Counterfeit Olympus BLN-1 batteries beware

Not sure if this is the correct forum, but I just received a new Olympus BLN-1 battery today for my Pen E-P5 which after looking around online is clearly counterfeit. It is substantially lighter than the original battery that came with the camera (38 grams vs 50 grams) and does not have the same labeling. I will get a refund for mine but putting this out there if you are seeking a BLN-1 battery buy directly from a reputable seller.

If you think you received a counterfeit here are some general things to look at:

1.  Weight - counterfeits are much lighter than the genuine battery

2.  Japan is spelled lowercase as japan

3.  Explode is spelled "explose"..but this appears to also be the case on genuine batteries from Vietnam as well.

4.  The two small depressions on the short side of the battery are the wrong size.

Counterfeit

Just curious to know how much you paid for it, price says a lot about genuineness of such items.

Elix wrote:

Just curious to know how much you paid for it, price says a lot about genuineness of such items.

Not really, I just looked at some "Genuine" Olympus BLN-1 batteries on Ebay which shows the back of the battery also on picture and clearly looks like the counterfeit and sells more than B&H sells the brand new original.

Then these are valid to flag to Ebay because counterfeit items are not allowed.

Looks like I've been stung plus some friends of mine. Bought on ebay as genuine olympus batteries for AU$69 each or 2 for AU$120 from Sydney...damm.

That makes two of us, I bought one from the same supplier I suspect.  I will be contacting Olympus on Monday to confirm the one I have is counterfeit.  It definitely weights less than my other two and has the same pics as above.

If proven I will be contacting the seller for a full refund.  The seller was still listed but no batteries now.

I just sent an email to EBay and asked them what can I do as they are conterfeits. It was 2 for $128 and they did advertise them as genuine. I will start a dispute to get my money back.....thanks to the OP for this info.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/22064007@N04/

Price/seller/location sounds familiar - almost bought these myself.  Good find, sorry you got burned

Might be worth noting that sometimes battery designs can change without notice. For example: I just bought a new Sony NP-FW50W battery for my A3000, directly from Amazon (not a third party seller) and this battery has changed versus the one that came with the camera in the following ways:

Lighter (42g instead of 57g). Casing for the battery has a little more "give". Instead of an insertion direction arrow, "i" glyph, infoLithium and "W" glyph silk-screened onto the battery in gray, the same design is engraved into the battery in black. Anti-counterfeiting hologram, sporting Sony, L, and some sort of code. End of battery has a label in Japanese where the one that came with the camera has no label here. The package says ©2014 and doesn't raise any red flags compared to other Sony packaging quality.

Now, just to add to the body of knowledge about the BLN-1 (because that's what we need to effectively fight counterfeiting), here's some things about the two BLN-1 batteries I have:

Both say Cell made in Japan, further processed in Indonesia.

The battery that came with my E-M1 has the second sticker printed in Japanese. The spare I bought has the second sticker printed in French/German.

The package that my spare arrived in (purchased directly from Amazon) looks identical to yours on the front, but there are differences in the back print.

They're close enough in weight by feel that I don't feel a need to dig out a scale.

Hi, they may tell you to contact the seller first.  The conditions of purchase on mine did say if returned within  - 30 days money back but buyer pays return postage.

As of this morning WA time the page was still up.  Its possible that the seller didn't know either.

Be interesting to see what Olympus Au says.

Tony

One came with E-M5, another came with grip for E-M5, another I bought as extra through B&H early in E-M5 lifecycle, and probably the most recently dated one came with my E-M1.

All four of mine weighted 50 grams.

However, some spelled "japan" instead of Japan, and "explose" instead of "explode".

Three were processed in Vietnam, one in Indonesia.

The one thing that matches up with the original post is the depressions seen in the bottom photo. You can see all 4 have the same size, square depressions.

In conclusion, I would say not to worry about misspellings on labeling. Pay attention to weight foremost to determine if genuine.

RichRMA wrote:

Ebay doesn't care about counterfeits, only sales.

Wrong.

http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/replica-counterfeit.html

We don't allow replicas, counterfeit items, or unauthorized copies to be listed on eBay

But, if nobody reports, they won't know. Reporting is different from opening a dispute.

RichRMA wrote:

Ebay doesn't care about counterfeits, only sales.

Not true.

I've bought counterfeit items from ebay several times - and I've always gotten my money back.

The items have included filters, USB flash drives and a memory card.

S

Those of us who are quite happy using $9 generics can only chuckle over this issue.  I can't tell the difference in performance, if there is any.

Life is too short to agonize over whether batteries are counterfeit.

I am quite okay with buying generics which I have done in the past and I have some for this camera too. The problem with mine was that they were advertised as Genuine Olympus Originals. I expect to pay a lot less for generics. I am pleased to say that my seller came through and refunded my money....thumbs up to him for that.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/22064007@N04/

Do they charge in the Oly charger because most if not all 3rd party batteries (I`ve seen in the UK) do not .

If they do then I want one !! (at 3rd party prices of course, not sold as an original)

AdamT wrote:

Do they charge in the Oly charger because most if not all 3rd party batteries (I`ve seen in the UK) do not .

Really?

I've got four generic cheap batteries from ebay, all from different sellers, and they all charge no problem at all.

If they do then I want one !! (at 3rd party prices of course, not sold as an original)

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** Please ignore the Typos, I'm the world's worst Typist **

Really?

Yep, they even warn that a 3rd party charger is needed