Targus TG-BGXTI Battery Grip for Canon Rebel XT/XTi

I haven't used the Canon brand version of the battery grip, but I can't imagine it's much better than this one. Battery life is at least doubled (be clear that this does not come with any actual batteries, you have to supply 1 or 2 of your own NB2LH batteries). It comes with a AA battery carriage (for 6 AAs, also purchased separately) you can use instead of the NB2LH batteries (this is meant to be used in emergencies as the battery life of the AA's will be much shorter than the NB2LH's). Functionality of the buttons on the grip is great; the vertical shutter-release is great when holding the camera sideways. The increased size and weight the battery-grip adds to the camera are generally considered to be positive features as well, as they increase the gripping area and stability of the camera. It does make the camera bigger and heavier than I expected, though. I can't fit the camera in my camera bag when the grip is attached, and the extra weight has been more of a burden than a benefit for me (bear in mind I'm only an occasional casual photographer). Swapping the battery-grip in and out is fairly easy, but you do have to remove the battery door from your camera (the battery-grip does have a safe place for you to stash it so you don't lose it) which makes me nervous about possibly breaking it off. Bottom-line: If you are a serious photographer (or aspire to be one), this is definitely a good accessory to have. If you only take pictures occasionally, you can probably live without it.

The price was a steal! $15.99 shipped was just unbeatable. To my surprise the battery grip fits perfectly on my Canon Rebel XT. The material isn't so great but it is sturdy and feels good to hold. All the buttons work flawlessly. One thing I didn't like so much is the On/Off button on the battery grip, since it is a bit tough to slide the switch. My favorite advantage of the battery grip add-on is the natural feel of taking vertical shots because the grip and extra snap trigger is perfectly located. Although the grip can hold two NB-2LH batteries, it will still work even if you have one inside with an empty slot. It also comes with an emergency 6 AA battery holder to use as a backup if your NB-2LH battery or batteries are out of juice. I always thought the Canon Rebel XT itself was a little small, so it is nice to beef up the camera. Having the battery grip attached it feels much better to hold especially if you are going to be using a larger lens.

This unit works as advertised, but sometimes I need to reseat the batters. Same problem with the camera though. Worth the low cost.

Reason 1 - Bigger is better. If you're into a larger, heavier camera, this battery grip will do it for you. Just take the door off your XT/350D/Digital-N, take the old battery out and screw this baby on. Your camera just gained about 1.25 inches in height and a larger grip surface as well as a lower center of gravity. This means if you have big hands like I do, this camera is more stable, feels less toy-like and is no longer awkward in portrait mode. Have an external flash? The added grip area in the right place makes portrait mode practical - before it was almost painful to hold the camera on its side, I almost wanted to hold the camera by the flash instead. Reason 2 - New features. The battery grip now gives you duplicate buttons and wheels for your right thumb/forefinger to manipulate while in portrait mode. The buttons/wheel are not as well made as the ones on the camera body or original battery grip. That's what you get when you don't spend $75 more for the original Canon grip. Same features at 79% OFF? I'm sold. Reason 3 - 2 LiON Batteries on tap. Now, you do have to provide the batteries, but having the 2nd one already sharing the load means instead of getting 200-250 pics (about 2GB in RAW) and really long flash recycle times, you get almost double the pics and faster flash pics. In fact, let's be honest, we take more pics nowadays bcs we just delete the lousy ones when we review. Taking home 250 pics for review on the computer means about 350-400 field pictures without erasing any. You need more battery life, and a battery grip gives it to you. Reason 4 - Battery backup. You never have enough batteries, that's why I keep 6-12 AA batteries in my case just in case. The battery grip comes with a cradle that allows you to use them. They take years to self discharge, so a little preparation goes a long way. Reason 5 (75) - It's $20. Really, why spend more, 4.75 times more, for the same features? Bragging rights? That little Canon logo in front? Maybe. Go ahead, buy the Canon Flash, Canon batteries, heck why not pick up a couple of Canon L lenses while you're at it. The reason is simple, it's the same reason you still use the XT/350D/Digital-N in the first place. It takes does the job, so why spend more? Most of the other non-Canon alternatives are more expensive than this Targus. So get it. You'll be glad you did.

