I bought this battery for my Olympus e410. I'm currently using it for the first time, but my impression is that it works longer than the far more expensive Olympus original (perhaps because the rated capacity is considerably higher).
9/25/09: Several months of use confirms my original impression about this battery outlasting the original Olympus one; since I'm now using two Olympus DSLR bodies [I added a 450] I just purchased two more of these batteries. Maximal Power DB OLY BLS-1 Replacement Battery for Olympus Digital Camera/Camcorder (Black)
I purchased this battery as a back up for the original that came with my Olympus E-P1 camera. I just returned from a 2-week vacation and the battery performed well. While the battery lasts as much as the original, hence my satisfaction with the product, I am worried that it does not fit properly in the battery compartment. In particular, it seems to be a bit longer and the latch that should keep the battery in place and allow to close the battery compartment is not capable of holding the battery in place. Therefore when you place the battery in the compartment, the battery sticks out a bit and you have to force the battery down with the battery compartment lid.. hence my worries that it will eventually brake or damage my battery compartment lid by the force that I have to exert to close the lid.
I bought a 2-lens kit Olympus EPL-1 locally (Philippines) a month ago and it came with the original battery, of course. An original battery in the Philippines costs around P3,000 (a little over USD60)! And since I find it unreasonably expensive, I opted to look for the generic type as a back-up, which is practically non-existent yet in my country. Then I visited this site, saw this cheap version with pretty good reviews. I asked a friend from Pennsylvania to purchase it for me since she'll be visiting the country in less than a weeks time. And so, that's the story. Now for the review.
> Built: as if the original, if not for the label
> Fit: again, as if the original... PERFECT!
> Charging time: around 2 hours, just about 15-20 minutes longer than the original (maybe because it has a higher power rating at 1800 mAh)
> Duration per charge: AMAZING! I was already shooting more than 300 shots (with IS1 on, and occasional fill-in, and two 3-min vids) and the battery indicator was still in the half-way mark! I was still able to capture around 80 more shots before the camera shutdown. I thought I was using the original battery, only to be amazed upon removal from the compartment! It was a hectic day so I didn't remember what brand was in the compartment, LOL! It was just its first time use after initial complete charging compared to the original battery which gave me only around 250 on it's initial charge. After a few more cycles, it seems that the generic was outlasting the original by about 80-100 shots per charge! GOOD THING I ASKED MY FRIEND TO GET ME TWO OF THIS MAXIMAL POWER BLS-1!!! :D
One more thing, I experienced some episodes when the EPL-1's LCD would go blank, and the camera becoming unresponsive until after reboot, and the ISO & WB would go back to the default (both auto). I thought I was using the generic battery. Again, I was WRONG! It happened again on several occasions (re-charged on separate dates as well), but the LCD black-out NEVER happened with the MP BLS-1. Luckily, after the camera firmware update v1.1, the problem didn't happen anymore with the original battery.
Very good replacement battery. And the price is amazing. The capacity of these batteries is higher than the original so they last longer. Won't hesitate to buy some more if in the long run it doesn't create any problems with my camera. So far, none yet.
Fits my Olympus E-PL1 perfectly - no issues with fitting in the battery compartment. Not sure yet if it lasts longer than the original battery, but is at least comparable. Really cheap for an alternate battery!
My wife and I are avid photographers, and own 3 Olympus cameras: an E-450, an E-620 and a PEN EPL-1. All 3 use the same battery, and as much as we use the cameras, we needed spare batteries. One look at the Olympus website showed that the original was 59.99 which was a bit more than I was really ready to shell out, so I started looking for third party items. When I found these on Amazon my first reaction was "must be junk", but I decided to read the reviews anyway and was amazed at how consistently good they were. At the price I could afford to buy one for each camera and I had the Amazon return policy to back me up, I had nothing to lose. Some of the reviews said that they didn't fit properly, so I got out the micrometers and measured the originals and the 3 new ones, they were all very close. I put all 3 batteries in all 3 cameras and they fit like a glove. I do not suggest that others did not have problems, but the 3 I received were perfect. We then charged them and used them in all 3 cameras, the results were wonderful, we cannot tell the difference other than that they last as long or longer than the 59.99 originals. We will be looking at this companies replacements for other electronics we have in the future. At this price, they are a STEAL, we highly recommend them to anyone. - Camera Batteries - Olympus - Olympus Digital Camera - E-p1'
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