If you own Sony Alpha camera and need more batteries, you might want to check out this new battery pack from Nitecore. The Nitecore UFZ100 a third-party Lithium-ion battery that can be recharged directly via USB-C which can be a lifesaver if you forgot to bring a charger. You can charge it with almost any USB-C power source including your laptop, powerbank or in-car charger.
In terms of design, the UFZ100 looks similar to your typical Sony NP-FZ100 battery but on the underside, you’ll find a USB-C port for charging. The battery pack even gets an LED indicator that shows its charging status and battery level at a push of a button. This makes it super convenient to quickly check the battery levels without popping it into the camera. The LED will show green if the battery level is more than 50%, blue if less than 50% and red if it is less than 10%.
Probably due to the extra components required for the USB-C power input, it has a battery capacity of 2,250mAh, which slightly smaller than the original’s 2,280mAh capacity. According to Nitecore, the battery can be fully charged in four hours and you can shoot approximately 500 photos on a Sony A9 with a single charge.
For safety and durability, the battery pack comes with a power balance circuit as well as multiple layers of safeguards including overcharge, over-discharge, overvoltage, overcurrent and short-circuit protection. Although this is a third-party battery, you can still get the remaining battery power levels displayed on your Sony camera.
The Sony NP-FZ100 battery is compatible with the current range of Sony Alpha E-mount cameras including the A1, A9, A7 III, A7 IV, A7R IV, A7S III, A7C, FX3 and A6600. Although the battery pack is already listed on their website, there’s no official pricing available yet. As a reference, the original Sony NP-FZ100 battery is selling at around RM300 on Shopee and Lazada.
Nitecore is quite a reputable brand when it comes to camera accessories. In fact, we are currently using their Dual Slot USB Charger at our office which is capable of charging two Sony NP-FZ100 batteries simultaneously.
