Last spring we got a number of Ex-batts - we brought home 31, gave 3 to a friend and 11 to another friend. TBH I have found the whole experience incredibly rewarding. When they arrived they were a scraggy agraphobic lot. For the first few days we kept them in a very small area until they settled in and then let them have the run of the field. The first 2 weeks they stayed pretty close to their shed, but then slowly explored further and further afield. It was fascinating watching them rediscover what it means to be a chicken and learn to follow their natural instincts. They didn't really recover all their plummage until they had their first moult August/September and now look like any other chicken except that their top beak is still a bit short from when it was trimmed at the battery farm.
They do tend to get poorly easily though - I don't know if this is because they were heavily vaccinated at the battery farm or whether its just that they are so spent that their immune systems are bit low. So we have had a few deaths.
The only other difference I've found is that they are more aggressive than any other chickens I've dealt with. This was the case both when they arrived and sorted out their pecking order and also when we introduced new hens to the flock. I know there is always going to be some argybargy whilst they sort themselves out, but the ex-batts really don't take any prisoners.
All-in-all I would go for it if I were you, but be aware that there will be some deaths! This is only my experience and I have no idea what other peoples experiences are. I've included some photos too.