How Can There Be So Little Inside a $700 Battery?
When you're using expensive, specialized equipment chances are you'll be dealing with expensive, specialized batteries. And while you'd be forgiven for assuming that batteries that cost $700 and up are expensive because they are powerful and sophisticated, that's not always the case. When YouTuber Markus Fuller took apart a $700 sound mixer battery for instance, he found something surprising inside: empty space and much cheaper batteries.
When disassembling a battery for a Nagra IV (6) digital recorder, Fuller found the chief ingredient was actually some space-filling foam, and the actual batteries that live inside the case only run about 30 bucks if you buy them on their own. Granted, there was some other tech in the case, specifically the parts that let those batteries interface with the device, but not some $660 worth.
Markup is understandable, there are research and development costs to earn back. Holding your customers captive and getting all the money you can out of them isn't nice it does make a certain amount of business sense. But maybe what's most egregious here is that the $700 version is the cheapest battery you can get for this thing.A larger version of the battery retails for over $1,000 and it seems safe to assume that it doesn't include a whole lot more than this one does.
Cutting into actual batteries is dangerous, but cracking into bigger boxier casing before you go pick up a replacement might be a smart idea. It could save you a buck or 600.
H/t Reddit
