3rd party battery grips for d500

salukfan111

Senior Member
you know it. Actually I'm trying to: take pictures of MW in portrait, and 2. not run out of batteries so much. I like the heft too.
 

rocketman122

Senior Member
Damm $400 vs $75. Thats a hell of a savings.
Nikons high price seems to push people the other direction and those 3rd party offerings are getting better each model they put out. Build fit and performance wise.
 
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Osantacruz

Senior Member
Does the battery grip allow 3rd party batteries? Also, does it accept enel18's like the official one?

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
 

BackdoorArts

Senior Member
Does the battery grip allow 3rd party batteries? Also, does it accept enel18's like the official one?

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

I can only respond re the Pixel grip, and the answers are no and no. Not sure what the allure of the En-EL18 is, but since turning off the touch screen I've had zero complaints with battery life. I'm getting around 1200-1400 shots per battery charge.
 

Osantacruz

Senior Member
I can only respond re the Pixel grip, and the answers are no and no. Not sure what the allure of the En-EL18 is, but since turning off the touch screen I've had zero complaints with battery life. I'm getting around 1200-1400 shots per battery charge.
The allure is just having a really large battery. It'd be nice for camping trips and such where there are no outlet and being away from one for a few days and less batteries to carry around. And as far as I've read, it appears 3rd party ones work in the official grip. Also I love shooting Color Runs so I really don't want to mess with my camera's protective layers to swap batteries.

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BackdoorArts

Senior Member
As I see it, if you can justify $130 on a battery for convenience sake (and even with a color run, it is convenience when you've got 2000-2500 shots on two fully charged batteries) there's no reason you can't justify the Nikon grip.
 

Osantacruz

Senior Member
As I see it, if you can justify $130 on a battery for convenience sake (and even with a color run, it is convenience when you've got 2000-2500 shots on two fully charged batteries) there's no reason you can't justify the Nikon grip.
Plenty of reason. That's a stupid amount to pay for a piece of plastic to hold a battery. 3rd party works just as well. If it wasn't for the camera being silly about 3rd party batteries, any old $50-70 grip would do.

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photogramps

Senior Member
I can only respond re the Pixel grip, and the answers are no and no. Not sure what the allure of the En-EL18 is, but since turning off the touch screen I've had zero complaints with battery life. I'm getting around 1200-1400 shots per battery charge.

Did you notice big problems with battery life before switching touch screen off?
Did you use touch screen much?

I bought the Pixel grip because of battery problems.
I have touch screen on for occasional use but otherwise it's in Aircraft Mode.
My battery life is very variable.
 

photogramps

Senior Member
Scrap that I haven't been on for a while and I've just read some of your other posts!
I haven't had your abundance of issues with nose or lenses, just very variable battery drain ... 1275 shots one day, 400 the next :(
 

BackdoorArts

Senior Member
Did you notice big problems with battery life before switching touch screen off?
Did you use touch screen much?

I bought the Pixel grip because of battery problems.
I have touch screen on for occasional use but otherwise it's in Aircraft Mode.
My battery life is very variable.

Look for threads I started elsewhere under the D500 subforum. It's all there and more in excruciating detail.
 

Danno

Senior Member
I kind of felt the same way about the Nikon grip for my D7200... Seemed like an overpriced piece of plastic, but the more I compared the 3rd party units to the Nikon the more I was convinced the construction and weather seal characteristics were just superior to the 3rd party grips.

What sold me was the fact that the grip has the same magnesium frame as the camera body and the construction has some visible weather sealing. But it all comes down to personal preference.
 

Osantacruz

Senior Member
I kind of felt the same way about the Nikon grip for my D7200... Seemed like an overpriced piece of plastic, but the more I compared the 3rd party units to the Nikon the more I was convinced the construction and weather seal characteristics were just superior to the 3rd party grips.

What sold me was the fact that the grip has the same magnesium frame as the camera body and the construction has some visible weather sealing. But it all comes down to personal preference.
After having bought 3rd party grips for my d800 and d750, it never made sense to me to spend triple digits for an official one. Looked so close to the same as the body that it was never a problem with matching. And for the limited amount of use they get from me, even more of an issue. That's a good chunk that could go towards something a lot more used like a new lens. I respect though if people actually need the weather sealing which isn't something I've needed. But I have no respect for Nikon making the enel15 batteries so expensive when clearly it can be done cheaper and I've had these 3rd party batteries since 2012-2013 with no issues until the d500 decided to be picky.

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GracieAllen

Senior Member
My D500 hasn't arrived yet - ordered it Saturday - but I've used 3rd party battery grips on my D300, D800, D810, D7200 and I have one on order for the D500. I've used them with Nikon batteries, 3rd party batteries and Eneloops on every one of the bodies. They've all fit FINE, been tight, provided the second set of controls which I need 'cause I've been using cameras with motor drives and/or battery grips for so many years having to turn the body sideways is REALLY aggravating!

I don't KNOW if they're magnesium, unobtaneum, cheap something else, or what, but they've held the camera on every tripod I've used, with an L bracket, horizontal and vertical with ANY lens I'd put on the camera and use the body to support it on the tripod (10-20, 18-200, 28-300, 90mm macro, etc)... For anything "heavy" the lens has a tripod mount and I use that....

My thinking on MOST of this stuff is that Nikon doesn't make the batteries, or the battery grip. These 3rd party ones LOOK very similar (virtually identical) to the "official" one. I figure the resellers are getting them from the same manufacturer and selling them a WHOLE lot cheaper... Same thing for L brackets and such. I've been using 3rd party L brackets on the D300 for 7-8 years, D810 for 2, D7200 for 1, and I've NEVER had a problem with the L brackets. They CERTAINLY haven't failed during any use I've put them to... Big difference between a $10-$20 bracket and a $165 - $190 one...

The ONLY TIME I've EVER had a problem with a 3rd party grip is one I got from DSTE. Spent months screwing around trying to get it taken care of. Jumped through a ridiculous number of hoops and finally talked to Paypal, who looked at the content of the emails going back and forth, and refunded the payment. I threw the grip in the garbage and bought a cheaper one that's been working perfectly for 2 years... I expect the same from the one on order for the D500.
 

Fortkentdad

Senior Member
I like my D500 but notice it burns through batteries much faster than my D610 or D7100 even though it is the same battery.

I'm looking at a battery grip.
Never have had a grip on any of my cameras.
Nikon's is so expensive. $500.00 CDN from B&H imported, $600 if I buy it in Canada (and get the warranty).

The reviews I've read suggest the third party grips are better than 'good enough' - sure Nikon is best, but not 5x better.
Vello (B&H) brand is $119 CDN plus the "Free Shipping" fee of $8.10 (it's a clear customs without hassles fee)
Meike from Amazon.CA is also $80.00 but the free shipping comes a no cost.
Neewer Brand is $89 & Pixel brand is $105.
There are a few other brand names I do not recognize, some come with free batteries. I think I'll avoid those ones. They come in $45 to $100.

Anyone know if these are all the same grip just rebranded?

Vello gets good reviews.
I've ready in this thread that users are happy (were happy when they posted anyway).

Not sure which one I'd go with, Amazon.ca avoids customs issues and cross border returns can be expensive to ship back.
 
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