Dell Laptop Battery - do I need to buy an original one?

mr_fishbulb

A replacement battery for my D430 costs over £100 on the dell site. Non-original ones on other sites are half that, but are they going to be any good?

Anyone have any good experiences with buying non-original laptop batteries?

peter_the_piper

Bought cheapo's for inspiron and not found them great but its an awful lot for a genuine one.

thescouselander

I got a third party battery for my old ibook a few years ago. It was a third of the price of the proper apple one and actually had slightly more capacity. It lasted long enough and the bloke I eventually sold it to had no complaints.

I'd say non genuine batteries are probably ok but make sure you do some research into what your buying - try to get a battery that has got good reviews from other customers.

googler

In a different vein, I got a generic battery from Hong Kong for my Panasonic camera.

After 5 or 6 charges in 3-4 months, it rapidly went downhill and wouldn't hold a charge for more than 2 or 3 pics with flash.

The original would still hold its charge for ages, so I eventually got an second original. That's still working fine after a year.

So, generally, my advice is to buy the original.

mr_fishbulb

Thanks all. I'll see if I can fine a good generic one. Otherwise £100 is a lot considering the laptop is about 4 years old.

Hammyman

BE VERY CAREFUL. Make sure that you specifically ask them that it will be recognised by the laptop. The laptop detects a chip in the battery and if it doesn't get what reply it expects it will tell you no battery is installed and it will not charge it.

Last one I bought on Ebay was £35 with Next Day delivery and worked well (ended up in sons laptop, not one I sold on)

poppy10_2

Hammyman wrote: »

The laptop detects a chip in the battery and if it doesn't get what reply it expects it will tell you no battery is installed and it will not charge it.

Source please?

thescouselander

Hammyman is correct - there is a chip in laptop batteries that help with battery management. If you buy from a reputable supplier this shouldn't be a problem.

Hammyman

poppy10 wrote: »

Source please?

First hand. Been there, done that and ended up out of pocket. Likewise the same thing applies with the Dell chargers.

Sold so many Dells in the last couple of years I may as well rename my business "Dell Boy".