Darned Cheap BP-511's.... [Archive] - Canon Digital Photography Forums

283CID

24th of May 2004 (Mon), 20:13

Now that *I*have cut the Silver Cord to Canon.... buying a charger that will charge 'other' brands... I see a whole slug of 'Brand-X' Batteries available.

How about the Sterling Tek version. $11.99 each. User testimonies give it FIVE stars... That is on www.nextag.com.

Are we all suckers for paying $26... $37.....$ 6 0 [From Canon] for these batteries ???

I have yet to cut a dead one open and look, but I'll bet a Lithium Ion cell is.... a Lithium Ion cell...

Makes ya wonder...don't it ...

AeroSquid

24th of May 2004 (Mon), 21:33

indeed. :shock:

Ballen Photo

24th of May 2004 (Mon), 22:20

I bought one aftermarket battery so far, and have had zero probs with it. I wouldn't hessitate to do it again.
Speaking of Sterling Tek, I puchased a corded remote for my old E-10 from them, and got what I felt was excellent service.
.......Bruce

toglenn

25th of May 2004 (Tue), 08:32

Thanks for the tip, I just ordered two batteries.

toglenn

283CID

25th of May 2004 (Tue), 10:22

There will probably be a 'run' on them....

283CID

27th of May 2004 (Thu), 14:50

I received my two new $11.99 (each) "BP-511" batteries an hour ago. The first thing I did was to 'TRY' them in the CG-560 Canon Battery Charger. **NO** batteries except Official Canon Expensive batteries have ever charged in that thing...until today !!! These $11.99 wonders are happily charging along, as I type ! I don't know what The Deal is, but I'm one happy guy... hoping that outfit in New Mexico stays in business for a long time...

If they have typical capacity, this is the beginning of a long relationship...

Bruce Hamilton

27th of May 2004 (Thu), 16:45

If they have typical capacity, this is the beginning of a long relationship.
Even if they only last half as long, you really can't complain for what you paid. ;)

283CID

27th of May 2004 (Thu), 16:51

The print on the back of the battery says, " 1800 mAh ".....

and those Immortal Words..." cell from Japan made in China"

:?

4walls

1st of June 2004 (Tue), 15:21

Those no-name batteries still working flawlessly for you guys? What is the
battery life compared to the original 511?

283CID

1st of June 2004 (Tue), 15:56

They are actually called : ASSIA [brand name]

Far too soon to tell how long they will last...but so far the Number of Pictures per Charge seems fine....

MackRoe

1st of June 2004 (Tue), 22:11

283CID....and like that bank robber said that was blown off his feet by one of Dirty Harry's .44 magnum slugs, after the spiel Harry gave him about "the largest handgun in the world and would blow your head clean off, and in all this excitement I forgot whether I shot 5 times or six," so as Harry turned to walk away, the bank robber looked up in pain and said "I gots to know." ..so concerning your "283CID" handle and what it stands for....well, "I gots to know."

After reading your thread about the "cheap BP-511's....I immediately called the site you gave and ordered 2 BP-511's and a separate BP-511 charger so that I don't have to charge my batteries in my camera anymore...and even with all this stuff and shipping, my cost was $25 less than just the last Canon BP-511 battery that I was, how shall I say it, uhhh, ehrrr, "intercoursed" for at Wolf/Ritz camera. What a deal, Lucille, thanks again, 283CID.
Ciao, Mackroe :lol: [/img]

283CID

1st of June 2004 (Tue), 23:09

I know.....Oh, how I know ...how it feels to look at those $$$$$$$ Canon Batteries !

Well, I hope it all works out well for us....

As for the '283... That little red car in my picture had one....and a high lift cam...AND two Four-Barrels...270 hp and 2750 pound at the curb, A N D a 4.10 positraction rear end....
It burped Thunderbirds and Silver Hawks.... if... you are young enough to remember those....

meow

2nd of June 2004 (Wed), 00:06

Buhu! I paid about $130 for this. :cry:

http://www.hahnel.ie/index.cfm?action=viewcharger&cid=13

283CID

2nd of June 2004 (Wed), 08:07

Don't feel like The Lone Ranger .... I shudder at what I paid for my Canon CG-560.......... more than your $130....

stephenshot

7th of June 2004 (Mon), 01:14

does anyone know: can you charge these Sterling Tek batteries in the G2 camera using the Canon-supplied AC charger?

