topic Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question in Camera Accessories

Canon BP-511 & BP-511A not holding charge very long

Mazmania — Wed, 20 Aug 2025 14:18:32 GMT

I have five Canon BP-511 and BP-511A batteries for my Canon D50 camera and they are not holding a charge for any significant length of time. Is there a way to determine how many cycles a battery has already used and whether or not they can be trusted on a paying gig? Or, is there a separate power source I could carry that can connect to the camera and power it without depending on the batteries that are presently failing for me?

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

p4pictures — Tue, 19 Aug 2025 21:04:00 GMT

These old BP-511 type batteries did not have a health indicator like the latter LP-E6 type. So there is no other way to determine if they are “good” or not apart from testing them individually in the camera. But given that they are pretty old batteries, 15 years or more, then they are probably end of life. Problem is that I’m not sure Canon still sells them. You might find a DC coupler / AC adapter set for this, but then you’d need an external power pack and cable to operate the camera.

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

Mazmania — Tue, 19 Aug 2025 21:18:03 GMT

Thanks for the prompt reply. That's what I was fearing. I remember going to the Apple store and they connected to my device and they were able to determine the number of cycles the laptop battery used and how many were projected to be remaining. Connecting to a portable power source I could move around with would work, especially at events where I have to roam around and take photos all over the place. I'll look into the options. Do you have any products you would recommend. Again, thanks.

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

wq9nsc — Wed, 20 Aug 2025 01:07:08 GMT

Canon doesn't sell them now but there are many third party sources since that was at one time a popular battery pack. B&H sells the Watson branded version and that brands seems pretty reliable but there are MANY different sources for that format battery.

Rodger

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

Mazmania — Wed, 20 Aug 2025 01:19:24 GMT

I looked at B&H and I have purchased many things from them over the years. I used to have a Smith-Victor light that had a large portable battery that enabled mobility, but that was extremely heavy and I thought there might be something similar I could use to power the camera in lieu of BP-511 type batteries. Should I discard all the old batteries with the assumption that they can't be trusted in a live event setting? Thanks for your thoughts.

Re: Canon BP-511 & BP-511A not holding charge very long

normadel — Thu, 21 Aug 2025 16:34:29 GMT

Wasabi is also a top non-OEM battery maker. Just do a web search for "Wasabi BP-511". Look on Ebay also, with Blue Nook as the seller. Blue Nook is the Wasabi importer/parent company.

Re: Canon BP-511 & BP-511A not holding charge very long

Mazmania — Thu, 21 Aug 2025 16:35:41 GMT

Great to know. Thank you very much.

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

wq9nsc — Thu, 21 Aug 2025 19:53:06 GMT

I definitely wouldn't trust the old batteries because when capacity declines with age then they will go from having sufficient power to camera shutdown very quickly. Basically you won't be able to count on reliable/consistent behavior. So you are very likely to experience a condition where the remaining power indicator drops almost instantly from near full to zero and they will also experience an issue with sustained higher current draw (like burst shooting).

I capture a lot of images each year with a pair of 1DX III and 1DX II bodies and I have multiple packs that get cycled through and I find that about 3 years is pretty much it for heavy use of the large packs used in these cameras and I don't fully discharge them or store them fully charged. With lower use, they would last for a longer time but with more abusive use (repetitive full discharge, keeping constantly charged to 100% during storage) the life would be less. Modern lithium ion batteries are far less "fragile" than the older NiCad or even NiMh packs but they still benefit from decent treatment.

Rodger

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

Mazmania — Fri, 22 Aug 2025 01:42:57 GMT

I appreciate your thoughts on the matter, but it's concerning to me that I have multiple Canon products and it is my opinion that they should continue to produce batteries that can last, and a way to determine their health. As a customer, I'm reluctant to purchase anything new, but it may be the same with other manufacturers. What is the point of using rechargable batteries if they don't recharge?

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

wq9nsc — Fri, 22 Aug 2025 14:08:57 GMT

Unfortunately companies are shortening the production/support lifespan of products and with pandemic supply chain issues many people were "socialized" further into rapidly replacing new products because repair parts weren't available. Current production/consumption patterns are one of the reasons I consider "green marketing" a bad joke (and I have a PhD in marketing) because corporations and cultures have gotten used to throw away short life products. I bought my home nearly 35 years ago and it came with an already several year old Frigidaire refrigerator in the kitchen which I considered too small so it became a second refrigerator in the mudroom. During my time in this house, the kitchen has now had 5 "modern energy efficient" refrigerators replaced due to failure while the GM produced Frigidaire with its cast iron low speed compressor soldiers on without complaint and has never even had a replacement fan, only a new light bulb. So which is greener, a land fill with 4 not economically repairable refrigerators combined with all of the environmental costs and damages from all of the supply chain activity needed to manufacture and ship them versus one less efficient product that just keeps quietly doing its job? Companies ultimately make what consumers are willing to buy at a profit for the company.

