Another garbage Canon LP-E6 series battery

[wq9nsc]

I have used Canon gear for a very long time and never had any complaints until I started dealing with the LP-E6 series batteries in the 5 series gear.  Three weeks ago one of the less than one year old original LP-E6N batteries had the fast flash error code in both of my Canon chargers.  I ordered a pair of LP-E6NH and with less than one month of use and on the second charge one of those new LP-E6NH batteries has the same fast flash issue in both chargers.

I have never had an issue with a Canon battery in 1 series gear but I am far from impressed with their quality level with the LP-E6 series.  The Canon service note issued shows there is a problem with these batteries but the suggested method to resolve it did nothing for either battery. 

Canon technical support sent me back to the retailer, Adorama which is an authorized Canon dealer selling genuine Canon batteries.  I will take it up with them tomorrow but I am really glad I don't rely upon 5 series gear like I do my 1 series bodies because I can't.  I have 12 different Canon batteries for my 1DX series bodies, some of which are approaching 5 years old, and they all work charge and discharge reliably like they should.  Once I get this resolved, I am moving to third party batteries for the 5 series bodies because the real deal isn't very impressive.

Rodger

[Tintype_18]

I have a T7 and bought some batteries from Amazon to duplicate LP-E10. They are Vivitar, VIV-QCB-212, batteries with a Rapid Travel Charger. The charger will take 110V or has a car adapter with it. I have used them for several months and had, so far, no trouble from them. Frustrating when you have problems like batteries which can die at the wrong moment or not recharge.

Rodger, let us know how things go.

[FloridaDrafter]

I have four Canon LP-E6N for my 7D mark II and 5D mark IV, not sure exactly how long, but it's been years, and haven't had any problems. Been using two LP-E6NH (for the R's) for five months with no problems. I also have four Wasabi LP-E6 & LP-E6N's in the rotation and seem to get the same performance as OEM, plus they charge in the Canon charger and communicate with the cameras. I also had a couple of Vivitars in the mix, but they didn't hold up. One died and the other lasts about 50 shots. I put them away. I use Canon battery grips and that is the reason I have so many batteries, plus I always have a battery or two in the pocket of my cargo shorts (ya never know).

I probably don't shoot as much as you, maybe 300-500 shots a week, depending on the weather (and my arthritis ;)), maybe more, plus we do a lot of chimping on shoots, but the LP-E6 hasn't given me any problems. As for the Wasabi brand, they are nice replacements and I've been using them for a long time, starting with my T4i.

Sorry you've had such problems and I hope you get it resolved.

Newton

[Tintype_18]

Seems like batteries, OEM and aftermarket, are like cars. One person swears by them. Another person swears at them.

[Waddizzle]

I have had a rash of LP-E6 battery failures over the past 18 months, or so.  I am not sure what the cause may have been, but batteries died in 3 bodies that use LP-E6 batteries.  And, these bodies use grips, too, so I have been replacing pairs of them.

I have my primary and backup batteries all fail.. The batteries are all 3-6 years old.  It is probably age, but it could also be related to lack of use, and becoming fully discharged.  

I like to shoot landscapes. The only reason I have engaged in wildlife photography is because critters are all around me.   I did not get out to much to parks last year, during 2020.  All of my favorite shooting spots, and some potential new ones were all closed and shutdown for the entire season.

But, still.  I think it is odd that suddenly a dozen or so batteries al die within a couple of months.  I had to buy a new charger, too.  I suspect that one or more of them may have experienced power line damage during a thunderstorm.  I dunno.  I am just guessing here.

But, I feel your pain.  I have bought a mix of Canon and Dr. Watsons from B&H.

[Tintype_18]

Wadizzle, do you have a power strip with a surge protector? Got my laptop and printer on a SL WAber power strip. Kept the box as there is a lifetime guarantee if it fails and your equipement is fried.

[FloridaDrafter]

After reading Rodger's post and commenting on it, I did some looking and there are numerous reports of this problem with the LP-E6 line of batteries. I'm sure you all have done the same, but since I've never had problems, I didn't know it existed.