I also have a third-party external charger, called Ambico. Can I use that charger, too?

Thanks!

meow

7th of June 2004 (Mon), 01:55

It's just 8 bucks shipping to Europe! :mrgreen:
But hello! Do I need to register for yahoo to pay? What's up with that? Silly. :shock:

stephenshot

8th of June 2004 (Tue), 22:26

Bump: Sterling Tek batteries: can these be charged inside the camera or only in an external charger? Any experiences or advice?

283CID

8th of June 2004 (Tue), 23:04

Mine charge anywhere... G-1, Lenmar Charger...AND the Canon CG-560 two-place charger...

So far...so good

stephenshot

9th of June 2004 (Wed), 10:23

Excellent! I just ordered 4 of them + a charger for around the same price as one Canon battery... Now i don't have to worry about running out of juice!

14th of June 2004 (Mon), 03:34

Anyone know the voltage on the power convertor they sell on the site? Would it convert the voltage difference in Europe or would I need another charger? I'm looking to get some batteries before I head off to Denmark.

stephenshot

15th of June 2004 (Tue), 16:09

the charger they sell for canon batteries is of type USA 110V-120V. Mine actually stopped working within hours of receiving it. I think it was the AC adaptor that failed, not the charger itself. Probably a freak occurance.

I have arranged to get a replacement and will post my results here.

su719

15th of June 2004 (Tue), 16:22

It looks like I should be able to use a voltage converter with the charger. I have 50 watt converter from Radio Shack that should hopefully work. Anyone had sucess with this charger outside of the US ?

283CID

15th of June 2004 (Tue), 16:38

The LENMAR Mach-1 charger that I bought actually has a little round socket in the side, where you plug the output of "anybody's" AC to 12 VDC 'adapter'... OR an adapter from a car lighter...

Again... so far, so good ...

catastrophe

17th of June 2004 (Thu), 18:32

Now that *I*have cut the Silver Cord to Canon.... buying a charger that will charge 'other' brands... I got an aftermarket DigiPower battery and it's multi-battery charger for my Canon PowerShot G1. It's nice and the external charger also charges batteries for my bro's Nikon CoolPix 4300. :) Never again will I charge batteries inside my G1 least they only last a year.

drisley

9th of August 2004 (Mon), 06:42

283CID, it's been a couple months now.
How are those steling tek batteries doing?

283CID

9th of August 2004 (Mon), 08:24

Terrific... I've been running the dickens out of 'em, this Summer season. I'm sold, 'so far'. One thing I AM doing, with these, though, is that I don't 'top them off'. I run until the red comes on, or the camera quits, before I change and charge. I'm believing that the act of charging is the damaging thing for the Lithium Ion battery. If that is correct, the less charging the better. But....it will take a couple of years to tell that...

AND, it is very nice that the Sterling Tek battery 'talks to' the Canon Two Battery charger!! Some of the Non-Canon ones don't.

stephenshot

9th of August 2004 (Mon), 08:57

endriko

10th of August 2004 (Tue), 01:58

I bought a non-canon brand replacement battery and am disappointed. First couple of months were ok but now only half a year after purchase and moderate use the battery lasts maximum 100 pictures. Original Canon battery which is older still lasts a lot more. Maybe did get unlucky battery. However I think I will buy non-original batteries in the future but not this brand.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=232733&is=REG

ScottK

11th of August 2004 (Wed), 18:49

One thing I AM doing, with these, though, is that I don't 'top them off'. I run until the red comes on, or the camera quits, before I change and charge. I'm believing that the act of charging is the damaging thing for the Lithium Ion battery. If that is correct, the less charging the better.

This is the opposite of what I had heard, which was that draining them all the way causes them to wear out faster. (While the source of this info is knowledgable and reliable, I don't know that they're an expert, so take that with a grain of salt.) What I couldn't get a clear answer on was, since the ratings I've read always rated battery life based on number of charges, did recharging them before draining them "use up" a recharge from the life of that battery?

