Sony A7SIII & A7IV Power Bank, V-Mount vs NPFZ? Best Powering Options

[@keith-knittel]

V mount batteries are convenient for filmmaking but if you're traveling a lot too, the USBC PD Power banks are nice to have for other devices too. Which do you prefer?

[@lillswanne]

The V-mount battery to right? Especially the fxlion with usb and usb c.

[@Pfagnan]

No contest! Power Bank every time!! I hate the bulkiness and weight and rails etc for V mounts…

[@dawgcanjumphigh]

I’m on the go, so I want something light. The USB-C power bank will do me justice for extending video time on my camera. It would be no exception if I end up grabbing the Sony A7IV. I use the Panasonic GH6 right now. I like the image quality coming out of there. It’s a crop micro 4/3 system though.

[@strangecompany7518]

@@Pfagnan what power bank would you recommend? My head is scrambled with all the options... just needs to be flight safe

[@Pfagnan]

@@strangecompany7518 Ya I bought 2 Belkin power USB-C power banks from Amazon. They are I believe 30 watts each and I sometimes velcro them to my tripod and have a long high quality cable up to power my camera. They are so good I can run my camera all day and my battery in the camera is still at 95% when I am done. The other power bank powers my Tascam audio recorder-mixer. Never have to worry about running out of battery! When doing run and gun I use a shorter cable and put the power bank in my pocket or jacket. So convenient - just make sure it has PD (power delivery)

[@og975]

Thanks for reminding!, i did this same feature with my Sony A6300 Hundred and still saves me lots of battery life. Bought my A7sIII last year thought battery held up pretty good. But this made my day even better thanks again.

[@keith-knittel]

Glad I could help! Little tweaks can really help your battery life. Or even getting a bigger power bank to handle the power delivery can be really helpful! Thanks for watching

[@og975]

@@keith-knittel Oh one question. When i use my powerbank USB to Type C A7S3 while recording will that strain the internal battery?

[@keith-knittel]

@@og975 You're providing the battery with enough power to sustain it while in use, so I'm going to assume it's being charged at the same or slightly higher output than you're using. I'm sure this puts some kind of strain on the internal battery, but I honestly don't know the science behind batteries being charged and used at the same time. For what it's worth, this is typically how I use my A7SIII and the battery seems to be doing fine so far compared to my other Sony NPF-Z batteries. To answer your question, I'm sure it is putting some kind of strain on the battery, but I'm not sure if it's enough to damage the battery with normal use. If you're running it 24/7 then I'm sure you're going to do some kind of damage long term

[@og975]

@@keith-knittel Awesome thank you so much, very happy i sub. to your channel. This was Huge help.

[@BarefootMediaTV]

Have you seen a difference in how fast the a7iv overheats using usbc-power vs a dummy battery?

[@KeithRobertson-y4z]

Anyone have done this test yet?

[@gabpe]

@@KeithRobertson-y4z Without Dummy battery, the chamber heats up in less than 30 minutes. By changing the settings, warnings can be avoided or the camera can be prevented from automatically switching off, but overheating. The dummy battery with the external battery does not seem to work.

[@THOMASANDERSON1]

@@gabpe DID YOU DO THE TESTS? WITH WHICH CAMERA?

[@gabpe]

​Hi@@THOMASANDERSON1Sony Alpha 7IV

[@DustinSheffield]

Great video! Appreciate you sharing the amount of time we can expect each battery to run the camera 👍🏻

[@jamescohen]

So I bought that huge PD power bank you use here and recommended, but it does not show the right voltage output. It shows 5V, 9V, 12V, 15V, and 20V, but not 7V. Are you sure this is safe to use with the A7 IV? I am assuming it does not power the sensor directly but charges the battery and the camera runs off of the battery. But when I plugged it in to the USB C port on both devices, the camera did not turn on for a longish while, which makes me wonder if the PD PB was powering the camera itself?

