Just purchased an off-brand battery grip for my 500D from eBay. I have to say, so far I'm very impressed. I think I paid under 80 bucks for the thing including free shipping from Hong Kong.
It came with two batteries, a wireless remote control, and a cartridge for AA batteries. The grip itself has an interval timer feature which is great. Other than the timer the display also has a date and time which you can cycle through. The remote is a RC5 knockoff, but does the job. It's way better than the RC1 I had which didn't work from day 1. In addition to the shutter release and selection wheel it also features the aperture/exposure comp, AE lock, and AF point selection buttons.
The grip feels very solid, not cheap, and adds a nice look and feel to the camera. I'm very excited about not having to stick my elbow out for those portrait shots, or try to tuck it in which is very uncomfortable for me. The only downside I found thus far is the lack of English literacy with which the directions are written, and the lack of explanation of the timer functions. Though after playing with it for 10 minutes I was able to determine what does what. The brand on the box is Meike, made in China.
Has anyone had some good or bad experiences with this brand or any other off-brand? If/when this thing s**ts the bed I'll be sure to write all about it.
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