Action Cam lipo battery

[KellyR]

Does anybody know where I can get an Action Cam lipo battery? I bought an Action Cam from a guy here on the forum through Ebay, knowing he'd had it a while & didn't use it much, so the battery doesn't really hold a charge any more. I know these things aren't around much, but any help would be appreciated. I've looked around & come up with nadda. Thanks!

 

[PatR]

Many action cams are limited to using a battery designed specifically to fit the camera brand. GoPro is one of them.

You might try a Google search listing the brand and model to see what comes up. “Action cam” by itself is much too vague to arrive at specifics.

 

[KellyR]

I guess I wasn't clear, I bought a Yuneec Action Cam (I think the old version was called a Steady Grip) that holds a gimbal & camera from a Yuneec drone. The version I got has a silver base & takes a lipo battery. ?

 

[DCH]

The version I got has a silver base & takes a lipo battery

That's an LiOn battery not a liPo, but a LiPo will work fine -you just can't leave it fully charged all the time like a nLiOn. Good luck finding a replacement, they are next to Unattainium on the periodic table. I also have an Action cam and never did find a replacement battery. You can use a 3S LiPo that will fit the base, the internal regulator isn't particular about the input voltage. And the best part is I finally found a good use for the big rubber wrist bands Carolina Drones always throws in free with their orders.

 

[KellyR]

LOL "Next to Unattainium on the periodic table." Good one. You're not kidding. These babies are hard to find. Yours is LiOn? Mine says Lithium Polymer on it (3S 1400mAh 3C). Did you just cut the wires & put a different connector on it? How long does it run on 2200mAh? I've heard a lot of guys complaining about the AA version 'cause they only get like 15 minutes, but the original LiPo lasted like 90 minutes.

 

[KellyR]

Ok, so after looking around a bit I think I've found a battery that would work, but admittedly my knowledge of batteries is minimal so I thought I'd ask first. It's a Turnigy nano-tech 3S 2500mAh 5C battery. Almost the exact same dimensions as the original too. My understanding is that the cells must be the same 3S as the original, the mAh size can vary with 1000mAh giving you half the usage time of a 2000mAh battery, but I want to confirm that I'm getting this right in that the C rating (discharge rate) can be higher, but not lower. The original battery say 3C, this one says 5C, & that's okay. I couldn't use a 1.5C battery though. Am I right on this?

Turnigy nano-tech 2500mAh 3S1P 5~10C Transmitter LiPo Pack (Old-Style Futaba Specs)

Turnigy nano-tech 2500mAh 3S1P 5~10C Transmitter Lipo Pack (Futaba 6EX and 3PKS)

hobbyking.com

 

[JMB]

In this regard, someone would know a smartphone or tablet that could receive live images wifi CGO3 + without latency?
I tried several solutions, without success ...

 

[PatR]

Higher C ratings are no problem. Batteries can only deliver what’s demanded of them, which is what C rating allows for. So if you have only a 5C demand from a 10C battery the excess C rating does nothing.

Cell count (or “S”, as in 3S) is critical as it establishes voltage.

 

[KellyR]

That's what I thought. Thanks for the confirmation!

 

[DCH]

Yeah teh AA are lousy

Did you just cut the wires & put a different connector on it? How long does it run on 2200mAh? I've heard a lot of guys complaining about the AA version 'cause they only get like 15 minutes, but the original LiPo lasted like 90 minutes.

I opened it up and soldered a battery power cable with a Deans connector to the inner contacts of the grip and left enough lead for a tidy fit. The balance connector gets tucked in beside the battery. The 2200mAh battery will out last the ST16 controller charge if you are using that for your CGO3+. I never actually ran one down very far, only for about an hour and it seemed to be around 50%. I estimate it would run for at least an hour and a half, but likely longer than that. The AA version smoked thru batteries at an alarming and disappointing rate, this set up is virtually worry free in that regard. You would be hard pressed to run out of battery before you ran out of material to shoot.

 

[KellyR]

Yeah teh AA are lousy

I opened it up and soldered a battery power cable with a Deans connector to the inner contacts of the grip and left enough lead for a tidy fit. The balance connector gets tucked in beside the battery. The 2200mAh battery will out last the ST16 controller charge if you are using that for your CGO3+. I never actually ran one down very far, only for about an hour and it seemed to be around 50%. I estimate it would run for at least an hour and a half, but likely longer than that. The AA version smoked thru batteries at an alarming and disappointing rate, this set up is virtually worry free in that regard. You would be hard pressed to run out of battery before you ran out of material to shoot.

How exactly did you open it up? For the life of me I can't see how & I'm a little nervous about just trying to pry it open. There are 3 screws on the upper side (circled in yellow), & 4 screws by the gimbal slot, none of which are near the area where the battery leads are. I took off the 3 rubber pads on the handle, found nothing, & same for in the battery bay. Admittedly I need new glasses, but what the heck? Any tips?

 

[KellyR]

I'm tempted to just drill a hole by the battery connection leads (blue circle) in order to snip the wires & then another hole below the handle (white circle) to pull the wire through & put on a jr/futaba connector like the battery has. That way I can skip opening it up all together.

 

[DCH]

How exactly did you open it up?

Sorry I haven't gotten back to you on this question, it has been burning in my mind but I've been really busy and it isn't an easy answer. Gettin in there is a genuine PITA! It isn't straight forward and there are hidden latches that you don't want to break. It was a long time ago (for my old brain) and I can't remember exactly how I pull it off. I need to sit down and examine it before I can remember how I did it. If you can hold tight I should be able to revisit it in the next day or so and I'll give a detailed approach with photos.

 

[KellyR]

No worries. I'm thinking, especially in light of it being a PITA, that drilling 2 holes might just make life easier. I thought if I cut the wires at the end, but pulled them out by the handle, it should leave me with plenty of wire. I'm assuming it's just 2 wires (power & ground)?