[@nygmaa]

Great video ! I'm about to get the A7Iv in a about 1 months and this helped me a lot ! Beside the fact that V mount batteries are a good investment in general imo, one with USB C PD is the way to go imo, as you said I'm not taking the risk of using a D tap dummy battery that *could* get disconnected and ruin my file. The powerbank route would be kinda annoying on a gimbal and also when I wanna go handheld I think, the USB C PD on the A7IV is really life changing !

[@keith-knittel]

It really is! I love the different ways to power or charge the camera. It's been making filming much easier, not worrying about batteries as much! Also thanks for the kind words and watching!

[@nygmaa]

@@keith-knittel Np been watching a lot of your videos after that one hahah

[@JonasBecker]

Thanks for the vid! It made me buy 2 Smallrig VMount 99 Batteries for my a7iv. Do you have any recommendation on the usb-c cable?

[@ScottSalvi]

Great video & explanations Keith! I currently have my rig powered by a 10000mAh USB power bank just due to size and weight. It's been plenty for me since I rarely film more than 3hrs at a time, and I have another to swap out if I need it. It's only powering my A7IV and my Osee T5 monitor which is low power drain. The price couldn't be beat...I think they were $28ea. I did buy a cheese-plate and a SmallRig universal power supply holder to make it sturdy. I am looking into the new Mount kit from SmallRig that allows mounting to the bottom of the camera without the baseplate & rails which would lighten the whole rig up. Followed! :)

[@gigihanmandarin]

Smallrig's latest battery base plate is awesome.

[@simonpeters2032]

Great video and loving the Minus The Bear t-shirt!

[@kowalskik.1333]

Can the camera be used on the same time when its powered with the 65W USB powerbank? E.g. when running timelapse exposures for e.g. 8h. Or has the camera to be switched off for powering/loading the battery?

[@Pfagnan]

Really good information !!! I would have loved for you not to skim so quickly over the power bank solution as that is gonna be my solution. Most of the video was about your preferred V mount. I just find it SO CONFUSING on Amazon to order a PD power bank with the amps, and watts etc…. 😳

[@keith-knittel]

I feel this 100%, it's partially why I made this video. I ordered and tried a number of different power banks before landing on this one. I tried a few different cheap power banks but they weren't powerful enough to keep the battery life from dying when using the camera. The 65w power bank in the description is the one I settled on because it has the 9V/3A (Sony recommends a 9 volt, 3 amp power delivery, these are USBC ports and that particular power bank comes with a 100 watt-rated USBC cable too which is a plus). It also has multiple other power ranges and voltages, but this power bank automatically selects 9 volts, 3 amps and charges the battery correctly on the A7SIII and A7IV. I'm sure there are other batteries out there, but I DID NOT want to run the risk of frying my camera with a higher-rated output battery bank. This one is the sweet spot for me, it can charge my phone multiple times, laptop, and camera before needing to be charged. I should have elaborated on this more in the video and if more people are interested in me expanding on the USBC power bank specifically I could make another video. Hopefully, you found the video helpful, and thanks for your feedback and support!

[@Superjeanmarc]

@@keith-knittel Yes please. A video about USBC power bank would be great

[@Pfagnan]

@@Superjeanmarc ya I ended up buying at B&H the 30 watt Belkin power bank which powered my a7Siii for 4.5 hours when my card stopped recording. The power bank was still at 50% and my internal battery was still at 95%. Totally blew me away!! Highly recommended !!!

[@Pfagnan]

@@keith-knittel Yo Keith! ya I ended up buying at B&H the 30 watt Belkin USB C POWER bank which powered my a7Siii for 4.5 hours when my card stopped recording. The power bank was still at 50% and my internal battery was still at 95%. Totally blew me away!! Highly recommended !!!

[@Superjeanmarc]

@@Pfagnan I assume it somewhere says 9V/3A ?

