Targus Digital TG-BGD40 Battery Grip for Nikon D40/D40x/D60
by Merkury Innovations
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List Price: Our Price: $64.92 You Save: $65.08 (50%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $24.99 (click here) Category: Digital Camera See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Targus Digital TG-BGD40 Battery Grip for Nikon D40/D40x/D60
Customer Review: Feel Like A Pro
Summary: 5 Stars
I was a sucker and paid $99 at Walmart for this. Amazona has a great price, I bought this one as a gift.
Take the battery door off of your camera, insert this grip, screw in and you are ready to go. You can use your original camera battery, or like me I just use rechargeable AA batteries. The package includes an adapter that takes 6 AA batteries so you can skip buying expensive Nikon batteries. The weight of the grip greatly balances out the weight of the lens on the camera. If you are a big guy the grip gives you more area to hold the camera. If you are a girl, well let's be honest now, should you be touching your husband's expensive camera? :)
It makes the camera feel balanced in your hand, and easy to hold. I never take it off my Nikon. In fact, I say the camera should be made with a grip. It feels so much better in your hands I don't know why Nikon or Canon doesn't design it in. Every pro photographer out there uses a grip, it's kind of a no brain add on.
Just make sure the camera case you plan to buy is big enough to accommodate the bulkier size of the camera+grip.
Customer Review: Excellent Grip for the Nikon D40
Summary: 5 Stars
I am a big fan of this grip. I didn't at all need the extra battery capacity, as the single EN-EL9 battery has always lasted a great amount of time before needed a recharge. The main reason for buying this was for the larger area to hold my D40. If you experience unusually short battery life, be sure your D40 has the latest firmware version (A 1.12 and B 1.11 found on Nikon USA website). Personally, I use one EN EL9 battery in this grip and it works great. With only one battery, the entire assembly remains very light. The very first time I mounted the grip it didn't sit perfectly along the bottom. I just gave it a good knock on a table and it lined up with the camera. As previously stated by other reviewers, there is no roller dial. Also when held along the side for portraits, the camera will not focus when the shutter release is pressed half-way. Since Nikon did not intend to make a grip for this camera, I don't feel Targus had a choice and did an excellent job. In fact, I think the IR release Targus made is excellent for what it is. Overall, a great addition to my D40 and very happy with this purchase.Customer Review: WOW! THIS IS AMAZING!
Summary: 5 Stars
Pros:
Nice texture, matches camera well.
Extra power = =D
Vertical release is great for portraits
Has slot for battery door from camera
Easy to install
Really balances the whole body out. Some people question the need for this since the D40/x and D60 are designed for smaller hands and to be compact, for me it was the price, and this grip not only makes the camera easier to hold, it also makes it look like a professional DSLR!
My only Con is that to use the vertical release you have to slide a switch and press another switch to pop out a little IR stick that points at the camera, to use the feature. You can't press it down halfway to focus, one press it focuses and then fires the shutter. This is great for a portrait or something similar where the position never changes. I could see this working well if I was on a tripod in the studio or something.
Overall I'm very happy with this purchase, and I would highly recommend it to anyone and everyone!
Customer Review: Seamlessly Fanstastic
Summary: 5 Stars
The grip is a very tight fit into the battery compartment, I had to really give it a squeeze to get it in all the way. However, once in, the plastic is manufactured to seamlessly blend with the body of my D40.
The grip comes with both a two-battery holder, and a AA converter. You can use one or two batteries in the two-battery holder, or 6 AA batteries with the camera none-the-wiser (except for the extended battery life!)
The vertical shutter release has it's own on-off switch, and works using an Infrared LED that pops up. Simply put the camera in remote control shooting mode, and away it goes.
Unfortunately, due to this, there is no half-click with the vertical shutter release, this is a flaw with the D40 however, not the grip.
The final thing to note, is that the section that slides into the battery bay has a little cutout to put the D40 battery compartment door into, so that it doesn't get lost.
I am very happy with this purchase, and highly recommend it!
Customer Review: Worth about $25 not a cent more.
Summary: 3 Stars
I bought this grip for one reason. I am a big guy and my Nikon d5000 felt a little small in my hands. I wanted some thing to give it a little more heft or at least a little more bulk. Out of the pack this grip feels very flimsy and cheaply made. If I would have paid the $130 that the company seems to imply is the msrp or even the $69 my local wal-mart has it for i would have been upset. The $28 plus shipping I paid was ok but I was a little disappointed.
I do want to say that after I got the batteries in it did pick up some heft a lost some of that cheap hollow sound it had when handling. It also added enough bulk to the camera to make it feel real nice in my hands. If the grip would have been much heavier it may have made the camera to heavy so maybe the light construction feel was deliberate for function. Many folks are expressing concern that the camera will not recognize the batter through the grip. I did have this problem when using generics but when I switched to Regular Nikon batteries all was fine.