I was looking for a grip for my Canon Rebel XT. I didn't want to spend a lot of money and the extra battery juice would be well received by me. I saw many grips for double, triple and some times more in price. I was not willing to pay that much for test drive--I didn't know if I really wanted or needed it. I got this grip and it was delivered fairly quickly. I couldn't wait to see how it worked. I unpackaged it, popped in my two batteries I already had, and voila! This thing made my camera feel and look a little more like a professional camera. I didn't read any instructions but was able to find out (not really that hard) how it worked with the vertical shutter button. It gives my camera a much larger grip to hold onto. I feel more secure when my kids are holding it for the times they want to try their hand at taking pictures. It came with an adapter that allows you to put in four AA batteries when you just don't have an outlet around to use the plug in chargers. This seems to be a benefit although I haven't used it. The only concern I have is that I now have to probably buy a new aluminum carrying case and/or camera bag. With the battery grip, it is too high to fit inside the aluminum case unless I take the lens off and use the camera cap for storing/traveling. This is a hassle as I have to put the lens back on if I want to take a shot but what if it has to be a quick-shot. It won't fit at all in the camera bag unless I do the same lens break down. No fault of the grip but it just makes me have to adjust if I want to leave the battery grip on all (most) of the time. Overall, I can't complain about the functionality and use of this grip. I would recommend and am very pleased with my purchase.

At first I was thrilled with this grip, it is a huge asset for the xti, especially for people with large hands. The controls on the grip all are easy to use and while they do not have the same feel as the built in controls it is not difficult to get used to them. In particular the shutter button is softer than the build in one. It is slightly heavy, but the added comfort of the larger grip more than make up for it. These things considered, for the price, it would be a 5 star review. However, after 3 uses (each 10+ hour wedding shoots) the scroll button on the grip signaled the xti as if it were constantly scrolling to one direction. Obviously this makes it useless unless you are shooting automatic which I never do. I took out the batteries and it was temporarily fixed, however, after 20 min the same thing occurred. If the grip functioned properly 100% of the time, it would be a 7-8 star product for the price, however since it broke after only a couple weeks, with no abuse whatsoever (never dropped, etc, never taken of the camera unnecessarily) I am forced to give this 1 star...

20 bucks on Amazon. When it comes to camera gear that usually spells trouble. Considering that a grip goes for over $100 I was willing to give it a shot. I am pleasantly surprised at what I received. I've got large hands and the primary reason for the purchase was to give me something more to hold onto on my Rebel XTi. The secondary reason was the ability to hold two batteries at a time. The extra controls for taking pictures in "portrait" was simply a bonus as was the tray for holding "emergency" AA batteries. I'm simply a "hobby" photographer. I use the camera to shoot everything from snaps of my kids to our family portraits with some scenery and travel pictures thrown in for good measure. I probably shoot about 10,000 frames per year. So far I am very happy with the grip. When you install the grip on the camera, you must remove the original battery door of the camera. The grip has a place to store the door. This is the one small "problem" (if you can call it that) that I had with the grip. I did not have the door quite in the right place and at first I couldn't get the grip to seat properly in the camera. A cautious approach and a careful look at the situation revealed the problem and I had the grip attached in a few moments. The overall build of the grip is O.K. I'd certainly hope that the Canon unit is made better based on the price difference, but I can't complain. I can see where the rubber grip surface may start peeling off but super glue is pretty cheap. The latch on the battery tray needs to be paid close attention to. If the tray is not fully seated in the grip when you turn the latch, the tray will fall out. If you install it correctly however, you won't have any problems at all. The important components of the latch are made of metal and work well as long as you're paying attention. The Off/On switch on the grip controls the 2nd set of buttons. This is very convenient so that you don't accidentally push something when you are shooting "normally." The wheel and shutter button don't have the nice crisp feel of the original Canon controls - I'd describe them as "spongy." They work well though. As I said, I did not buy the grip for the buttons, but I'm glad it has them - they turned out to be more useful than I thought. Overall the grip does what it's supposed to do at what I consider an unbeatable price. I am very please with it.

The on/off switch didn't work correctly, but was able to send back and received a refund quickly. The off position should stop the grip from functioning so it's not bumped but the slider never clicked into place so the grip was on at all times.