| Joined: | Mon Apr 2nd, 2012 |
| Location: | South Lakeland, UK |
| Posts: | 4066 |
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I guess Nikon have little choice with the batteries, they are constructed using industry standard cells which are as you will no doubt be aware are in a constant state of development. Power tools are probably the main driver to the development. It's not like Nikon have been striving to get a slightly better storage cell, that's down to the likes of Samsung and Panasonic who invest in that side off things.
Nikon have little choice but to use the cells available, they discontinued the earlier version by default, no longer make them, no point. I recently re-celled a D3, EN-EL4 battery using the latest Samsung cells but it wasn't easy. Not sure I would bother doing it again.
As for the cost, original branded batteries are always expensive, I think 'good' third party batteries get the job done more economically and are 'good enough' I see no difference in capacity between the two options. Cold weather is the real enemy, can reduce a 1300 exposure battery to 150 or 200 exposures at minus 7ºC.
A Nikon EN-EL4a battery costs around £150, from memory a recommended third party EN-EL4a equivalent battery from Germany cost me about £30; new Samsung cells equivalent to the EN-EL4a cost me about £27 plus a LOT of very tricky fiddling.
When I bough my D200's, new from Calumet I twisted the salesman's arm and he gave me an additional battery for each camera.
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Robert.