Ebay batteries: too good to be true?

[Hellashot]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3852782372&ssPageName=MERC_VI_RSCC_Pr4_PcY_BIN_Stores

Appears to be 2 batteries that are 1500mAH for $20 including shipping. And the seller appears to have a lot in stock.

[DReb-MO]

Personally I would stay away from these. I bought an off brand for my DVCam and was extremely disppointed with it's ability to hold the charge.

[Mike Panic]

i have an off brand ebay battery that i got for my 10d and it lasts longer then my canon brand one

[attu]

Ive got a couple of batteries off ebay and mine have been fine, as Mike said they last longer than the original Canon ones.

[pcasciola]

Buying off brand junk off ebay is hit and miss. I've had good results and I've had bad results. What would be helpful is if the people who have bought batteries that have worked well off ebay can post the name of the seller and /or a link to the closed auction.

[Mike Panic]

i would be glad to but the seller i got mine from stopped importing them - they told me that it was just too much of a pain for the small profits they were getting

[Headcase650]

I purchased 2 1500mah BP-511/512 batterys off ebay, seller was eagle imports, they were $12 a peace and have worked flawlessly for nearly a year now. I have gotten almost 400 shots off a single charge. ISO 400 no flash. Hope this helps.

[defense_team]

Bought 2 from eforcity on ebay for 9.45 plus shipping. No problems, quick and reasonable shipping. They have a 98.5% rateing which is my opinion is kinda poor, but it looks like they communicate and try to resolve issues....anyway it's not a high dollar item. They have a phone number and website also. www.eforcity.com Not endorsing them, but a question was asked and I replied.

[Persian-Rice]

I purchased four for about 20-25 bucks a while ago, can't remember, but they all work great.

The way I look at it, I rather spend 5 bucks on a battery I can use 10-15 times, then to spend $110 on something that will last me about a year.

Defence team, 98.5 is not low if they guy has a good number feedback. I deal with morons on ebay all the time, of my 50-60 responses I have had 3-4 who sent me negative feed back, 2 of them said shipping was slow after waiting 4 and 7 days respectively (they paid for standard mail) and one guy who said he would not ship to Canada after I won the auction, even though I confirmed with him through e-mail that he would. My rating is like 94, and I have never ripped anyone off or had a bad transaction as a matter of fact. Another guy refused to pay me after he said my e-mail account has a different name then my ebay/paypal accounts who have the same name. I don't believe in having a credit cards, so I borrowed my mothers to register both my accounts, I state that in all my auctions...........Mind you I now have a card just for registering accounts........

Many of the negative feedback out there is not actually deserved.

[mickle]

Bought one for my 300D and it is fine.....

[Johnny V]

I also purchased from eforcity recently...2 batteries with shipping totalled about $15.00. I don't know how well the batteries work as I have to send my new Rebel to Canon. :-ƒ

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=15215&item=3864538323

[the7ferret]

its hit or miss, i went on ebay to buy a laptop battery and it was good.
just look more the more reputable auctioneers.

[defense_team]

Prersian Rice,
Your right....but between my wife and I, over 100 transactions...mostly selling, we have 100% positive feedback. All my transcations seem to be with pretty good people. Maybe I'm just lucky. If 2 out of 100 transactions are sour, I look at why....slow shipping...ect. If I don't see people yelling rippoff ect. I will buy, less than 98,97, and I will look for someone else.

I don't like credit cards either, so I use my debit card, keeps me honest and easy. Now my wife.....

[merrrrjig]

I bought 2 the other day, not here yet!

[tim]

I bought a bunch from http://sterlingtek.com , $12 plus shipping each ($5 shipping for 7 bats), they work better than my canon bats. I'd stay away from the ebay ones myself given you can get decent ones from a known good source easily.

[pradeep1]

I also purchased from eforcity recently...2 batteries with shipping totalled about $15.00. I don't know how well the batteries work as I have to send my new Rebel to Canon. :-ƒ

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=15215&item=3864538323

I've bought from these guys and sterlingtek.com and all of them work fine and offer better life than original BP-511s.

[rsnadel]

If you do a search for Canon BP-511a batteries on www.pricegrabber.com, you'll find that you can buy them from Dell for about $40. Granted, it may be a little more than the eBay knockoffs...but at least you know what you're getting.

[fair_play_boy]

Buying off brand junk off ebay is hit and miss.Simple. Google the product and learn from the experience of others. I chose really inexpensive off brand battery packs after reading the reviews, and their performance is excellent.

[Marshall]

Try Sterlingtek,always had good reports on this forum, 1800mah @ $11.99ea free U.S.post over $60.Just received mine delivered U.K in 10 days,good firm to deal with.

[UnDo]

I also purchased some batteries for my Rebel XT. $9.99 for 7.4v 1300mah. I purchased 2 and they arrived in 6 days with usps shipping. They work great in the battery grip. I found the link from this forum. I ordered mine through pricegrabber (sterlingtek storefront) , they are cheaper than buying directly from the sterlingtek website.

Vince

[rklepper]

I have had some off brand batteries and they did hold a charge longer than the Canons. The only reason I do not buy them any more is that the life span was shorter.

[Sailare]

This months - Oct 2005 issue of Popular Photography has an article on page 46 by Herbert Keppler that takes about the issue of counterfeit batteries. In a nut shell, they apparently have less or no protective circuitry in them, can overheat and even blow up. Now I have read quite a few posts to date about having good success with these inexpensive purchases on e-bay, so I am not sure if his article address' those or other units that were purchased abroad.

Ok with that said, I do know a bit about batteries, but does anyone know what else is inside the canon battery pack besides the lithium-ion cells? It seems to me there is nothing else. Most of the "delicate-charge" circuitry is in the charger. I could see some problems with using a fast charger and blowing one up, but how does that happen when you are dischargeing inside a camera?
Any comments on the article?

[billhercus]

Here I was trawling through the pearls of wisdom regularly encountered here when I chanced upon this thread. As I cannot find my spare battery after days of fruitless search I thought, 'I'll have a look at ebay'.

Guess what, a 511 battery still on offer for a penny (one hundredth of a UK pound for our colonial brethern) with only 10 mins left.

So I bid,so I won. A 511 for a penny + £5.99 postage. It's 1400mah which is OK and from a Power Seller with a 98.2% rating.

I'll let you know if it all goes pear shaped .....

But for the moment ... Thanks Guys!!