When we started DiamondBack, we had a lot of experience with the digital camera accessories business. While this is an overwhelming advantage to us, it did cause us to do some things without really evaluating them. One of these things was the practice of overrating the mAh on our batteries. Some of you may already be familiar with what this means, but for those of you who don't here's an explanation:
Many years ago when digital cameras were first getting really popular, there were very few companies that sold third party batteries. As more and more companies got into the business, competition became fierce. Some companies began marketing their batteries as having a higher mAh (miliamp hour) rating than they actually did. Other companies found that if they were honest about their mAh ratings they began to lose sales, until most if not all companies that sold third party batteries had begun to overrate their batteries. Since then the practice has escalated, and some of the mAh ratings listed are far more than double the actual capacity of the battery.
As we started our company, this practice got carried over without any question or consideration. It was not until a customer sent us an e-mail asking how our batteries could have so much more capacity than the OEM batteries that we really considered what it was that we were actually doing. Steve answered the e-mail honestly, letting the customer know that the ratings listed on our website were incorrect. He posted Steve's reply on the DPReview Forums (click here to view the thread) to let the community there know how we had responded to his question.
After we had thought about what the practice meant to us as a company, and more importantly to our customers, we decided that we would stop overrating the mAh on our batteries. We have always hoped that we could do something special with this company, and we feel that this is the first big step toward that goal. If you have any questions about what all of this means, or would just like to get some additional information, please feel free to call us at 1-877-277-9595 or e-mail us at diamondbackbatt@gmail.com.
Mark
2 comments:
Good that you made the change. I would rather have an honest rating, than an over inflated rating. When I am in the market for new batteries, I will definitely come by to your site. Your honesty has won you a customer!
Wish you all the best for 2008, and hope to see more products from you soon.
Hi Steve,
Congratulations on your labelling move. I sure hope it pays off in a big way. I would state on your opening page that you do not inflate the amp hour ratings on your batteries as is common in the undustry and that your batteries meet or exceed OEM specs in this regard. By the way the BP511-A also is spec for the Canon EOS 40D so you might want to add that to the drop down section in due course on your company site. I can't believe the value of these batteries. Here in Australia the Canon BP511-A sells for $99 and the generic for $60(AUD)! You sell them for for less than $US12 which is just fantastic. Hope you are thinking of going international as you expand as I'll be ordering a few! Once again, congratulations on your company and your corporate policy.
Best regards
Charles
Brisbane Australia
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