[@THOMASANDERSON1]

HELLO, THANKS FOR THE VIDEO, CAN THIS POWER BANK POWER THE SONY A7S III WITHOUT THE CAMERA HAVING THE FACTORY BATTERY INSIDE? HOW MANY HOURS OF CONTINUOUS RECORDING DOES IT GIVE IN HOURS USING THE POWER BANK RECORDING VIDEO IN 4K AT 60 FRAMES PER SECOND?

[@europeanambience]

Thanks for the Tipp with Airplane Mode

[@strangecompany7518]

great video - I'm still a little unsure on power bank options though. the mAh and Wh values can be confusing. Any suggestions on good brands or models to check out? I need a good power bank (several of them) to charge my Sony a7s III batteries on a week long winter trip. Just via a USB charger. But can't be more than 100Wh for a flight I think? Please help... I've been going round in circles for weeks!

[@CoyotitoLaPaz]

Hey Keith! Great video! Can you power a Sony A7siii and external monitor at the same time with a USB power bank? Thanks :)

[@angelhernandezramirez4753]

Thanks for this. Great video! It helps me a lot. Greetings from Mexico!

[@keith-knittel]

Glad to help and thanks for watching, angel!

[@chrisnigul]

Keith, do you have to have a specific usb c cable for the proper power delivery from the nano two? Which one are you using? Cheers

[@JonasBecker]

Did you find an answer to this?

[@chronicmisadventuresofslac374]

I have this question as well. Been scrolling down the comments looking for the answer...

[@chrisnigul]

Link straight from Keith

[@jonnytacooutdoors]

So you just plug the v mount straight into the a7siii via usb c correct? Do I need to change the settings. Power settings and over heat settings?

[@keith-knittel]

As long as your usbc cable is a power delivery cable, capable of delivering 9v 3a, and your mount battery is also capable of that power delivery, you’re good! I always adjust my heat setting to high

[@KXNGiLLuSioN]

Thank you for the video. Quick question. I have a Sony a7iv and I want to purchase a Moman 99 VMount battery to use as I record my videos. Do I have to purchase a dummy battery with a DTap connected to the Vmount or can I hook up the vmount straight to the camera using a different type of cable? Also can the Nano One charge the Sony a7iv using USB-C Thank you

[@AnthonyPham]

Trying to figure out how to power my rig. Currently using an a7siii with the tilta advanced ring grip. Have the vmount plate, power plate. But will need to get a smaller battery as I can’t travel with more than 160wH battery. The vmount powers the ring grip (control handles), rs3 and my monitor but looking to add my camera in there as well. What do you suggest?

[@nick-fr9hq]

Can you please link a recommended charger for the V mount batteries, thanks in advanced

[@rezjrprod]

Helpful bud thank you

[@1izia]

does a7III internal battery overheat while power delivery?

[@darenvaldezvisuals]

Hey Keith, great video. Could I power my A7IV via VMOUNT BATTERY with a DTAP to USB-C chord? Thanks!

[@keith-knittel]

Just responded to your other comment - here is a copy/paste of it: Hey there - make sure the DTAP to usb-c is 9v 3a, I'm pretty sure there is a kondor blue cable that does that!

[@MANGO-FILM]

Hi Keith, thanks for your explanations. Could I distroy my camera FX3 if I use the wrong V-Mount battery?

[@keith-knittel]

Hey there, without knowing which powering methods or batteries it's hard to say what will be safe or not. Can you elaborate more on what you'll be using? Sticking to a 9v 3a power source via the USBC port on the FX3 is what sony recommends.

[@MrDrumHunter]

I see all using v mount and im wondering why... I found with 120€ the Anker 737 25.000mAh 140w... The same specs for a vmount battery is five times more...

[@keith-knittel]

Welcome to the weird world of filmmaking gear. Where everything is 5 times more expensive because they know you need it. To clarify, V and G-mount batteries are much easier to build into a camera rig than an anker battery. The tech is relatively the same, but it's form-fitted into a more camera-friendly package.

