I have a fair bit of construction tools (DeWalt brand) but the batteries are damn expensive
Is it unethical to buy the cheaper compatible batteries
The trick is you’re doing it backward. For a lot of tools, the cheap tools aren’t much worse than the expensive ones unless you are at the level where they are in constant/heavy use, hours of driving from the store, and you desperately need the extra durability, but the reliability of the batteries is where it’s actually worth the cash. Good batteries can hold a charge while not being used and last longer while in use. Cheap batteries can be e-waste after a week of use, or even before you open the box if they’re really bad.
As for ethical? The question is absurd. They’re your tools. It’s unethical for companies to even sell tools with proprietary connectors because it effectively acts as them telling you what you are allowed to do with your tools. There is no ethical problem in bypassing corporate B.S.
No, but corporations that sell overpriced products absolutely love that you’re asking this question.
No, more like the other way around
It’s unethical that companies constantly produce incompatible chargers and batteries that cause more pollution when lost, cut customer options, which after a few years when they no longer get made, cause even more pollution
LOL no.
You are in no way morally obligated to go out of your way to protect some corporation’s exploitative business model.
That’s called the other side of the coin of the free market economy. Capitalism.
You sell your tool’s battery for $200/ah? Someone makes the same thing without the tag that is compatible with the same ah rating but without your warranty for $50 and I buy it from them, you lower your price or see your sales drop off a cliff
What you think anyone should actually subscribe to the Ethics for thee but not for me model?
BTW I’ll be buying some aftermarket tabless 12ah batteries for my Ego tools when they kick and guess what I won’t be paying for 6 of them… $4,000
Yes, four. thousand. dollars.
I’ll be spending less than $1,000.
Corporations are not your friend. Ethics plays no part in it. It’s economics. If they price themselves out of the competition, that’s their problem, not yours.
Absolutely not. What’s actually unethical is the ruinous prices the name brands charge for their “genuine” batteries which under the hood are just as much Chinese garbage as the off-brand ones.
Absolutely not, crazy position to hold. Fyi you can buy orprint 3D adapters for a lot of things. My dyson runs on dewalt batteries.
Intellectual property isn’t real.
I like TechDirt’s rephrasing to call it imaginary property.
It’s capitalism, doing whatever is most profitable for yourself is the ethical choice according to these corporations. You’re just working within the system they constructed.
It is possible that DeWalt designs and manufactures its own batteries, and there is some clever tech in them that makes them superior to other batteries, or that they pay for high quality components that make them last longer.
However, it is just as likely that they buy the batteries themselves “off the shelf”, put them in a custom plastic enclosure, slap their label on them, and sell them for an insane markup. Sometimes, they don’t even need the custom enclosure and they just buy someone else’s finished battery product. The “off-brand” option may be the exact same product.
It’s not unethical to use off-brand batteries, but then if you buy a substandard one that causes a problem the manufacturer may use that as an excuse to deny their warranty claim. But when was the last time you replaced a tool under warranty?
or that they pay for high quality components
This would be a valid choice for both the manufacturer and consumer, if it were true and transparent. Most of us have things we spend more on with the expectation of quality and that we spend less on with the expectation there is no quality
For example I don’t buy the concept that my printer manufacturer has magical ink in their resale cartridges. Even if they did, the 3-4 cartridges I can otherwise buy would make up for a lot of magic
It’s more of a fire hazard than an ethical issue.
I’ve been using compatible batteries for years, never had a problem.
And?
OP still hasn’t had a fire from third party batteries.
It’s unethical for companies to force you to buy overpriced essential parts. If you find a compatible battery for cheaper, there’s no reason not to buy it. Unless the company prevents third-party batteries from working in their products…
Nothing unethical about finding a better price.
Are the cheaper batteries better than the expensive ones? If not, dewalt is charging you for a superior product, which is fair IMO. Is the difference big enough to justify the difference? That’s up to the customer to decide. If the difference is not worth it, just buy the cheaper one instead.
Is any of this ethical? Probably not. I suspect both manufacturers have poor labor practices and a negative environmental impact. The way I see it, consumers are destroying the planet through indirect means for the most part. Directly, if you’re burning gasoline, and indirectly, when you’re buying stuff from various companies. Those companies are directly destroying the planet buy burning stuff, leaking toxic chemicals into the groundwater etc. If you’re worried about ethics, you might want to look into the environmental impact these two companies have. If you’re serious about this, you might need to do a proper life cycle analysis of the entire production chain, but that’s a topic for another thesis.
You have to keep in mind that power tool batteries are kind of the worst case scenario when it comes to lithium battery safety because they get knocked around, shoved into tool boxes, crushed, etc. of all the consumer products most at risk of fire, tool batteries are up there. That’s part of the reason they are so expensive. At the same time, knock off 18650 cells are generally well known fire hazards on their own.
I think it’s up to you what your risk tolerances are, but if a DeWalt battery burns my house down, at least you have a company to sue. If the Temu battery does the same thing, you are going to be SoL. I’ve been building and repairing various kinds of packs for more than a decade and am quite wary of random bootleg cells. I’ve never had a real Panasonic or Samsung cell fail, only knockoffs.
The cheaper batteries may have a lower true Wh capacity.
But given the cost difference, I’ve found they have a much higher value - I get 80% of the capacity for 30%-50% of the cost.
And you always want to have at least 2 or more batteries to ensure sufficient runtime.
Sounds like a very reasonable compromise.
I’m no kind of expert, but as I understand it, lithium-ion batteries are something to be treated with significant care & caution. Poorly-constructed ones for example are evidently more prone to developing filament damage and becoming exposed out of their protective cases, with the fire risk (in the presence of O2) scaling up by size. Actively charging from AC seems to boost that risk.
So it seems pretty clear to me-- research that sucker when you’re buying replacement cells / batteries, or simply dealing with an old, poorly-performing one. Even if the risk of an Li+ cell event is less than 1% (or whatever), avoiding the disaster of that seems pretty wise to me. Personally, I charge my Android devices and my DeWalt module in a metal container, just in case. Also, old cells are stored in steel baking pans & similar.
This sounds like it was written by a bot. My local recycling center has a huge bin of old lithium power tool batteries and in 8 years, I have never seen a burnt one.
You guys are delusional if you think brand = higher quality.
This sounds like it was written by a bot.
Okaaayyy… I guess I’d be interested to hear how that’s working in your mind. Care to explain?
I have never seen a burnt one.
Really, were you expecting them to keep the remains of the few that created dangerous fires around for you to examine? Were you hoping to see a little pile of melted plastic and ashes, is that it?
You guys are delusional if you think brand = higher quality.
And you lack reading comprehension if you think that’s what I said. Want to try again, boss?
He is right though, a lot of offbrand power tool batteries have dangerous construction
I can’t think of a multinational corporation that deserves your loyalty in that way. It’s up to you and me to determine if the markup is a brand name premium or a actual measurable quality improvement and direct our spending accordingly. I have had both good and bad luck and sometimes you don’t even get a choice because there’s only one battery option available.
I’m sure the companies would like it to be seen as unethical or even illegal, but most people I know (even older non-internet-savvy people) like having more options than just a greedy OEM for parts and service.
I think you can let your conscious rest easy knowing corporate would feed you headfirst into a meat grinder on Easter Sunday live on national television before they have your best interests at heart.
As unethical as buying the OEM batteries.
