When the Nikon D800 came out, the MB-D12 Battery Grip was released at a staggering price of $600. It was definitely a sticker shock, especially since other Nikon battery grips cost less than $300.
After several months of being out in the market, the price of the MB-D12 Battery Grip has settled down to $400. But now there are also some third-party grips available in the market, including the $101 Pixel Vertax Battery Grip and the $68 Meike Battery Grip.
Lee Morris from Fstoppers.com just reviewed the Pixel Vertax and it looks like that the 3rd party grip can be a decent and certainly cheaper alternative to the genuine Nikon MB-D12. There are some build quality shortcomings, like the dials not feeling as nice as the original, but Lee says that the grip overall is still sturdy. All in all, I think that it’s good to have options, especially given the $300 price difference.
Oh, and before anyone complains about how the “knock-offs” are made in China and are therefore inferior, the Nikon original is also made in China =)
So readers, would you buy or have you bought a 3rd party or knock-off battery grip for you dSLR? What has been your experience with it?
17 Comments
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
i’ve been thinking about getting a 3rd party canon grip. just need to do some research and find a reliable one
After the plastic connection gear stripped….and I had to get a hack saw and metal snips to cut the 3rd party grip off a $3000.00 camera, I purchased a Nikon grip. No savings is enough to go through what I had to in order to get this grip off. This is the 1st non-OEM grip I ever tried…and will never try another. I thought the savings was worth the risk. Wrong. However the grip worked for several months. I think The 3rd party grips just are not made to have to be removed from the camera as much as required when 1of the batteries mounts in the body. I’m not a professional, but shoot enough pictures I need to re-charge a set of batteries at least once a week.
I have been shooting with a D3s and aD700 for a few years now I have a D800 I was think of buying the real Nikon grip but after viewing your video and reading other reviews I will go with the 3rd party one put the other $300.00 to a new lens if not its a great savings
Thank you
Rome
I have heard it said that some aftermarket grips are only to help with the handling.What one, apart from the Nikon, actually accept extra batteries for prolonging a shoot ?
I think people should stop calling it fake grip unless it is exact copy of the nikon inside out :). It is third party grip. Otherwise we would call Sigma and Tamron and Zeiss as FAKE lenses lol :)
bought one for my backup camera a D90 a few years ago, piece of junk never did use it the battery door will not stay shut it’s for sale if someone wants it
I have the Pixel Vertax for the 5D Mk3 at less than half the price of the original, and it doesn’t feel as good, but it does the job. Better than some previous cheaper options for the Mk2 I saw.
I have the Nikon grip. Paid $450 but that being said: I don’t want a $100 knock-off with questionale QC frying a $3k camera. I had a bad experience with a Phottix remote shutter release and that was it for me
I bought a Phottix battery grip for my D700 a week ago, after installing it i noticed that the locking wheel won’t stop turning,i tried to to remove it but seems like it was loose tread inside already..what a joke!i can’t remove it at all! i don’t know any way how to remove it. I have same brand for my D7000,less than a year now and still working fine..
Hey Lee, what I’m wondering is how well it attaches to the D800, does it feel as sturdy? Some past grips have been a bit flimsy with the wheel that connects to the camera making you wonder if they will hold tight or not.
I would rather spend money on excellent glass than over-priced accessories. Buy cheap, buy twice. And you will still save over the life of the camera body.
Been burned to ofter and learned a long time ago to stay away from the knockoffs.
I don’t have the D800, but I have a D7000 and I saw the article regarding fake grips for the D7K. It didn’t even cross my mind to buy a third party grip, even though it is substantially cheaper. It didn’t feel right to attach some fake China shit to my baby. And no, I’m not being racist, because I am Chinese. I just hate China for making all that fake shit. So, main point is, I will never buy third party grips or batteries, etc.
I kinda feel like that as well but as he said in the video, if the Nikon was $50 more it wouldn’t be as big a deal but it is clear that Nikon is shamelessly and brutally gouging in regards to the battery grip. A battery grip doesn’t take any expensive RnD to create nor is it super expensive to manufacture. This is just capitalism at work. Nikon overcharges so a competitor comes in at a much lower price point.
I have had a ‘China Cheapie’ D700 battery grip for more than a year and it works perfectly. It too was a quarter of the price of
the Nikon equivalent and although it might not feel as nice, I saved $300. I have ordered a ‘China Cheapie’ D800 grip too and I am just waiting for it to arrive.
I have the Nikon one, it’s good but it doesn’t really help with the overall poor design of the grip. That is of course my opinion, but I thought the D700 grip was better.
Unless these other products are claiming to be, or sold as, an official branded product they should be refered to third party or unofficial not fake.