Didn't affect my habits though - I still mostly run my batteries till their dry. Mostly just because I never think of it till the camera shuts down on me. :oops:

uberG

11th of August 2004 (Wed), 20:34

I've purchased a number of batteries off eBay. My most recent purchase was 2 BP511 batteries rated at 1800mAh ($20 which incl. shipping). They work great. In fact, all the aftermarket, non-OE batteries purchased easily outlast the OE battery.

283CID

11th of August 2004 (Wed), 22:30

ScottK........Well, I have had a lot of experience with NiCad Batteries, both personally and professionally. *THEY* definitely want to be 'cycled'...taken down near the bottom. When so treated, they last YEARS..before their decreasing capacity becomes apparent. These Lithium Ion batteries seem to be so damned short lifed, in the first place...why even bother trying to take advantage to the 'no memory' characteristic? The thing will be shot before a Non Cycled NiCAD even GETS a memory!

For the past three batteries, I topped 'em off regularly...big deal, a couple years and POOF. So, this time I'll try the opposite approach. From what I can see the only truly good feature of LI batteries is that they ARE smaller, for equal or better capacity...

eric1

13th of August 2004 (Fri), 21:37

anyone got a link for the Sterling Tek? nextag turned up 0.

283CID

13th of August 2004 (Fri), 22:23

Try this one

http://www.sterlingtek.com/ln03-canon-bp-511-dlc511.html

eric1

13th of August 2004 (Fri), 23:38

thank you. :D

aberdeen

18th of August 2004 (Wed), 20:06

Just ordered a few myself...thought I'd give these guys a shot.

thank you for posting the info!!

Aberdeen

MackRoe

22nd of August 2004 (Sun), 22:59

Well, after all the glowing comments on a BP-511 knock-off battery sold by a company that I refuse to name (Sterling Tek) I hate to report this, :roll: but I'm having the same experience as another chap posted just up the roll here, where these Sterling Tek units are running down after one day or so of moderate use. Doing a lot of close-up work seems to eat power pretty quick anyway, but I have to recharge them twice as often as my "older" original Canon BP-511's , and the Sterling Tek's are only 2-3 months old, if that. I'm strongly considering calling said company and having speaks with them. Any one else have problems ? -Mackroe

meow

22nd of August 2004 (Sun), 23:05

Oh no! I just ordered two yesterday. I didn't see that other post. :o :cry:

283CID

23rd of August 2004 (Mon), 08:24

Darned Sorry, Mack.... My two are doing great... BTW, I neither know, nor own stock in Sterling Tek...

'Hope you do better with some other brand.

DocFrankenstein

23rd of August 2004 (Mon), 11:04

Just confirmed shipping of 2 bp511 from www.after5pm.net

MC technology. 7.4V 1500 mAh...

In the states, it's 25 bucks for 2 with free shipping. Add 14 bucks to ship to canada. So that's... 20 bucks per battery...

I'll report how they work...

eric1

25th of August 2004 (Wed), 01:45

schwanm

25th of August 2004 (Wed), 03:00

Hi!

I also bought some very cheap batteries on ebay.
No problems so far. :D

Did you ever bought a printer?
When you have to replace the ink you realize that they are
more expensive than the printer itself. :twisted:

Almost like camera <-> batteries! :twisted:

aberdeen

25th of August 2004 (Wed), 12:00

Hi!

I ordered from both After5pm and SterlingTek at the same time on August 18, and they both showed up the same day on Monday the 23rd. I'm trying the After5pm batts now...

I'll keep you posted...

Please note that the batts I bought from SterlingTek did not have covers with them, but the After5pm batts did...

FWIW

Cheers! 8)

meow

26th of August 2004 (Thu), 06:15

Oh no! Now I'll need 3 caps. Anyone got a few spares? :lol:

DocFrankenstein

27th of August 2004 (Fri), 11:16

Oh no! Now I'll need 3 caps. Anyone got a few spares? :lol:
You mean the batts come without the caps?

Update: My batts left Los Angeles at 11:30 am yesterday :lol:

meow

27th of August 2004 (Fri), 16:30

aberdeen said so. Haven't got mine yet. :evil:
They said it could take 6 weeks AFTER I clicked the OK button. :twisted:

:lol:

kreego

29th of August 2004 (Sun), 16:08

[quote="DocFrankenstein"] You mean the batts come without the caps?

quote]

OK this is slightly skewing the topic - but - am I committing a grieveous error in not using caps on my batteries? The one that's not in the camera is in the bag, in a clean dry compartiment with nothing else touching it.