It isn't just Canon and the classic old line from the Pogo comic strip from Earth Day 1970 is still very appropriate, "We Have Met the Enemy and He is Us". Corporations make the somewhat valid argument that is isn't economically feasible to keep replacement parts available for older products due to changes in products/productions but that is largely based upon consumer willingness to constantly buy into the latest hype somehow believing that a product that has fully met wants and needs for years is no longer acceptable because something with additional bells and whistles has been released. Walt Kelly hit a home run with his phrase in the "Pogo" strip.

Rechargeable batteries have a finite life based upon architecture, use, and actual chronological aging so rechargeable doesn't mean forever. And although battery "health" indicators are very useful, they aren't perfect and the best test of failing battery health is the change in behavior that you the user observe (inability to maintain a reasonable charge during short-term storage, rapid depletion in use from a full charge compared to historic behavior, etc.) At some point, cells lose so much performance from original that it is time for either a new battery or in some cases the old pack can be rebuilt with new cells. The only rechargeable battery architecture that has a near infinite life of which I am aware is the ancient technology Edison cell which dates back to around 1900. It uses a nickel iron and potassium hydroxide chemistry and can be discharged repeatedly to complete discharge without damage. It is extremely rugged and can be returned to as-new behavior decades later simply via cleaning and replacement of the potassium hydroxide electrolyte. They were used by years by railroads because they are built like a tank but the downside is they are extremely heavy and large for the energy storage density so entirely unsuited for cameras, phones, and even EVs. So we have to limp along with less robust batteries.

I would get a decent third party battery and move on with camera life.

Rodger

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

normadel — Fri, 22 Aug 2025 16:47:51 GMT

Good grief! Do you really think a rechargeable battery should have infinite life?

What product of any kind offers that?

Re: Canon BP-511 & BP-511A not holding charge very long

Waddizzle — Fri, 22 Aug 2025 21:37:30 GMT

“ I definitely wouldn't trust the old batteries because when capacity declines with age then they will go from having sufficient power to camera shutdown very quickly. “

I would be suspicious of “new” batteries, too. Are they still in production? How long have the “new” batteries been sitting in storage?

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

Mazmania — Sat, 23 Aug 2025 01:42:19 GMT

Thanks for your thoughtful response. I'll have to think twice before investing in several thousand dollars of equipment that are powered by batteries that don't last and are discontinued after several years. Note to Canon: at least make the friggin' batteries, along with a device that can help users determine cycles and battery health.

Re: Canon BP-511 & BP-511A not holding charge very long

Mazmania — Sat, 23 Aug 2025 01:44:05 GMT

These are the questions inquiring minds need answered!

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

Mazmania — Sat, 23 Aug 2025 01:46:38 GMT

Not infinite life, but a device that could tell users how many cycles have been expended and approximately how many can be expected, and don't discontinue the batteries. I'd buy two new Canon batteries if they made them, but they don't. Where does that leave us as users? Pay thousands for equipment and a few years from now it will be obsolete.

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

p4pictures — Sat, 23 Aug 2025 06:15:28 GMT

EOS 50D was a great camera and the last one to use the BP-511 type batteries that had been used in Canon DSLRs since the EOS D30 that was introduced in 2000. EOS 60D was announced in August 2010, and used the then new LP-E6 battery. So while you may have invested lots of money on your camera they don’t last forever and fifteen years or more is pretty good for electronics and the batteries that power them.

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

normadel — Sat, 23 Aug 2025 19:52:41 GMT

Canon doesn't make them anymore. Quit wishing. You've been given two recommendations for batteries from trustworthy companies....Watson and Wasabi.

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

Mazmania — Sun, 24 Aug 2025 01:34:26 GMT

I was only giving the person who replied the courtesy of a response. You don't have to be so nasty. If you don't like courtesy perhaps you should STFU.

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

Mazmania — Sun, 24 Aug 2025 01:36:55 GMT

Thank you. I said all I had to say about it and I appreciate everyone's perspectives.

Re: Canon BP-511 battery cycles question

normadel — Sun, 24 Aug 2025 16:25:39 GMT

Nasty? The point just needed to be made. Hope your tantrum is satisfied now.