below.

Bill

Hello Experts!

I wonder if this LED lights takes the same batteries as XH-A1? If not, Swit, or any other light manufacturer, please design one, there is a market!

Kind regards Erik

http://www.swit.co.uk/index.php?cPath=35&osCsid=65ec5a845ca60ccb2bd9354afe7a1808

"S-2010C For Canon Camcorders

S-2010C On Camera LED DV Light for use with Swit S-8945 Batteries and Canon BP Style batteries.
For use with Canon XL1, XL2 and XLH1 Camcorders. Includes the S-7200C Canon Style Battery Mount Adapter."
£264.38 inc VAT

You'll pay a good deal more for them, but the Litepanels DV Camera Lite Kit allows for the use of Canon batteries.

I just got 2 VidLed Deluxe lights and while they don't use Canon batteries (they have internal batteries) I am more than happy with them. Besides the addition of the Canon battery would only add weight and that kind of defeats the purpose of the A1.

I have the Swit LED S2010 with my A1. Excellent choice. It includes a special device for the A1s battery.

Anyway you will have to check where to handle it (it includes a clamp to attach it to a tripod or camera grip and a thread that i use to attach it to the Multirig).

The battery adds a little weight to the camera, but anyway with the Canon wide angle converter the A1 becomes a difficult camera to use handheld. Thats why i have a Multirig Pro stabilizer. Problem solved!

We reviewed the Varizoom S2000-series (http://www.freshdv.com/2007/02/freshdv-reviews-the-new-varizoom-led-light-in-dv-magazine.html) LED lights some time ago, I understand they are made by SWIT (same kit, different logo). I love 'em. I have two of the LED kits with Sony battery adapters. Options include Sony, Canon, JVC, or Panasonic battery adapters. Or a simple power tap.

You can get them at B&H (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?BI=805&KBID=1062&shs=varizoom+LED+5600K&ci=0&sb=ps&pn=1&sq=desc&InitialSearch=yes&O=productlist.jsp&A=search&Q=*&bhs=t) for under $380.

Hello,

I just purchased the Lenmar LIC941 battery. It slid right into the A1 but now doesn't want to come back out. Any suggestions? Is this battery really not intended for this camera?

It seems several 3rd party batteries are just a tad too large.

See my post here with a photo of how I use gaffer tape to make a pull tab. Scroll to bottom.

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=93854

Bill

Thanks for the info. I greatly appreciate it.

I also saw a good tip before of using one of those window suction cups to help pull the battery out.

Some Lenmar's fit, and some are just a wee bit too tall. One of these days when i have time I will try using a belt sander on one of my older batteries to see if I can take off enough plastic to get a workable fit. Will have to take care not to leave dust on it that can get into the camcorder.

Some Lenmar's fit, and some are just a wee bit too tall. One of these days when i have time I will try using a belt sander on one of my older batteries to see if I can take off enough plastic to get a workable fit. Will have to take care not to leave dust on it that can get into the camcorder.

I can picture it: making the Lenmar fit with sand paper :-)

Does de Lenmar have the same capacity as the original Canon battery, and is the price much lower than a BP950 or 970?

Re: sandpaper. Back in my PC days (ie., before Avid and Mac) I needed to add memory to my state-of-the-art 286. I got a memory chip from one of the big computer stores, but when I tried to install it, the plastic card that contained the electronics was just a little too big.

I filed it down with an ordinary fine household file. Worked great.

Don't try that with the new memory modules they have these days. You might end up with a heavy case of ESD (Google on the subject: Electrostatic Discharge)

But comming back to the subject: Personaly I think I will stick to the original 950 or 970 battery. From what I heard, the 970 is a pretty good battery. Expensive, but good enough for 6-8 hours of power.

Does that apply to the other too?

The 950 that came with the camera holds up for an exceptionally long time, and the 970 goes for a couple hours longer. I notice they have a higher mAh than some of the equivalent cheapos. Tapes and batteries are two things I wouldn't skimp on.

Does de Lenmar have the same capacity as the original Canon battery, and is the price much lower than a BP950 or 970?

The Lenmars are significantly lower price (typically less than half) than the nominally equivalent capacity Canon batteries. The LIC941 in question was marketed as a 6000 mA-hr replacement for the Canon BP945 (4500 mA-hr) and BP941. Lenmar has released a LIC950 (5200 mA-hr) that is marketed as a replacement for the BP950, and a LIC970 (7200 mA-hr) replacement for the BP970. The LIC 950 and 970 may fit the XH A1 better, but I've not tried them yet.

I've used a number of LIC941 with XL1 and GL1, with success. They appear to hold up for 3-5 years of use before objectionable capacity loss, at least for the type of shooting I do. YMMV.

Cewl, thanks for the information Don.

So the choice is down to buying a 970 or a Lenmar (with or without the sandpaper).

Well...first I'm going to get an external monitor for my A1 this afternoon. I'm going to sleep a night over the decision about buying which battery I'm going to buy.