K

meow

29th of August 2004 (Sun), 16:12

Well, all of us aren't that tidy. Me, I most often use my pockets. :shock:

aberdeen

29th of August 2004 (Sun), 21:47

Hey!

the only reason I mentioned that the batts from SterlingTek didn't come with caps is because I sometimes put my batts in questionable environments as well...like jeans pockets with change and paperclips.

you get the picture.

I usually have them snug-as-a-bug-in-a-rug in one of my battery cases, in which the caps aren't anywhere as crucial...

So far so good on the batteries from After5pm. I'll keep you posted.

Cheers! 8)

aberdeen

29th of August 2004 (Sun), 21:52

By the Way,

The After5pm batteries I received came with caps...

the SterlingTek batteries did not...

Cheers! 8)

283CID

30th of August 2004 (Mon), 08:08

My two Sterlings each came in a cardboard container..with caps. Maybe it depends upon where the Non-Canon contract is from ....

DocFrankenstein

30th of August 2004 (Mon), 16:34

Update:

It entered customs :roll: 3 days ago. :lol:

aberdeen

30th of August 2004 (Mon), 22:21

Well now ain't that interesting? :?

I guess it's the whole "get what you paid for" kinda thing when it comes to getting batts with caps...

I suppose it was in regards to who got which contract with SterlingTek...

Very Interesting...

Cheers! 8)

meow

30th of August 2004 (Mon), 22:32

It is! :D

I got mine today. 8 days, not bad. :)

A funny thing I've noticed when ordering from US - they often lie on the customs declaration and put a lower price. It says my two batts are worth $10. An approach I like a lot because the lower the value the less likely it is customs will bother. :lol:

meow

30th of August 2004 (Mon), 22:33

Oh, I forgot to tell you. They came without caps. :shock::P

283CID

30th of August 2004 (Mon), 22:36

Yeah-but... Caps? What's the big deal to a half cent worth of plastic? Stick the battery in a Baggie... or just keep the caps off the rapidly piling up 'dead-soldiers'....

It's performance that counts..... $60 for a Gen-Yoo-Wine CANON battery is Butch and Sundance, high-jacking our wallets !

meow

30th of August 2004 (Mon), 22:47

The problem is I want caps and they aren't easy to get hold of, not here anyway. If I find some they won't cost half a cent either.

BTW I read here that "storing the batteries after they have been charged can cause deterioration of its performance". Maybe that's the reason some ppl report so short life time? I tend to keep my spare loaded, too. :(

283CID

30th of August 2004 (Mon), 22:51

Sorry, Meow.... I have five old caps...from earlier BP-511's.... I'd give 'em to you, if I could...

meow

30th of August 2004 (Mon), 22:55

Yes please. :wink:

DocFrankenstein

31st of August 2004 (Tue), 12:11

http://images1.fotopic.net/?iid=yfczwr&outx=600&noresize=1&nostamp=1

The batteries arrived today, on tuesday at 11 in the morning. Fourth business day or 6th day after I ordered it, including the weekends.

The battery is charging. Seems ok. If they work ok, I'm satisfied with www.after5pm.net

BTW: They do have the caps included :lol: :wink:

ejwebb

13th of September 2004 (Mon), 19:18

DocFrankenstein wrote:
Just confirmed shipping of 2 bp511 from www.after5pm.net

MC technology. 7.4V 1500 mAh...

In the states, it's 25 bucks for 2 with free shipping. Add 14 bucks to ship to canada. So that's... 20 bucks per battery...

I'll report how they work...

i ordered some 12 days ago... still not here.

I ordered mine Saturday and they arrived today - Monday!! How's that for service...just doesn't seem consistent on all orders, though. $24.99 with free shipping and one of them is charging as we speak. I will let you all know how they do. DocFrankenstein - happy with yours so far??

DocFrankenstein

13th of September 2004 (Mon), 20:32

I am still unsure of the performance. The brand name lasted me 6 hours at the zoo, 200 pics and lots of focusing with sigma 70-200 (lots of glass)

I only shot with the new one a few times, once it was low but I don't remember for sure if I charged it beforehand or it was the 3rd time I took it for shooting :?

