Lithium camera battery sudden death and effect of extreme cold and DSLR's

In May I picked up a Nikon D100 to possibly convert to full spectrum for IR photography and I got a couple of batteries for the camera, one generic and one Wasabi. I liked the camera and decided to get a D300 that uses the same batteries. I really didn't use the batteries that much and didn't give it much thought. As I'm trying to go more retro and realize that I don't need a gazillion megapixel camera I just got a really clean used D700 that uses the same batteries as the 100 and 300.

Over the weekend I photographed a band at a local venue and primarily shot B&W with my F801s but I brought along the D300 for some color shots. I cranked up the D300 and took a couple of shots and the camera shut down, no power to the camera at all. When I got home I tried a few things and could not get it going and assume it was shot. Fast forward to yesterday when I got my D700 via DHL from Japan which took 5 days. To say that it has been cold in Buffalo is an understatement (10 to -5 F) so when I got the package it had probably been in the back of the truck for many hours.

Anxious to see the camera I immediately opened it up. The vendor had sent the camera with a battery installed so I tuned it on and nothing, no power to the camera and I thought I had received a DOA camera. I charged the battery in the camera and let it warm up hoping the the cold had prevented the camera from starting. I had put the battery that had been in the dead D300 and it didn't work so I put my spare wasabi battery and it fired right up. I then but the battery from the D300 in and nothing, I then got out my D300 and put the wasabi battery in and it fired up.

It appears that my generic battery died prematurely and I certainly wasn't expecting this as I have never had a battery die like that.

After that long story, two questions for the members. Have you every had a Lithium camera battery die prematurely and what is your experience with cold and digital cameras.

You might want to read this, particularly about charging lithium ion battery in extreme cold.

Another article summarizes, "Most lithium batteries can function in a broader temperature range, often from about -20°C to 60°C (-4°F to 140°F) for discharging and 0°C to 45°C (32°F to 113°F) for charging. It’s important to emphasize that operating or charging lithium batteries outside their optimal temperature range can accelerate degradation and reduce their lifespan...Extreme temperatures, particularly below -20 °C (- 4°F) and above 60°C (140°F), pose risks of damaging lithium batteries. Exposure to such extreme temperatures can lead to irreversible capacity loss, increased internal resistance, and heightened safety risks, making it essential to charge and operate lithium batteries under moderate conditions."

Robert Ley said:

Have you every had a Lithium camera battery die prematurely

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Yeah sure. Heat is worse than cold. Also, 3rd party/generic Chinese LiIon batteries are sometimes just e-waste as they arrive brand new in the box.

I was instructed to never charge a lithium battery when it's frozen. It can damage them permanently. I'm in your area and was just walking around with my cellphone today. I took it out of my pocket every so often for a picture. The phone was almost fully charged, it died after about 30 minutes. When I took it back inside, it started working after about 15 minutes, but only showed 10% charge left.

koraks said:

Yeah sure. Heat is worse than cold. Also, 3rd party/generic Chinese LiIon batteries are sometimes just e-waste as they arrive brand new in the box.

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I doubt that it was the cold, just an e-waste battery from china. I received a new Wasabi battery today and am charging it as I write. In the future I will stick with the Wasabi's as they appear to be fairly reliable from all member accounts.