Photive Original LP-E8 Li-ion Battery Review
The batteries that goes with you Canon T5i, T4i, T3i, and the T2i are likely to get you through most of your photo/video shooting, but what if you need more shooting time. Another Canon LP-E8 is another $50. Though there are a lot of 3rd party batteries on the market, many of them are unreliable and, sometimes, potentially hazardous. Though there are some that can be a problem, the Photive Original LP-E8 is not one of those statistics.
The Photive Original LP-E8 is a 3rd party battery that provides even more power while being just as reliable as Canon’s own LP-E8. At 1700 mAh, it has 50% more battery life for the things you need to capture. Although it is not Canon’s own battery pack, this battery is compatible with its designed cameras and chargers.
Pros:
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Longer battery life than Canon LP-E8 (1700 mAh vs 1120mAh) [1.5 times longer battery life]
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Compatible With Canon EOS T5i, T4i, T3i, and the T2i and Canon LP-E8 chargers
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Claims to use Japanese cells (No memory effect)
Cons:
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Battery is hard to get out of the plastic protective case.
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Slightly heavier than Canon’s LP-E8 (likely caused by the bigger battery)
Notes:
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The Photive battery has slightly higher voltage (7.4V vs 7.2V), but the cameras should tolerate the slightly higher voltage.
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Says made in China (though Canon’s LP-E8 is assembled in China). Assuming the cells of both batteries are made in Japan and the package was assembled in China.
Overall, the battery is a great alternative or backup battery to the battery that came with your Canon T5i, T4i, T3i, and the T2i. For around $15 per battery, you can get two or even three batteries at the cost of one Canon LP-E8 battery and get 50 percent more shooting/recording time per battery. Even though it is not the official Canon battery, we have not seen any issues with the battery or the camera with the battery inside the camera.
Even though it is a low-cost yet efficient battery, you are tied to a proprietary battery and charger designed for the T5i, T4i, T3i, and the T2i. If you don’t want to be tied to a proprietary battery and charger, consider betting a battery grip that is compatible with Canon LP-E8 batteries that allows you to use AA batteries instead of LP-E8 batteries.
(Image from Amazon listing).
