What is the difference between OEM and Generic digital camera Li-Ion batteries?

Question

I see ads for "generic (non-OEM) Compatible Li-Ion Batteries" costing about $16 compared with the manufacture's batteries costing $40+.

There must be a significant quality difference. Right?

Answer 1

OEM = Original Equipment Manufacturer = accessories/replacements that carry the brand-name of the product

Generic = accessories/replacements that function identically or nearly identically to their OEM-equivalents but carry no name or are widely distributed under a variety of names

OEM products bank on the reputation and quality control of a trusted company's name. Generics bank on low-prices and can be of equal, greater, or lesser quality.

If we talk extremes then a generic can preform extraordinarily well or it can melt your device. It's always a good idea to be semi-cautious. Read user testimonials before purchasing.

Answer 2

As someone said, OEM, means the battery is made by your camera manufacturer and for your specific camera.

In short, of course you pay some premium for brand name when you get OEM, but that's not the only difference. OEM batteries usually have some circuitry to prevent overheating, overcharging or voltage spikes, they also communicate with the camera to report charge level and other parameters. While generic batteries may tell the camera about the charge, they could miss other things, etc.

I answered a similar question in more details regarding a specific type of battery, but it all applies to most other generic vs. OEM cases, so please take a minute and read my answer here:

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

LEM.

Answer 3

OEM means that you are only getting the item without any fancy package or manual, the way you see them in the stores is called retail version. Generic means it's a replacement item built for another company, not the original manufacturer. I'd buy OEM item instead of a generic, because OEM is built by the original manufacturer and the quality is usually higher