Nikon EN-EL15c

photobunny

I believe I heard some news about this on the blog, we were expecting and can now buy the c revision battery that is supposedly higher capacity. Has anyone had a chance to verify any real world benefits to the new battery yet?

mhedges

I thought the primary benefit was it allows in-camera charging via USB while the camera is still on. But looks like it is spec'ed at 20% more capacity too which is nice.

It's kind of ridiculous to me that it exists though. Meaning that's what the EL15B should have been IMO.

PB_PM

At least the older batteries still work in newer cameras, many of us took a big hit when they moved from EN-EL3e to the EN-EL15.

I know the B&C have USB charging support (The C is listed as only compatible with Z cameras, D780 and D850), and I think the A was a move to better battery chemistry, but all of them are 1900mAh as far as I know. Never noticed any difference in battery life between the original and the Bs I have, but I don’t usually take 1000+ photos in a day anymore.

spraynpray

Low self-discharge and long life before recycling is most important to me. I think the newer technologies are giving improvements there.

mhedges

I saw a post that listed the C life at 2280 mAh. But I'd like to see that confirmed somewhere.

I believe the C will work in any camera that takes the EN-EL15, but we will have to see.

PB_PM

Nikon lists only the Z7, Z6, Z5, D850 and D780 as compatible with the C on their website. Likely means the B version will continue to be sold for a long time, since it lists all ENEL15 battery cameras as compatible.

photobunny

I guess no one has one yet, I am looking forward to seeing if we get more shots out to the Z6/Z7. Perhaps this will be the battery for the S models too.

mhedges

I would assume so.

Pistnbroke

You can easily show an apparent increase in capacity by dropping the cut off voltage. Dropping it from 7v to 6.8 (battery internal chip programming) would give an apparent rise in capacity.

PB_PM

An easy test to see if there is a real difference would be to weigh both batteries. In theory a battery with more cells would weigh more, assuming it’s based on the same chemistry.

If all Nikon did was change the voltage, it would likely require a firmware update for the camera to use it, voltage drops, or spikes, could cause functional problems otherwise. The electronics in the camera require a set amount of voltage to work correctly after all. Also the battery charge level given to the camera is likely voltage based, so the battery would never appear fully charged if they pulled that trick without an update on the camera as well.

Pistnbroke

more cells would weigh more,
It can only have two cells but they could be more tightly packed internally.
I think its more complex than you state, there are two end of charge determinants ..in the cells and in the camera

mhedges

Yes and it also matters how full and empty the controllers will let the battery get. Rechargeable lithium batteries are complicated creatures.

PB_PM

Pistnbroke said:

.
I think its more complex than you state,

No doubt about it, I'm not a chemist, nor a battery expert. Then again none of us are and, it's all just guesses without evidence.

Pistnbroke

Spent 30 years lecturing on battery technology....you cannot charge them above the 4.2v per cell. The discharge range is normally down to 3v but you could go lower and get more out of them . The built in chip (last 2mm at the positive end) determines the range and cuts off the connection at the lower end of the voltage range

mhedges

Nikon Ricci just put a video up on this battery. Confirmed 2280 mAh rating as marked on the battery and compatibility with all cameras using the EN-EL 15, including all DSLRs.

He did a video test to check increased time - got a little over 20% more on the new battery.

He also confirmed that you don’t get in camera charging while on with Z6/Z7 when using the C battery. That’s only on Z5. I think it’s possible that could be addressed via firmware but I’m not sure - he’s not so hopeful on that.

photobunny

The charging part is less interesting to me than a extra 20%. Sometimes I can only have so many batteries with me.

mhedges

I agree it’s not particularly interesting to me either - I’ve never done the in camera charging myself. But there are some folks who want it - with it you can bring a USB power bank with you when out in the field and get much increased usage time without needing a bunch of batteries.

PB_PM

I could see studio shooters wanting the C feature of being able to charge the battery while the camera is on (the b already allowed USB charging with it off). Doing that would save the trouble of buying the battery to wall adapters and such.

Doesn't sound like the guy tested the battery in anything other than his Z cameras, so how does he know it works in all EN-EL15 battery cameras? Nikon says otherwise.

Personally I'm kicking myself, just bought another B just before the C was announced, and its the same price.

photobunny

For me the question was all about how many shots I can get out in the middle of nowhere. If I have 4 c batteries with me instead of 5 of the b's I can make a difference, especially with how much stuff I can fit in my backpack and that I was holding off buying more batteries until the bigger lenses came which often drain a bit quicker.

PB_PM

4Cs would have less battery life than 5bs, do the math. You'd have just under 500mAh less with 4cs. We are talking about 380mAh difference per battery here, not 1000.

Cannot say I notice any difference in battery life between my standard lenses (with VR) and supertelephoto glass with VR. Now VR on vs off, that makes a difference.

photobunny

I didn’t say 4 c are equal to 5 b. But it may now be the case that I only need 4 batteries instead of five.

And I have definitely found at least on the Canon side that the IS on the 100-400 II drains the battery much faster than a 70-200. This may just be one lens, but is is logical that there will be differences between lenses.

retread

The Nikon website lists the Nikon EN-EL15c battery as compatible with the Z5, Z6, Z7, D780, and the D850. Here I am with a D7200 and a D500 wonder what my chances of it working are.

mhedges

I am willing to bet a decent sum it will work with any camera that uses the 15. The guy works for Nikon so he should know.

I did post a comment on the video asking him if he actually tested it in various DSLRs. He’s pretty good about answering questions - I’ll report back what he says.

Pistnbroke

I dont have mirrorless but I have never changed a battery during an 8 hr wedding taking 1500 pictures. My wife never turns her camera off until she leaves at 10pm but I suppose it goes into shutdown on its own.
II have done a lot of testing recently of 16850 batteries all rated at 5800mah. None got over 2000mah and most were about 600mah. Nikon use 16500 (dia v length) so to get the higher capacity must be top quality.

PB_PM

Hopefully the solid state batteries that Samsung and others are developing are ready soon, since it will provide far more capacity for the space required. Not to mention the fact that they are apparently less likely to combust than current lithium ion cells.

photobunny

PB_PM said:

Hopefully the solid state batteries that Samsung and others are developing are ready soon, since it will provide far more capacity for the space required. Not to mention the fact that they are apparently less likely to combust than current lithium ion cells.

We are long overdue a battery revolution. It feels like we never passed the point where my Gameboy ate 4 of them a day.