[@happy1wandering]

Amazing video!! Is there a difference powering the camera from the Nano’s USB-C vs USB-A ? I can’t find anything mentioned about PD on their Amazon page. Thanks again!

[@keith-knittel]

Thank you! And there is a difference between the USBC and USBA port. The USBC port has a range of PD options, which will automatically select which is correct for the device. The USBC port will output 9v 3a and power the camera for as long as the battery has power. The USBA port isn't capable of such high power deliver and will not be able to provide enough power to the camera to run as long. You'll be charging the internal battery but the power draw is greater than the USBA's charging

[@happy1wandering]

@@keith-knittel great thanks again! What kind of USB-C to USB-C are you using ? Also if the nano is fully charged & the Sony battery as well, how long would you get of a shoot if you leave it shooting continuously ?

[@Pfagnan]

LOVE THIS CHANNEL! 👍🏻

[@keith-knittel]

Thank you so much for the positive words, glad you're enjoying the content, Pierre! Appreciate it!

[@jacksonchamblee]

Hello Keith, great video explain the different types of batteries for the A7SIII. I have a question. If I use one of the 95W batteries and connect it to a V - Mount, could I use the USB port on the V Mount to power my Sony A7SIII or do I have to use a dummy battery? Thank you.

[@keith-knittel]

Hey Jackson, thanks for the kind words! If you're using a battery that has a USB-C power delivery port, you can use a USB-C to USB-C cable to your A7SIII to power the camera as long as the V-Mount has power. If you're using a USB-A (the rectangular one) you'll power the camera, but not enough to run it for ever - you'll only extend the cameras battery for a little while but not very long. If your battery doesnt have a USBC power delivery port (9v 3a) you'll need a dummy battery. Hope that helps! Thanks for watching

[@jacksonchamblee]

@@keith-knittel Thank you for answering my question.

[@KoiAquaponics]

You ever have any major issues with large batteries and going through airport security? I've only used portable cell phone ones and not these bricks.

[@keith-knittel]

I’ve never had any issues with batteries going through tsa before. As long as they are less than 99 wh you’ll be fine, but in all my travels no one has ever given me a hard time about power banks. The only time I was ever questioned was when I first flew with my dji phantom drone but that was many years ago. Tsa had no idea what that thing was! Lol

[@Norbert40]

Hey. When you using your dedicated power bank with 9V to power camera, then fz100 battery stay completely untouched? I mean, it's really 100% powering camera from power bank?

[@keith-knittel]

Yes, the power delivery from the power bank has to be 9 volts 3 amps or there will be battery drain from the camera

[@CaseyHardman]

Do you think it's worth going with the Nano Three or SmallRig's VB155 (if/when it releases lol) for shooting 4k60 with an a7S III and Ninja V?

[@keith-knittel]

More capacity is always a good thing! Assuming you don't mind the increased weight and price tag. If you'll be powering multiple devices with one batter, like a monitor and camera, you're going to cut your battery life in half or more than if you were just using your camera. I have a short form piece of content that I'll upload in a day or so on this using the FXLION Naon two!

[@CaseyHardman]

@@keith-knittel For sure! I think the two scenarios I'll use the V-mount will be on the shoulder rig and on the Ronin-M. Shoulder rig would be nice to balance the weight, and I use a Ready Rig, so the additional weight on the Ronin-M wouldn't be hateful. I believe the Nano Three is only $10 more than the Two on Amazon right now ($339 vs $349) so I could definitely justify the weight for $10! haha I'm going to see when the VB155 releases, as I'm leaning more toward that for $30 more. I'll subscribe and keep an eye out for your video!

[@keith-knittel]

@@CaseyHardman Just looked that up on amazon, wow youre right! When I bought my Nano two, I got it for about 260 or 275! Yeah I'd go with the nano three for the additional $10 lol. I havent been able to find any SmallRig V-mounts in stock, would be interested to use one of those with the DC power connectors on that battery too. Also respect for still using the ronin-m, such a good gimbal but man does it take up a lot of space. Thanks for subscribing!