Anyways... I'm gonna be shooting whole day tomorrow and I'll report the number of shots. It's definetely worth the price though, even if it just "died" on me that time, it's 10X more value than the canon one.

MackRoe

14th of September 2004 (Tue), 00:26

Has anybody had any problems with these Sterling Tek batteries that seemed like such a good buy ? I rushed out and bought two of them and a charger, but they don't hold a charge half the time that the Canon batteries do. I'm wondering if I have blown it by not making sure the batteries were dead as a hammer before recharging them....but it seems I remember a post on the Forum or somewhere (Sterling Tek printed literature ?) saying that these newer batteries could be recharged when half down or whatever, that they had no memory restrictions ?? Anybody else out there had similar problems with these bargain batteries ?.............................Mackroe

meow

14th of September 2004 (Tue), 04:04

DocFrankenstein

14th of September 2004 (Tue), 17:41

They have no memory but you lose in the long run because they can only be charged a limited number of times (Canon says ~300 times). In the paper I got with my SterlingTek ones it also says that Li-Ion batts shouldn't be stored when loaded, as that may affect performance negatively. I've done that all wrong myself. I've always kept my extra one loaded.
Doesn't make much sense to keep the spare empty, does it? :roll:

Just live with it. Yeah, after a year it may get noticeably worse... But for 10 bucks a pop you'll still get your money's worth.

after5pm batteries work
They lasted approx 10 percent longer than canon one today. Cheers

ejwebb

14th of September 2004 (Tue), 18:34

Doc,

Doesn't make much sense to keep the spare empty, does it?

My sentiments exactly. I have three now and really probably only need two most of the time - I have actually never run one down on a shoot but came close a few times. Also, the camera seems to use more juice when I have the 420 on it - guess the constant comunication affects it or I am just dreaming!!

I think I'll just rotate them to try and use them all. I could be mistaken but I think I have read on here that they have a shelf life even unused - so it doesn't make sense not to get use out of them.

Thanks for the recommendation!

Alnath

24th of September 2004 (Fri), 10:40

(for the people in the UK i suppose)

I got a Uniross branded BP511 new and sealed off Ebay for £12.50 delivered. It works great in my G6 (and Canon charger) and at least it is a trusted brandname.

4walls

4th of October 2004 (Mon), 19:16

Just bought one of these....

http://www.sterlingtek.com/ln03-canon-bp-511-dlc511.html

It took a whopping 4 days to get here. Charged it in camera and it works great.

rwong2k

28th of November 2004 (Sun), 05:54

any recommendations on aftermarket or if canon makes a battery charger (i'm planning on picking up another battery for my g5)

+ ma those 1 gig lexar and sandisk ultra cf cards are so cheap at best buy with rebate, crazy!

Tdragone

28th of November 2004 (Sun), 17:05

I bought my extra batteries and charger off www.eforcity.com

The charger comes with an ac adapter AND a cigarette adapter. I keep the AC charger with camera; Cig adapter in the car and AC cord at home.

Wherever I am; I can charge batteries if I need to.

-Tom D.

Jim P McDonald

26th of December 2004 (Sun), 06:11

Meow

Are you UK based? I ask because I an thinking about risking a couple of batteries from the US....

Jim

paladin

26th of December 2004 (Sun), 13:55

Doc,

My sentiments exactly. I have three now and really probably only need two most of the time - I have actually never run one down on a shoot but came close a few times. Also, the camera seems to use more juice when I have the 420 on it - guess the constant comunication affects it or I am just dreaming!!

I think I'll just rotate them to try and use them all. I could be mistaken but I think I have read on here that they have a shelf life even unused - so it doesn't make sense not to get use out of them.

Thanks for the recommendation!The Li-Ion batteries definitely have a shelf life. Everything I've read says the bats working capacity depends on how long it's been in the box. "Use 'em or lose 'em." My original BP-511 starts flashing red on me after about 125 RAW shots, LCD open & 220EX on every shot but, I've been using it a year now. Bought one from Sterling Tek (plus the charger) and it seems to be working fine and holding a charge. Now I just switch the bats. Plus I like charging the bats out of the camera and having the car adapter too. Like DocFrank said, for 10-12 bucks you can't go wrong, IMHO.

And no, you are not dreaming, all of the external flashes pull more juice as does the LCD.

Gil