Battery Grip for Nikon D90 MB 80

[GFK]

I am thinking of a battery grip for my new Nikon D90. I found non Nikon grips on Ebay for a third of the price of a genuine Nikon grip MB80. I would like to know if they are one and the same, as good as or any other comments from anyone who may have bought the non proprietary grip. Thanks.​

 

[Goontz]

I have the genuine Nikon grip myself, but I've heard of people who are satisfied with certain brands of off-brand grips as well. I've also heard of other brands that were nothing more than a waste of money. I can't remember which brands were which off the top of my head, but I'm sure a search here on the forum would yield some results.

 

[ghache]

i just ordered one from link delight, for 55 bucks you cant go wrong.
seems like they also have good reviews.

 

[inlinejohn]

I have the Nikon grip and LOVE it. I remember reading some limitations about the off-brands. Be careful

 

[TJ K]

GO with the Zeikos. Trust me you won't regret it. Just as good as the nikon wayy cheaper. GL

 

[ajkramer87]

GO with the Zeikos. Trust me you won't regret it. Just as good as the nikon wayy cheaper. GL

Agree. Bought one 2 weeks ago and am really impressed. Think I paid 62 dollars shipped to my door.

 

[KmH]

GO with the Zeikos. Trust me you won't regret it. Just as good as the nikon wayy cheaper. GL

The Zeikos grips are NOT as good as Nikon's grips, and that's why they cost less.

I got one of the Zeikos grips for my D300. It's ok, and so far functions as advertised but the build quality (all plastic) is substantially lower than what Nikon builds (MD-D10, metal frame). I'll shortly be getting another D300 and will be getting the 3 times more expensive Nikon grip so I don't have to worry about the build quality

I had a Nikon MD-D80's on my D90's before I upgraded to D300's and it worked great. I sold them for about $25 less than I paid for them new.

I recommend the Nikon grip.

 

[TJ K]

GO with the Zeikos. Trust me you won't regret it. Just as good as the nikon wayy cheaper. GL

The Zeikos grips are NOT as good as Nikon's grips, and that's why they cost less.

I got one of the Zeikos grips for my D300. It's ok, and so far functions as advertised but the build quality (all plastic) is substantially lower than what Nikon builds (MD-D10, metal frame). I'll shortly be getting another D300 and will be getting the 3 times more expensive Nikon grip so I don't have to worry about the build quality

I had a Nikon MD-D80's on my D90's before I upgraded to D300's and it worked great. I sold them for about $25 less than I paid for them new.

I recommend the Nikon grip.

And the D90 grip is NOT metal. So it really doesn't matter. Ya if you have a d300/700 then of course all metal is the way to go. On a d90 it's just as good. Takes a picture, focuses, and the dials are very responsive. Tell me what the nikon mb d80 does differently or how much better it's built and you might change my mind, but for now the Zeikos is the nikon at a cheaper price.

 

[rallysman]

GO with the Zeikos. Trust me you won't regret it. Just as good as the nikon wayy cheaper. GL

Thanks! I am looking for a grip too and I think I'll go in that direction

 

[TJ K]

GO with the Zeikos. Trust me you won't regret it. Just as good as the nikon wayy cheaper. GL

Thanks! I am looking for a grip too and I think I'll go in that direction

No problem. If I get some spare time I might even make a little video review about it or something like that.

 

[KmH]

Sure it matters.

I should have noted that the Nikon MB-D80 grip is indeeed essentially all plastic.

The all plastic Zeiko is still not made as well as the Nikon MB-D80. Note that the Nikon MB-D80 is a $145 Nikon grip where the MB-D10 is a $240 nikon grip, because it has a metal body.

There is no getting around the fact that if they can sell it for substantially less they had to cut corners somewhere.

If you were to closely inspect a Nikon MB-D80 side-by-side with the equivilenet Zeikos grip you'd see what I was talking about.

 

[rallysman]

Sure it matters.

I should have noted that the Nikon MB-D80 grip is indeeed essentially all plastic.

The all plastic Zeiko is still not made as well as the Nikon MB-D80. Note that the Nikon MB-D80 is a $145 Nikon grip where the MB-D10 is a $240 nikon grip, because it has a metal body.

There is no getting around the fact that if they can sell it for substantially less they had to cut corners somewhere.

If you were to closely inspect a Nikon MB-D80 side-by-side with the equivilenet Zeikos grip you'd see what I was talking about.

For a casual shooter that just wants a bit more to hold on to with a vertical shutter release, is it really worth $100 more? I want to get the right thing, but I don't need the "best"

 

[Goontz]

Go with the Nikon. Trust me you won't regret it. Better than any off-brand because it's the actual Nikon model. GL.

:greenpbl:

 

[GFK]

Thanks all for your advice. Appreciated. When you consider that you can buy three non-Nikon grips for the price of one of Nikon's, even the slightly lower quality is acceptable. I like the look of the LinkDelight grip, but their website seems to be inactive, certainly wasn't responding and wouldn't accept my email address. Maybe they have gone out of business. I'll try one of the others on Ebay. Maybe the Zeiko. Thanks again.

 

[mrpink]

Sure it matters.

I should have noted that the Nikon MB-D80 grip is indeeed essentially all plastic.

The all plastic Zeiko is still not made as well as the Nikon MB-D80. Note that the Nikon MB-D80 is a $145 Nikon grip where the MB-D10 is a $240 nikon grip, because it has a metal body.

There is no getting around the fact that if they can sell it for substantially less they had to cut corners somewhere.

If you were to closely inspect a Nikon MB-D80 side-by-side with the equivilenet Zeikos grip you'd see what I was talking about.

For a casual shooter that just wants a bit more to hold on to with a vertical shutter release, is it really worth $100 more? I want to get the right thing, but I don't need the "best"

$100 in digital photography dollars is nothing. I went for the MB-D80 because I plan on keeping my D90 for quite some time and don't mind spending a little more upfront for the best quality. I trust the Nikon brand, that to me is worth $100.




p!nK