I appreciate the info.

i just came into the same situation with a Lenmar LIC941

I decided to just call Lenmar's customer service line and see if they had any ideas. come to find out the LIC941 is NOT compatible with the XH A1 at all. any reseller that recommends it is liable for getting it out of your camera, not Lenmar.

awesome.

edit:/ as an update, a little bit of strong double-sided tape on the back did the trick of getting it out.

FWIW: The Lenmar LIC950Gs I recently purchased fit nicely in the XH A1.

I spoke with the Lenmar folks about 2 weeks ago, they were interested to hear that the LIC941 was not a reliable fit, and they were going remove the LIC970 from the A1 compatible list until they could confirm whether or it fits.

FWIW, I have a number of LIC941 that I used with an XL1 and GL1, of them, about 20% fit nicely, and 80% are either too snug to self-eject and some just plain do not fit at all. It is a matter of a few thousands of an inch in the plastic case dimensions, with later production appearing to be slightly larger than the earlier production. Go figure...

Last week I visited a Canon dealer in the neighbourhood. He tried to sell me a cheap replacement battery for the Canon. But it had a problem: the bottom was loose and I could see the batteries on the inside. Both + and - connectors did not look very good too and the two contacts in the middle were missing.

I decided to leave and look around for a good deal on the internet. Found one in Groningen. With any luck I hope I can get my original Canon BP970G for 239 Euro's.

With so many stories about 'the good and the bad' batteries, I decided for the original. And I really hope it will bring many hours of filming. At least 7-8 per load.

Next week we leave to London. Taking two camera's with us and a huge amout of tapes. I'm sure I test the new battery and will let you all know about it.

I have my brand new BP-970G.

First I had it ordered online. They sent me an email: 'Sorry, this item is discontinued.....'

I discontinued the order and got one in a store.

And it's really a BIG battery :-)

7200 mAh. And it fits! And it has lots of space left between the battery and the inside wall. It also has three extra connectors so the camera can read 'inside' the thing.

The only negative thing: price

Will post a message in the future about the 'user time'

Thanks Bill, I've been meaning to make the switch to gaffers tape, but your warning was the much needed kick-in-the-pants. Does anyone know which aftermarket battery WILL fit the XH-A1 without this issue (large capacity, of course).

The Lenmar LIC950G fits, is rated 5200 mAh.

I do NOT know if the LIC970G fits (rated 7000mAh), but Lenmar lists it as fitting.

The Lenmar LIC950G fits, is rated 5200 mAh.

I do NOT know if the LIC970G fits (rated 7000mAh), but Lenmar lists it as fitting.

I have bought the LIC970G at 79.95$ and fits perfectly and pull out with internal springs without problems. Recommended

I was wondering about Series7 Li+ and Varizoom batteries. They're being sold side by side with the Canon BP series batteries.

I notice that they're significantly cheaper (approx 99USD vs. !66USD for Canon BP-970 units) and was wondering if they even fit properly in an A1/G1 series camcorder, much less how they hold up.

Anyone had good luck with these batteries? Or should I stick with the Canon batts?

Most of my experience has been with Anton Bauer, Frezzi, Sony V-mount, and very few off brand battery kits that usually run on the Gold Mount system. I'm lost on all the smaller batteries. These names don't jive with me.

stick with the canon ones. they live longer and run longer than the others.
i'm still using the battery that came with my first xl1-s many years ago with the a1.

http://www.antonbauer.com/elipz_line.htm

short that,
I still have my Canon Xl-1s batteries and use them also

there are reports of third party battries getting stuck in the A1 battery housing. I also have my XL1 battries.

The third party batteries that are a too-tight fit include some (but not all) of the Lenmar LIC941. The Lenmar LIC950G fit fine. If considering a third party battery, check with other users first, or try a sample before you buy.

I will NEVER use third-party batteries after seeing the remains of a friends camera bag a few months ago. The Domke bag contained 2 Canon 5D cameras and 3 lenses(total value of contents was about £7500/$us15,000) Both bodies had booster packs on with third party batteries(Hague I think?) and one of them went into meltdown,completley destroying everything in the bag with melting plastic.
Norwich Union,his insurance company, had all the gear sent to a specialist to see if any of the gear was salvagable and on inspection it was discovered that the camera was using none Canon batteries. Norwich Union refused to pay-out refering to the section in the manual where it basically says not to use any battery other than Canon.

Lesson learnt?!!

2 years with my HI/Power 5 hour battery from www.ebatts.com for my XL1s. I use my canon battery as a backup...I haven't needed to use it much at all in 2 years. I'll be buying another 5 hour battery to increase my record time up to 11 full hours. I am a happy customer perfectly willing to recommend these batteries to anyone who needs one.

The original Battery BP-950G is 7.4V, now I got 2 spare OEM batteries with 7.2V, will that do any harm to the camera? Thx.....

Do you want to really risk your investment on some OEM batteries? It might work but canon batteries are pretty cheap. You don't want to mess up a multi thousand dollar camera on a $20 battery do you?

