The Wasabi Battery to Replace Canon LP-E6

I have used off brand batteries in my GoPro since almost day one. I accidentally found the Wasabi battery on Amazon.com. I originally bought the Wasabi battery just for the extra charger. Even with the batteries it was still less than half the cost of the OEM battery. I have come to really think that Wasabi has found something good here, and I bought some for my Canon G16. I felt that it performed just as good as well. I finally made the jump to by an off brand battery for my dSLR cameras. This battery will work in both my Canon 60D as well as my Canon 5D Mark III. It is not the optimal battery for the camera, but it will also work in the new Canon 7D Mark II when it comes out. I really need a lot of batteries when I will be shooting for an extended period of time. Buying the batteries that Canon makes can get expensive quickly.

A Cheaper Alternative

If you were to go out and buy a new battery from Canon for one of these cameras it will cost you anywhere from $100 at a camera shop to $59 on Amazon. I remember how cheap I thought the Amazon price was when I first saw it. When you need multiple batteries it adds up quickly though. If you want an extra charger you will pay around $53 or more. Right now on Amazon.com you can buy the Wasabi battery for this camera for $15. You can get two and a charger for $30. You really cannot beat that price. My only question going into this experiment though was are they as good as the Canon battery?

Gauging the Performance of the Wasabi Battery

At first I really did not trust the Wasabi batteries. They would be in my pack as the backup batteries. They were rarely used. One weekend though I had multiple events where I needed to use everything that I had. I really did not have time to charge batteries on the go. I decided to split the difference and pair a Wasabi battery with a Canon OEM battery in each of my grips. I thought that I would see a change in the battery life, but I did not. I shot a couple of events in the past couple of weeks for fun, and as an experiment I placed the Wasabi batteries in my camera together. I did not notice a change in performance or battery life. I am sure that someone has run a side by side test and declared a winner in battery life. What matters to me though is real world performance, and I can say that the Wasabi holds its battery life very well. For the price you could buy a new pair every year and still come out ahead. I have a big shoot next week where I will be shooting for about 11 straight hours if there are no overtime periods. Four soccer matches in one day can drain your batteries. I bought an extra set of Wasabi batteries so that I will have a little insurance on the day, and because they are well worth the price.

Final Verdict

I think by now you know what I am going to say here. I normally will do a pro and con section showing things on each side of the spectrum, but I really have no cons to put down right now. Photography is a very expensive business. If you can find a few places to save money you need to do that. Why pay $100 at the local camera shop for a battery that does the same thing as this Wasabi battery? I love to shop local, and I do so when I can, but this is one case where I feel I have to buy online. I can get three sets of these batteries for the $90 camera shop price. That is six batteries and three chargers in the place of one battery. To me it is a no brainer. The Wasabi LP-E6 clone is the clear way to go. If you have a Canon 60D, Canon 7D, Canon 5D Mark III, or lucky enough to be getting a Canon 7D Mark II upon release then this battery should be on your list of things to get.