EOS R5 Mark II - battery showing Change or Charge Battery

[fragle2112]

Had the R5 Mkii now for 5 months 

pre latest firmware had no issues with the above message ( shot ok in Serbia and Poland over last month )

upgraded firmware last week to latest available and the message appeared on all 4 batteries this morning in UK ( the temperature was warmer in uk than Serbia / Poland ) 

never had this issue with Mki or R3 

[Waddizzle]

What model batteries are you using?  I know Canon introduced new batteries for their newest cameras.  

[fragle2112]

Using the latest LP-E6P batteries as recommended by Canon 

[jalessi]

I have been experiencing the same problem with the R5 II with the LP-E6P batteries and without the BG-R20 battery grip.  Always in cold weather but not always easy to reproduce.  I put in a report to Canon months ago and it seems like there are lots of reports of this online.  I am a wildlife photographer and have missed several shots because of this. 

[jalessi]

Just curious, are you using a third-party charger or the OEM one? I typically use a third-party charger but am thinking that I should switch back to the OEM one or charge the camera to see if that has any effect on the issue.

[Waddizzle]

I had suspected that he was using third party batteries.  Or, they were exposed to freezing temperatures inside luggage during a flight. 

[wardcameron]

This is a huge issue and very difficult to solve. I'm a professional polar bear and northern lights photography guide and this has been driving me crazy. I have a brand new R5 ii and even in temperatures slightly above freezing, the camera was showing me a battery dead symbol and indicating to change the battery - even though the battery was still fully charged. When I plugged in a USB-C charging cable to the camera, the 100% battery symbol would confirm the battery charge, but the camera would not operate. 

I sent it back to Canon and they replaced the mother board so I hoped the issue was resolved. 

Last night, with my aurora guests, using the battery grip with 2 fully charged NP-e6p batteries, I only got approximately 30 shots before the battery error occurred and the camera would not operate. The temperature was approximately -20 C. I put in two warm fully charged batteries and got the same error. 

This is just unacceptable. While many photographers have had great success using the R5 ii and R5 classic, Canon needs to make good and replace these bodies until they can actually figure out what the problem is. 

I've been using Canon cameras at temperatures as low as -50 C for the past 40 years. It breaks my heart that for the remainder of aurora season I'll have to use my 1-year old 5Ds. It's a nice camera but it sucks a low light. 

Please Canon - help us out. I can't recommend Canon to my guests at the moment and I'm a 40+ year canon shooter. 

[jalessi]

I sent mine into Canon and they were unable to reproduce. I have had the issue occasionally at even around 35F.  Then one day I was out in +16F weather and literally got that error constantly and had to just go home.  I agree that this is unacceptable.  I have been a Canon shooter for over 30 years and have a lot invested.  But I may need to cut my losses and move to Nikon who seems to be taking wildlife more seriously.

[Theouterside]

I encountered this precise issue this morning, January 21, 2026.

Upon powering on the camera with fully charged batteries, I received a "dead battery" message. If I remove the battery while the camera is still active, I can then access the camera's functions. However, after turning the camera off and then back on, it indicates that the battery requires charging.

 

 

 

 

Video Link:

Is it the batteries or the camera that's the issue? 

***Update*** 

This issue appears to be related to temperature. This morning, in New Mexico, the ambient temperature dropped significantly, and my batteries were charging on the dashboard overnight during camping trip. Once the vehicle reached an optimal temperature, the problem resolved itself.

[shadowsports]

Greetings ,

Wow.  Somehow I missed this thread last year.  I just reviewed all of the release notes for all FW versions v1.0.0 > present (v1.2.0) but didn't see any mention of battery issues or corrections.

Random but worth mentioning, you cannot put batteries into checked luggage. While traveling into Norway and out of Sweden last year, I was asked repeatedly by baggage and customs agents if I had batteries in my checked suitcase. I had a tripod strapped to my backpack which  seemed to make me a dead giveaway.  I tried putting it inside my bag on another flight and they saw it on the X-ray and then pulled me aside a second time as well.  

I'm sure it's possible a few squeak through from time to time but I wouldn't want to chance my bag not making a trip because of a battery.  I don't even lock my suitcase(s) anymore because TSA is going to have their way whether you like it or not.  

It's possible a third party charger could affect the batteries encoding in some way.  Curious are all of you using a third-party charger or not?

Upon reviewing the thread further, it doesn't appear that all of you are experiencing the issue under the same conditions.  With or without third party charger, with or without battery grip.  Happened again after motherboard replacement, etc. making this issue elusive.