Nikon EN-EL15c

PB_PM

The current Lithium Ion tech is leap years ahead of the older NiMH batteries. Those old NiMH batteries had memory effects (from not being properly charged and discharged) that could limit usability and life expectancy, not to mention being much heavier per/mAh. Even current NiMH stuff is leaps and bounds better than what would have been in your Gameboy. But yes, solid state batteries will be a huge improvement, both in terms of weight, possibly size depending on the use case, and longevity if my understanding of the tech articles on the subject that I've read is correct.

I believe the main target for solid state batteries right now is electric vehicles and industrial applications, but I'm sure it will trickle down to general consumer products in time.

mhedges

What tech are the solid state batteries based on? I recall reading about capacitor based energy storage. Wonder if it’s the same thing.

spraynpray

Quality of batteries is so variable. I bought 4 Olympus NiMH batteries in 1999 with an E10 camera. I still have them today and they are still strong - stronger than newer, higher rated batteries I've bought which have often failed completely in a few years. I find the only way to get quality is to buy eneloops now.

PB_PM

mhedges said:

What tech are the solid state batteries based on? I recall reading about capacitor based energy storage. Wonder if it’s the same thing.

The solid state batteries will still be lithium based, at least the examples from Samsung and LG appear to be. LG is partnering with Toyota right now for hybrid/electric vehicle batteries with what they are developing at this time. Some of the stuff coming from Japanese and US universities might be different, but are much farther away from being in products from what I can gather. The best part of the new batteries is that they require less lithium per cell (at least that’s my understanding) than the current liquid suspended cells, can hold a bigger charge for a given area, and are not going to be flammable. The latter will be a big deal in vehicle use cases.

Super capacitors were in the tech news a few years ago, because they can charge much faster than traditional batteries, more like putting gas in a car, but they cannot hold are charge very long (measured in hours only). They would be far effective to use as a means of charging lithium cells than as a stand alone power source.

PB_PM

spraynpray said:

Quality of batteries is so variable. I bought 4 Olympus NiMH batteries in 1999 with an E10 camera. I still have them today and they are still strong - stronger than newer, higher rated batteries I've bought which have often failed completely in a few years. I find the only way to get quality is to buy eneloops now.

Definitely, a well made cell can survive a long time, and NiMH has a much longer shelf life than lithium ion cells do. I don’t have anything with a battery that old though. I think the oldest batteries I have are some Sanyo Enloope (Before the subsidiary was merged back into Panasonic) that I bought in 2006, but they are starting to show their age. My EN-EL3e batteries, that are 10 years old or more, still hold a charge well enough to power up what is essentially a paper weight D300. My oldest EN-EL15s are also doing well, but none of them are more than 8 years old.

mhedges

Anyone know if these are starting to show up anywhere? I'd like to get one.

PB_PM

Some of big Canadian camera retailers are showing them as being pre-order status, so they might not be here, other than in Z5 kits.

mhedges

I ordered one from Adorama a couple weeks ago. Looks like it shipped yesterday and I should have it early to mid next week.

NSXTypeR

mhedges said:

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.

That really saved my rear end in Japan and later on in South Korea with the Sony RX100. It can charge over micro USB with any battery pack and I don't think I want another camera without that sort of backup charging in the future.

The D7000 I have only has 1 battery and it's the one it came with so it's quite old. I was maybe getting 800 shots max in the sub freezing climate of South Korea so I'd shoot mainly with the D7000 because I can still wear gloves but the Sony RX100 would be charging as a backup.

Because of that, I just picked up an EN-EL15b battery to potentially replace the one in my D7000. I'm a bit torn as I want to continue shooting with a F-mount camera, but likely the D7500 is the last mid range F-mount DX camera. I'd prefer not to mess with an adapter but I do want a more modern camera. I don't think the D7500 can accommodate for USB-C charging, but I haven't really checked. I currently own all the lenses I want to shoot with F-mount so there really isn't any reason for me to switch to Z-mount.

PB_PM

Only the D780 can charge over USB, none of the other DSRLs can.

NSXTypeR

PB_PM said:

Only the D780 can charge over USB, none of the other DSRLs can.

Thanks for the confirmation. That's why I'd like for there to be one more iteration of the D7500 haha. It might mean those features become available should it ever get produced.

mhedges

Battery showed up today - I have a buddy with a D810 and I'll ask him to test it quick to confirm compatibility with older DSLRs.

Edit: decided to weigh it and compare to EN-EL15B; they were almost the same. 79 grams for the "B" and 80 grams for the "C".

mhedges

My friend confirmed that it did work in a D810 so my guess is it will work in any camera that takes the EN-EL15 type battery.

photobunny

Thats great to hear @mhedges, it gives people with 'old' cameras that wee bit extra runtime.

spraynpray

photobunny said:

Thats great to hear @mhedges, it gives people with 'old' cameras that wee bit extra runtime.

I think there will be other options going forward if Niokn stopped making batteries, like this:

https://nikonrumors.com/2020/10/22/manfrotto-announced-new-battery-and-charger-for-nikon-cameras.aspx/

PB_PM

Considering that Nikon still sells EN-EL3e batteries and they haven't sold a camera that ships with them for 10 years now, I think it's safe to say the EN-EL15s will be around for a while.

spraynpray

True.

mhedges

Ran through the EN-EL15C on Z6. Got about 1100 shots on 3 1/2 outings which is decent. I'll see how it does after recharge - I have vague memories of battery life improving slightly after the first couple cycles.

Searcy

I might pick up one of those EN-EL15C batteries for the Z6.

mhedges

Have put a couple more cycles on my 15C battery and I'm pretty pleased with it. Got 1038 shots out of it from three kids soccer games (2 hr total gametime) plus some other shooting, plus I accidentally left the camera on overnight, and still had 45% remaining.