[@CaseyHardman]

@@keith-knittel Haha I use a Weebill-S for weddings and work events, but I swear pistol-grip gimbals still don’t compete with the Ronin-M. I have a narrative shoot coming up, so I may grab the Nano Three until SmallRig’s stuff is in stock again!

[@gigihanmandarin]

Tell, don't show. Where are the B rolls with the batteries are rigged up and in use?

[@keith-knittel]

Hey there Gigi, I have videos on my channel going over how to rig up batteries for certain cameras. I should update the description with links to those videos. Do you think I should add more broll to my videos overall though? Thanks for the feedback!

[@gigihanmandarin]

@@keith-knittel in a world of 10sec attention span, no one is going to dig through your archive to search for what they are looking for. It is either getting it all in one go, or people's gonna leave. Thanks for taking the constructive criticism like a champ.

[@jonjones27]

Hey there Keith, you're my only hope man! Sorry for the long text but I'm really desperate and don't want to f this up given the camera's pricetag. So I just got the A7 IV for streaming/recording gameplays but I have 0 knowledge about stuff like voltage, watts, amperes, ac, dc, acdc, marvel... you name it. I've read that dummy batteries CAN and WILL fry your camera at some point in time mostly because they're just aftermarket products and there's no np-fz100 Sony original, not exactly my go-to choice. Can powerbanks damage the camera/battery in anyway? All that being said, I need something to power my Sony A7 IV WHILE I'M RECORDING/STREAMING for at least 5h to 10 hours/day (extreme cases). I'd like something simple, plug and play - no fancy rigs. Maybe a powerbank which you simply connect via usb C and voilla, 5-10h stream/recording without any risks of overheating/damaging/exploding cameras/batteries. Thanks a mil.

[@keith-knittel]

Hey jonjones! I totally understand where youre coming from with dummy batteries. I've used them in my camera (a7iii, a7iv and a7siii) for streaming 8-10+ hours and never had any issues. However, I understand that some people have had dummy batteries fry their cameras, using a USBC cable to your camera and a USBC power brick to the wall will be your easiest bet with the A7IV. With my A7III I could only use the dummy battery if I wanted to power my camera for long periods of time. However, the A7SIII and A7IV can use 9V 3A power delivery to power the camera without any drain on the battery. This is your easiest and best bet to ensure your camera stays on for 10+ hours, and you wont have to keep checking an external power bank to make sure the camera is on still. Good luck with your streaming career! What games you playing? Hope that helps!

[@jonjones27]

​@@keith-knittel Thanks for the answer Keith. Please bear with me just a bit longer. So, in your reply > " using a USBC cable to your camera and a USBC power brick to the wall will be your easiest bet with the A7IV." < THE WALL part confused me - are you saying that the power bank should constantly be connected to the electrical outlet/wall WHILE I'm streaming? Or just a normal USBC powerbank you charge and unplug from the wall and then use for streaming until it eventually drains. For example I was thinking, before you replied, that maybe I should go with the fxlion nano two or the moman99 V mount batteries (which are not constantly connected to the electrical outlet). If you could maybe give me some names I should look into that would be great. Cheers

[@keith-knittel]

@@jonjones27 Hey there - If you're in one spot for streaming, by power brick I mean a AC wall power brick to USBC adapter (like a phone charger), then USBC from the wall to your camera will be the easiest. However, if you're moving around or not by power, busing a V-mount battery will be a good bet. For powering the camera for 8-10 hours, you'll need a larger battery than 99 watts however. And you'll have to be sure to charge your battery after every live stream to ensure its charged for your next stream (or buy multiple batteries).

[@jonjones27]

​@@keith-knittel Hey Keith, I appreciate your patience with me. Final verdict/question is - Will the Anker Nano II 65W, USB-C, PowerIQ 3.0, GaN II 9v/3a alongside a 100W USBC cable do the job for powering my A7 IV indefinitely? I think this is what you mean by USBC adapter/like a phone charger right? / Are there any risks whatsoever involved?

