Dec 6, 2011
ronworkman: The downside of capitalism/marketing: Specialty Batteries As you might know, specialty batteries can have a ridiculous price tag. You may have heard that it is mostly about branding. You heard correct. For years this has always bothered me. Inside it has the same things in it as say a Lithium Ion AA battery you can buy at the store for only a few bucks. What matters in a battery is shape/connections (will it fit) and the mAh (Milliamp Hour) rating. To keep it short, mAh is how long the battery will last in use. Higher is better.  The image you are looking at is of 3 NB-4L batteries (common in Canon brand cameras). To buy the Canon branded battery it will cost you $62.99 (USD) @Best Buy. Rather than spend that much on having the convenience of an extra battery, I decided to track down the Chinese company that originally manufactured the battery for Canon. I expected it to be marginally cheaper but I admit, I was blown away at just how much cheaper it was for me to buy them. Because of this, I figured I might as well bump up the MaH rating so that they last twice as long and add in a few extras.  3 NB-4L batties with 1400mAh = $5.50 total (free shipping) 1 Canon branded NB-4L with 760mAh = $62.99 (free shipping) Never ever buy specialty batteries retail if it isn’t an emergency. 

ronworkman:

The downside of capitalism/marketing: Specialty Batteries

As you might know, specialty batteries can have a ridiculous price tag. You may have heard that it is mostly about branding. You heard correct. For years this has always bothered me. Inside it has the same things in it as say a Lithium Ion AA battery you can buy at the store for only a few bucks. What matters in a battery is shape/connections (will it fit) and the mAh (Milliamp Hour) rating. To keep it short, mAh is how long the battery will last in use. Higher is better. 

The image you are looking at is of 3 NB-4L batteries (common in Canon brand cameras). To buy the Canon branded battery it will cost you $62.99 (USD) @Best Buy. Rather than spend that much on having the convenience of an extra battery, I decided to track down the Chinese company that originally manufactured the battery for Canon. I expected it to be marginally cheaper but I admit, I was blown away at just how much cheaper it was for me to buy them. Because of this, I figured I might as well bump up the MaH rating so that they last twice as long and add in a few extras. 

3 NB-4L batties with 1400mAh = $5.50 total (free shipping)

1 Canon branded NB-4L with 760mAh = $62.99 (free shipping)

Never ever buy specialty batteries retail if it isn’t an emergency. 

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