Thinkpads Forum

Anyone have experience with generic/ebay batteries?

There are many threads on this subject here. Try a forum search for 'generic'. Also, the lenovo outlet has many good deals on original batteries. Check it out.
http://outlet.lenovo.com/accessories/batteries.html

Stay away from the generic batteries - I've had zero success with any of them (laptop, camera, etc). Keep checking out the Lenovo outlet - about once every 4-6 weeks they have scratch n dent batteries, usually brand new, dirt cheap (maybe $40 instead of $160)!

Just be patient and then be quick - they sell out almost immediately!

The one I bought in April looked brand new to me and had zero cycles, but they've since changed the warranty to 90 days if you care.

I bought an eBay battery about 8 months ago. It was simply the cheapest (<30€ with free or dirt-cheap shipping from Hong Kong), highest-capacity (7200 mAh) battery I could find that claimed compatibility with my T60 (8744).

-PC Doctor's Temperature sensors test fails with the battery installed (but the battery test doesn't. Go figure).
-It's about 33°C when in use (35°C=overheat->hibernation), 25°C when not.
-It stops charging at 70% or so. After that, it'll occasionally (i.e. not every day) charge a couple % at a time.

So far, much better than the original 6-cell. It even takes care of its own health without Power Manager!

I had a couple 9-cell batteries I recently sold because they're a bit bulky and I don't really need the extra life so now I'm looking for a 6cell replacement. My friend recently got one from the outlet for his X61 but it's not giving nearly as much running time as a new one, so it is apparently kinda hit or miss with those. I guess I'll just look for a low cycle count used one.