A boundary pushing new camera battery could be on the way that doubles the output of regular batteries, if a new Kickstarter campaign comes to fruition.
The X-Tra Battery claims to offer twice the capacity of Canon's LP-E6 Li-Ion battery – which has an already impressive charge of 3,700 mAh. The X-TRA will be physically larger in size, poking a small way out of the bottom grip area, but the campaign states that it will hold a charge of 7,200 mAh.
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Currently the X-Tra Battery is set to appear for the most popular Canon, Nikon and Sony cameras, including new bodies like the Canon EOS R5, Nikon Z6 II and Sony A7S III, as well as established systems like the Canon EOS 7D Mark II, Nikon D500 and Sony A6600 – but suggestions are being taken for additional models.
The Kickstarter project was started by Jeffrey Parker, an adventure and landscape style photographer and videographer. His passion for photography led him to building the X-Tra prototype – a camera battery with improved capacity and a built-in charge level that makes it easy to check the current charge without having to insert it into a camera (much like the BP-A30 used by cameras like the Canon EOS C70).
Dimensions for the battery are 50mm wide and 63mm tall, and range from 32-27mm deep depending on the camera model. The X-TRA can be docked into a smart charging case, which enables it to be quickly charged via USB-C or used as a power bank with 7,200 mAh to charge your phone on the fly if needed.
The Kickstarter campaign has already smashed its initial goal of $10,000 (approximately £7,532 / AU$13,359), with now well over $65,231 (£45,000 / AU$81,777) pledged in good time before its deadline of 17 December.
You can still make a pledge of $99 to get a single X-Tra battery and charging case, saving 32% off the MSRP price of $145 when they hit retail. Visit the Kickstarter page for all the pledge options available.
The table below lists the currently compatible cameras, but a full list of models that will be supported by the X-Tra will be confirmed before the campaign ends.
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