Home > Consumer Reviews > Panasonic DMW-BLB13 Battery for Panasonic G1 Digital SLR Cameras

Great little battery but it costs twice what it should. The only alternative is a third party battery and I've never had one of those that lasted longer than a month or two. So, pay Panasonic's premium price and get a battery that works.

I desperately need a spare battery for my newly acquired Panasonic GH-1 DSLR as it's my main tool for taking HD video on a wedding assignment in Seattle. The camera body is so new that you can hardly find the product itself, not mention its back-up battery. Fortunately, it share same Li-Ion battery with its sister product, G-1. I understand G-1 is not so popular either comparing to Nikon or Canon. Yet, it surprised me a great deal when I find it's in stock with Amazon. The item arrived within two days as promised and I had a great shooting occasion.

What can I say about this battery but it is exactly what I wanted. A spare battery for my Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1. It came in a nice box in bubble wrap and came as advertised. I already charged the battery and tested it in the camera and it works perfect. It is also true that with the 1.3 firmware loaded into the G1 camera body, this is the only battery that will work. 3rd party batteries will not. I don't mind as I would probably only buy the Panasonic brand anyway. If I could, I'd give this battery 4.5 stars because I agree with some of the other reviewers that this battery is a bit pricey, but in the end I will give it 5 since it does its job well.

If you update your camera firmware to V1.3 or greater you can only use this brand. Panasonic did so due to overheating of 3rd party batteries.

I only gave it 4 star as it would be nice if it came with a nice small case to keep the extra battery in while in your camera bag. But it does its job and you can't ask for more than that. I think everyone should always have an extra charged battery with them whenever they are carrying the camera. I missed a great shot once when my battery went dead and my extra was the one in the camera as I had switched it the day before and never charged the other.