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I am going to buy a Canon 650D camera. Unfortunately the reseller I want to to buy the camera from is not a certified one and chances are they might have replaced the original LP-E8 battery with a fake one. Could anybody give me any hint which helps me identify a non-original battery or charger?

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If you can't trust the seller with a 50 dollar battery, why are you trusting them with a thousand dollar purchase? – Phil Aug 17 '12 at 17:49
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Phil is right: think about it again... – Francesco Aug 17 '12 at 19:04
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I would check the user photos on Amazon pages for the relevant products. Particularly in the case of Canon DSLR batteries, quite a few buyers who have been duped by a shady reseller have taken photos comparing known legitimate Canon-brand batteries vs. the cheap/dangerous Chinese counterfeits, and highlighted the key differences to look for. This is more common with the pro-grade batteries, namely for the 5D series, but there might be similar samples for the LP-E8 as well. – jrista♦ Aug 17 '12 at 20:26
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On another note, the simple resolution to your problem is DON'T BUY FROM SHADY DEALERS!! If the price is so good that your this concerned, the price is TOO GOOD! Find a reputable dealer, and pay a real price...in particular, don't expect by any means to pay less than cost. – jrista♦ Aug 17 '12 at 20:27
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living in China and having willingly bought and used 3rd party batteries for both Nikon and Canon cameras, I have yet to come across one that fits correctly in an authentic charger. Oh, they all fit, but the fit is usually tight or loose. The 3rd parties don't manufacture to the same tolerances as the 1st parties for obvious reasons (cost, ability, etc.) – Andrew Heath Aug 18 '12 at 4:37
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2 Answers

up vote 2 down vote accepted

This comment applies to camera Lithium Ion batteries in general.

Based on personal experience, clone batteries CAN be about as good as a genuine one, but may not be.

Weight should be similar.
Low weight is definitely fake but correct weight may be fake too.

Capacity should be as good as claimed from new. This is not trivial to determine but also not too too hard. If you have a genuine and suspect battery then.
- Charge both fully.
- Apply a load not above what camera may take. 1A is usually safe depending on battery capacity. Usually Imax in mA = mAh capacity is safe. eg a 1600 mAh battery can be safely run at 1600 mA. Usually. Lower is safer.

For 1 Amp R = V/I.
For 1 cell battery Voc ~+ 4.2V. R ~+ 4.2 Ohm, say 4.7 Ohm.
For 2 cell battery Voc ~+ 8.4V. R+= 8.2 ohm = standard value.
Power = 4W for 1 cell and 8W for 2 cell so use 5W & 10W power resistors respectively.

Then: Plot voltage with time curves. Every 5 minutes is OK. Cup of coffee, book, times. Don't forget the timer!.

A genuine battery should track the original close enough. Time where voltage starts to plunge quite rapidly indicates capacity.

DO NOT discharge 1 cell batteries under 3V or 2 cell batteries under 6V.
Lifetime much affected by over discharge.

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There are purposely cheap, shoddy knockoffs created by illicit Chinese manufacturers that can cause serious problems. There are "fakes", and third-party knockoffs. The knockoffs are just cheaper versions made and labeled as different brands that are usually good enough for a hell of a lot less, whereas "fakes" (counterfeit) often cost the same full price as a legit Canon batter, look like Canon batteries, often feel like Canon batteries, are labelled as Canon batteries (often with VERY convincing replicas of actual Canon labels), but are usually of very poor, even dangerous quality. – jrista♦ Aug 17 '12 at 20:16
@jrista - Yes. I agree. I've seen the shoddy fakes with NimH - perfect looking Sony battery copies - but weight was the give away. Wityh LiIon camera abatteries I have had many "clones" that say eg "FOR Sony". These have had similar capacities when new but pooer calendar lives - ie after a few years are more liable to be low capacity. These are hard to spot when new - and usually give good value for money. About 3x to 6x less cost when new. – Russell McMahon Aug 17 '12 at 21:17
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One thing that stood out about the lp-e8 battery for me was the feel. Compared to an lp-e6, the surface is actually textured, almost a little rough, instead of the usual smooth feel.

I can say from that image, that the battery charger does look different than what I have.

Also, compare with the product in the official store.

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