[@keith-knittel]

@@jonjones27 Yeah, that combination will power the A7IV from the wall power indefinitely. That is how you power/charge your camera, so that is the safest way to power your camera for 10+ hours at a time. The A7IV does have overheating issues when recording, if you're only streaming you shouldnt run into any issues since you're not "recording" but flipping your screen out will help keep the camera from overheating as easily. Make sure to set your temperature settings to "High" in the menu. Good luck with your stream!

[@igbt460]

does the 65w portable power charging while open the camera(a7iv)?

[@keith-knittel]

Hey there, the camera doesn’t “charge” but the battery isn’t depleated. So if you have 80% battery and use the portable charger, you’ll use the portable battery as your power source and still have 80% battery on your camera. Turning the camera off will charge the camera

[@igbt460]

@@keith-knittel nice to heard, thank you.

[@Superjeanmarc]

How do you rig powerbanks on your camera? That doesn't seem like a practical solution..

[@keith-knittel]

I use powerbanks when my camera is on a tripod, like when it’s used for a webcam or where the camera is locked off not moving. The best option is obviously v mount batteries and rigging up your camera but not everyone can afford that

[@Superjeanmarc]

@@keith-knittel Thanks, yes, on a tripod everything is easier of course. That being said, for smaller cameras like alpha series, FX3 etc.. you can also look into Anton Bauer's Titon Base. I just got one for my FX3 and get 8h30 of juice in 4K 25p.. or about half of that if I power my 2200 nit Portkeys BM5 III monitor. It doesn't require any rig, rods or anything as it mounts on the camera via a quick release baseplate.

[@keith-knittel]

@@Superjeanmarc Woah! I've never seen that before - just checked it out. I'll have to try that out! Reminds me of the audio recorders that attached to the bottom you your camera back in the day. The quick release is a great idea for that, thanks for showing me that

[@chrisnigul]

@@Superjeanmarc That’s frickin dope! But man, I get so nervous when I hear dummy batteries. Ive read some horror stories of people’s cameras melting down lol. How has your experience been? Any idea why people run into those problems?

[@Superjeanmarc]

@@chrisnigul i bought the “battery-only” pack, without the dummy and I power the camera via USB-c so I can’t tell you, but I haven’t heard any horror stories with this Anton Bauer model, it’s a pretty renowned brand in the world of batteries. You should check Armando’s review on it (there are few other reviews out there). Beware though, 8h30 of power is if you connect the camera only. With an external monitor, like my Portkeys BM5 III, it drops to Half of that time. Armando pretends that he gets 8h even with a Átomos Ninja V , but I really don’t know how that can be Physically possible, even if the Átomos is effectively less bright. The reason why I prefer to power via usbc rather than dummy is mainly because of for some reason you disconnect your cable, the camera is still powered by the internal battery. You can also decide to remove the Anton Bauer base to quickly go to a lighter set up, and again, the camera keeps powered up Cheers

[@anishminz2002]

Ok

[@keith-knittel]

👌

[@eugeneputin1858]

Hear me out...power tool batteries. Get em on sale. I paid 100 bucks for 4 ryobi 74wh. Stupid fast recharge and easily hot swappable. Let your imagination finish the rest.

[@keith-knittel]

Hahaha - I'm intrigued, go on!

[@eugeneputin1858]

@@keith-knittel I tested and can easily pull 300 watts continuously till dead and they get warm but not hot. Recharged 3 macbooks at 100 watts each via easily purchasable 12v pd car chargers(you'll have to get the 100watt versions). Nothing, and I repeat, nothing can offer this power output from any company manufacturing packs right now. You can do it yourself and do it better. I have adapted every single electronic thing I own to these batteries because they often have sales and pack one gnarly punch.