Battery Question

[Tom]

Is there anything wrong with ebay hvx200 equivelent batteries? I have been researching them all night and all the specs seem the same. Example: http://cgi.ebay.com/2x-CGR-CGA-D54-BATTERY-For-PANASONIC-AG-DVC60-AG-HVX200_W0QQitemZ300140670432QQihZ020QQcategoryZ434 47QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[Ryan Patrick O'Hara]

I have heard great things from Specialized communications batteries. I own one and it's great. I don't notice a difference from the one that came with my hvx....

Also DVXuser sells some great working batteries and the money goes to this server!!!

So before you buy off ebay, why not have piece of mind with the quality and support this site at the same time?

[mcgeedigital]

The Spec Comm ones are the best ones out there. Period.

[crs127]

I have the ones from Spec-comm and they are pretty good!

[n8ture]

I have several of the DVXUser batteries and they've been great. Much cheaper than the Panny batteries and I've never had any issues with them.

[sthops]

Do any of these cheap batteries fit snuggly in the camera, or do they wobble?
Are they heavier or lighter than the Panasonic Batteries?
Do they come with a guard to protect the connectors?
What are the dangers to the DVX/HVX of using them?

[Hawkeye]

Hi
Are there any battery belts available for HVX with multiple batteries possible and are there any batteries that charge faster than the four or five hours it takes to charge the Panny one that comes with camera??

[dusterdoo]

re: battery belts. These usually charge slow but last a long time. I use this one...

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/77965-REG/Cool_Lux_BC3050_BC_3050_Battery_Belt_12V_84WH.html

It goes forever....

[adolgin]

Hmm, you can not power your HVX with the 12V pack like this - you would smoke it :-(
Hawkeye, they do not make 7V belts, only 12V and 14V. You would have to get a 12v/7.2V converter to step down the voltage. The truth is a high capacity 5400mah battery like one sold on this site is about 40wh. So 2 of them hold about the same amount of juice as the belt pack mentioned above, and they are much smaller and lighter than the belt due to Li-Ion chemistry. The belts on the other hand are usually Lead Acid or sometimes NiCAd, making them much heavier.
As far as charging the Panny battery, using the same charger it would take less time to charge a smaller capacity battery. Think of a bucket you need to fill with a hose. In order to fill it faster, you need a bigger hose (a faster more powerfull charger)
HTH

[jdogmt07]

When I purchased my HVX200 just over a year ago I bought a second Pani battery with it (D54). Both Batteries have worked great and haven't lost much capacity. The other day I was on a shoot and pulled one of them off the charger and got nothing. After my shoot I threw it back on the charger and it showed (after a few seconds that it was fully charged....still nothing. Is this the way these batteries die? Do they go from working great to dead with no warning, or is there something else wrong? :Drogar-Mad(DBG):

[ProfessorU]

Try leaving it on the charger for a day even after it says it's charged. Sometimes the trickle charge will help get things going again.

[tduncan]

Hmmm. I jsut had this delivered to me and is now charging up. Should I be concerned about using it for any reason? $34 seems like a pretty good deal.

http://www.global-batteries.com/product_info.php/cPath/2_67/products_id/1772

td

[mainstreetprod]

I bought an ebay cheapie ($25 or so) about a year ago and have alternated it
with the OEM battery. So far no difference in the charge life from the Panny battery. I look at it this way: For the price of one Panasonic battery I can buy
several of these. If one fails, I can toss it. If they keep working, I'm way ahead.

[Ted Spencer]

I bought an ebay cheapie ($25 or so) about a year ago and have alternated it
with the OEM battery. So far no difference in the charge life from the Panny battery. I look at it this way: For the price of one Panasonic battery I can buy
several of these. If one fails, I can toss it. If they keep working, I'm way ahead.

Likewise. I have two that cost me about $28 each, including shipping, on eBay. They work fine and seem to last as long as the OEM ones. They fit fine on the camera, but are a little loose on my VidLed, which can make them lose contact when tilted (both the OEM and another battery I got online for $45 are fine on the Vidled). I solved it by putting a piece of duct tape on the bottom bearing surface of the battery to thicken it there slightly, which doesn't appear to negatively affect the fit on the HVX.

Given their overall satisfactory quality, the ability to buy several of these for the price of one Panasonic OEM battery is quite compelling.