One hypothesis is that the "battery management system" in the Canon LP-E6 goes bad, which makes sense. As Rodger stated, Canons solution doesn't seem to work for anyone.

[wq9nsc]

Fortunately it is within the 30 day return period for Adorama and they are replacing the pack. Their customer service is excellent, all I had to do was print out the UPS label from their email and drop it off and a new pack will soon be on its way to me.

The British have a wonderful phrase, "Too clever by half" and I think the LP-E6 battery system fits that perfectly with the low voltage protect system that prevents it from charging by showing 0 voltage to the charger after the pack drops below a certain point.  It is likely this particularly battery was just defective because it only had a single charge/discharge cycle and it had just dropped from two to one bar when I pulled it from the camera.  However I let the pack sit for three days before charging to get ready for shooting senior night and during that point I suspect the voltage dropped low enough to trigger the protect circuitry in the battery pack.

This pack may have a bad cell, a defective component in the protection section, or just a chip that is slightly out of tolerance that wouldn't have been an issue if I had charged immediately or it I had pulled it at two bars but that is NOT a reasonable use situation expectation for a camera battery pack.  One of the old great U.S. communications gear manufacturers was led by an engineer who also sold component parts from their equipment to other manufacturers.  He referred to these components and assemblies as "designed for application" which they were; the component parts worked as they should in the environment for which they were intended.  I don't think the LP-E6 would pass the smell test for that engineer and I wonder why Canon chose to use this system for the LP-E6 and continued to use it throughout the various generations.

I suspect a "dumb" charger that simply applies charging current without looking for a specific voltage range could bring it back to life but I am not going to experiment because I wouldn't trust that battery again after its infant mortality.  When I get enough age on the other LP-E6 batteries for them to start the "rapid flash" charge failure mode, I may experiment for curiosity since I have a couple of lab grade supplies that can be configured as a constant current or voltage source and could be used to SAFELY bring a cell up without allowing excessive current flow and heating.

I really hoped the NH variant of the LP-E6 got away from the issue that was the subject of the Canon service bulletin for the earlier cells.  This was a minor annoyance with a new battery that is $79.  I always keep a couple of spare batteries for my 1DX bodies when I am out on a shoot although I have never had to change one, they have just been a security blanket.  I will definitely keep several redundant batteries for the 5DS and 5DS R for the times when I really need them.

Rodger

[FloridaDrafter]

Thanks for the update, Rodger. I read one report that stated, as you said, lab grade equipment could bring them back to life, but as you mentioned, I don't think I could trust the battery after that either.

Newton

[wq9nsc]

Final update, Adorama made the return process smooth and easy and they have set up a new order with a replacement battery. 

At this point, the LP-E6NH battery pack is on back order so it may be some time before it arrives but that is outside of the control of Adorama.  I have a few LP-E6N batteries and I don't use the 5DS bodies like I do my 1DX bodies so a short wait is no problem. 

I keep a dozen LP-E19 packs in service for the four 1DX series bodies I own because those are the cameras that see heavy usage, the oldest of these date back to when I bought the 1DX Mark II just after it came out and none of these battery packs have ever caused an issue.  I will retire some of the older ones after this football season because the camera indicates poor recharge performance but that isn't noticeable in my use of the camera and the only time I have changed a battery at halftime this season was after shooting two prior sports events on the same pack. 

I still have a couple of LP-E4N packs that came with my 1DX and they are still working fine after years of service.  I don't use that body as much anymore, it is primarily a backup even though it is still a great sports camera and the original LP-4EN packs are still going strong and I am getting close to 1,000 images before the battery drops to a single bar.  These older packs are interchangeable in these bodies with the LP-E19 but the LP-E4N reduces the frame rate burst capabilities of the later 1DX series models while using the LP-E19 in the original 1DX increases its already generous number of images per charge. 

Canon can and does supply some really great and reliable battery packs, I just don't think the LP-E6 series is one of these.

Rodger