K5 battery grip

Q, what are these 3 rd party battery grips like sold on ebay from hong kong for eg. They are about a 5th of the price, but do they work well? Is there battery life worth it, considering all that extra bulk?

I know it's not a helpful answer, but I have never seen the point of a battery grip - not from a battery life point of view anyway. For me it's not a big issue to carry a spare battery or two and I'd rather do that than increase the bulk. If I needed to use AAs I'd consider getting a cheap one.

good point. i have always felt that way in the past too.

I bought one of those grips, and it's now permanently attached..... to the cupboard under my television.
In a word, it's horrible. It works but it feels so cheap and nasty, it makes me not want to use the camera when it's fitted.

I had a grip on my K200d, but don't seem to feel the need on the K5. I think the larger grip makes it easier to hold in portrait anyway.

As already said, save the money and buy a spare battery instead.

I find the grip adds to the balance of both the K5 & the K7, the release in portrait mode is useful and the additional battery and spare card slot adds to the usefulness.

Yes the cheapo's are about a 5th of the price, but the feedback on here, I've just got a K5 with a BG4 from SRS at a very good deal.

I can't quiet understand why anybody would put a piece of cheap and nasty plastic on a £1000 camera,plus you could invalidate the warranty if the camera develops a fault as a result.
Remember-the quality remains when the price is forgotten
Regards
Chris