I have a long shoot this afternoon till late night, so I went out hunting for additional batteries last night. I definitely would have bought canon battery if I could, but time pressed. The only retail store that had the OEM was Batteries Plus. I think I am gonna return them later. Hope they wont hurt the camera this time.

most devices have some level of tolerance for varying voltages. .2V should be fine.

I have a long shoot this afternoon till late night, so I went out hunting for additional batteries last night. I definitely would have bought canon battery if I could, but time pressed. The only retail store that had the OEM was Batteries Plus. I think I am gonna return them later. Hope they wont hurt the camera this time.

We've tried a number of non original batteries in our Sony cameras. Some are great and some are not so good and some don't work in certain models but never heard of a battery damaging a camera. When it comes to Li-Ion batteries the exact voltage is not that exact. From fully charged to discharged the voltage has a quite large range so the camera's internals has to be able to cope and 0.2V less is going to have no impact.
However, new Li-Ion batteries can take 3 full cycles to reach full capacity, so your new battery may not perform too well on its first day out.

The only drama we've ever had with a Li-Ion battery was an original Sony one, stopped working and then a few weeks later caught fire just sitting on the shelf. Treat all Li-Ion batteries with due caution, it's a rare event that one goes off but I'd hate to have had this happen when the battery was inside a kit bag.

Bob, thank you for your input. I think the only possibility for a battery to hurt a camera is power surge. From what you said it seems that its unlikely to get surge from a battery. Thank you all guys......

The original Battery BP-950G is 7.4V, now I got 2 spare OEM batteries with 7.2V, will that do any harm to the camera? Thx.....
All "7V" category Li-Ion batteries discharge down to about 6.5V; fully charged 8.4V. This is inherent to Li-Ion chemistry, has nothing to do with the label on the battery. 7.2V - 7.4V is where the battery spends most of its time discharging in the camera, so one can call it a 7.2V battery or 7.4V battery, it is just labeling. There is no such a thing as "surge" when it comes to the battery performance. The only way a battery can damage a camera is if it catches fire due to internal defects. This can happen to any Li-Ion battery including brand names like Sony - just watch the news, or google "Dell battery recall"
HTH

thanks Alex, that gives me peace of mind.... actually these OEMs turned out to be great, i think i just keep them.....

...now I got 2 spare OEM batteries with 7.2V,

OEM = original equipment manufacturer; i.e. Canon. They will be fine.

But if you are considering third parts (after market) batteries, most will work OK as well, if they are marketed as compatible with the Canon. Some after market will perform better than others, it is a bit of a roll of the dice.

As noted above, the 7.2 volt rating is the nominal battery voltage - the voltage of the battery starts out higher when fully charged and will decrease somewhat below 7.2 volts as the batter discharges. Actual voltage measured will depending on the state of charge, charge left, and load.

Just throwing in my 2 cents. I'd been on the fence regarding battery selection for my two new A1s. Was concerned about getting a third party battery instead of the genuine Canon, but was also concerned about the price of the Canons. I wanted the Canon BP970G for longest possible runtime. At $165-$175 each, that was going to eat into my budget for other accessories I needed. I discussed it with Brian at Zotz Digital (these guys are phenomenal by the way) and he convinced me to save the moolah and go with the Lenmar LIC970G for $100. I was a little skeptical after reading some of the posts regarding stuck batteries, but decided to take his advice.

I received the Lenmar batts and let me tell you they're perfect. They fit like a glove into the battery compartment. They slide in just right, and pop out perfectly. No snags, hangups, sticking, anything. They're perfect. I'm so glad I took Brian's advice and saved the 150 bucks.

So, to anyone looking to buy the perfect battery for your A1 - I highly recommend the Lenmar LIC970G. The "G" designation is important! Oh, they also come with a 3 year warranty. The Canon is only 1 year.

Peace out

Dave

I received the Lenmar batts and let me tell you they're perfect. They fit like a glove into the battery compartment. They slide in just right, and pop out perfectly. No snags, hangups, sticking, anything. They're perfect. I'm so glad I took Brian's advice and saved the 150 bucks.

So, to anyone looking to buy the perfect battery for your A1 - I highly recommend the Lenmar LIC970G. The "G" designation is important! Oh, they also come with a 3 year warranty. The Canon is only 1 year.

Peace out

Dave

I confirm everything Dave says! I own a LIC970G and works flawlessy.

I have the same positive experience with the Lenmar 970G!

I have had great experience with non-Canon batteries in my GL2 and now I use those same batteries in my XH-A1.

I purchased two BP970G's with the A1 but have 5 non-Canon batteries and have used them quite a bit as well.

I bought the Hahnel 970 equivalent, fits perfectly.

Weren't a lot of Canon batteries once made by Hahnel?

No fires yet.

Impact batteries rule. Buy those!

just wondering if anyone knows of any real world hourly ratings on the A1 Batteries?

LCD Closed,
LCD open
Auto focus
Manual Focus
Standby.... that kinda thing..

anyone ??