low price, good performance

weak on zoom, zoom slow, manual focus is a must

What can one say. If you are looking for high grade then this is NOT the lens. The lens in suitable for outdoor conditions by cutting out glare. When used correctly its a fine addition to any photographer's lens array.

Cheap - can be had for less than $60 new
useable IQ stopped down
light weight

Poor build quality
poor IQ opened up

Stop down to f/8 and use it outside. I use it as a throw-away lens for shooting sports events in poor or dangerous conditions. I don't care if it gets ruined for this price, and stopped down it will offer useable results.

This one is due for replacement and I'll be looking at other options instead. Definately better glass out there.

In short, if you have one, use it & abuse it, then throw it away.

Customer Service

N/A

Similar Products Used:

Sigma 17-70
Pentax DA 18-55 AL
Pentax DA 18-55 AL II
Pentax FA 28-105 PZ

It's a decent value, and a fine substitute for the kit lens if you want a little more range on the long end. It's also only about 2 pixels from perfect sharpness - consider that most high-end L glass is 0.8 - 1.5 pixels off.

AF is slow and inaccurate, tends to hunt, and is completely useless and night. Inner barrel feels very loose. Flaring is a major problem as well.

This lens came with my kit when I bought my Rebel XT online, so I don't have the 18-55 to compare it to. However, I've seen some fairly good performance from this lens in terms of sharpness and CA control. It's nice and compact, although the inner barrel extends forward in a very awkward way at both the wide and zoom ends. The AF is also a major weakness. However, it's a good value and a highly usable range, so it's well suited for a beginner who's just starting with SLRs.

Similar Products Used:

Canon 50mm 1.8 <- EVERYONE SHOULD HAVE THIS LENS
Sigma 70-300 4.0-5.6

Comes with a hood.

Plastic body, poor picture quality, colours are not so good, sharpness is bad, and overexposed areas are screwing up the picture.

I personally think that the Tamron 28-80mm f3.5-f5.6 is a very bad lens.
It’s maybe good for beginners to learn something, but otherwise it’s awful.
Colours aren’t so good, sharpness is bad, overexposed areas are huge disaster. I’ve tried it with a Canon EOS 350D (a.k.a. Digital Rebel XT) and the results were dreadful.
In my opinion you can get a better image with the kit lens Canon 18-55mm EF-S 3.5 – 5.6, I’m talking about picture quality, colours, sharpness, even the autofocus of the kit lens is faster and les noisier.
I would prefer the lens to be with an aperture like 2.8 - .3.5 or only 2.8

Customer Service

none

Similar Products Used:

Canon EF-S 18-55mm - f3.5-5.6
Canon EF 17-40 - f4 L

low price

see above

This lens is a dog, even its low price can't save it. Many criticize the speed of zoom lenses and their poor picture quality, yet I have 4 zooms for my Nikon N80 that are so much better than this. This lens is the reason I began purchasing and exlusively using prime lenses. The biggest flaw is the lack of sharpness, even with a tribod and a cable.

Good value Low cost Light weight OK not great 4x6 prints Seems rugged enough to me

Not top level resolution, color, contrast, sharpness, or distortion.

This is a low cost lens that will produce nice 4x6 prints. It is very light weight and though many refer to it as poorly constructed note that nobody has actually had one break. Low weight means low mass if dropped, etc. If you are concerned about speed, distortion, flair and color and contrast this lens is OK but no match for lens that cost several times as much, what a surprise. Better pictures than new Canon 28-90!

Customer Service

Not needed

Similar Products Used:

Minolta 28-85 Pentax 28-80 Canon 28-90

Cheap, good optics

Construction (all in poor plastic) and vignetting at 3.5

My first AF lens, so nothing to compare with - I expected it to be a bit sharper, but now, as I'm gaining experience I must say it's really nice lens in terms of optics. Bit soft and vignetting wide open, but considering the price (used, new too expensive, compared eg. with Sigma 24-70 UC, which is actually cheaper) it's a very fine amateur lens.

Similar Products Used:

My first standard AF

This lens is sharp, contrasty, and has superb optics to rival Nikon's optics for a fraction of the price. The Nikon version has the AF-D distance chip, and therefore is fully compatible with the metering systems of the latest Nikon SLRs. It also has an aperture ring, for excellent compatibility with old Nikons. The lens is built like a tank compared to the new Nikkor 28-80mm f3.3-5.6G, having a nice rubberised zoom ring, and the focusing ring is wide enough to ensure easy manual focusing.

The main weakness of this lens is the plastic lens mount.

You can't buy a better lens for under US$100. Apart from the plastic lens mount, the Tamron 28-80mm f3.5-5.6 for Nikon AF-D could be the perfect beginner/amateur lens for Nikon owners on a budget. Highly recommended.

Customer Service

Never needed it. This lens comes with a 6 year warranty from Tamron.

Similar Products Used:

Nikon AF Zoom-Nikkor 28-80mm f3.5-5.6D Nikon AF Zoom-Nikkor 28-80mm f3.5-5.6D-N Nikon AF Zoom-Nikkor 28-80mm f3.3-5.6G Nikon AF Zoom-Nikkor 35-80mm f4-5.6D

Low price. Good not great color. Pretty good durability despite plastic body/

Slow speed, plastic feel.

Good beginner lens. Mine came with camera has been very good to learn with.

Customer Service

Not Needed.

Similar Products Used:

Tokina 28-70 f2.6-2.8

Quick focusing, whether AFed or done manually - plus, the zoom is nice and crisp. Color reproduction is good, sharpness is just fine. And hey - the plastic build may be a good thing. This one survived a three-foot drop off my desk when some idiot decided to knock about my equipment - it actually bounced on the lens hood and suffered no damage.

The particular lens I have is a bit loose on the mount - it hasn''t seemed to affect the quality of any of my shots, but it worries me sometimes. And yes, it''s a bit on the slow side - and remember, slow refers to the maximum aperature, not the speed of the focus. Still, unless you''re in a low-light situation, that''s not usually a problem. Also, because the thing''s so light, I''ve hand-held shots at 1/8th of a second or even slower and gotten good results. If your approach is sloppy, you''re going to get bad results - don''t always blame the lens. Watch out at the 28mm side - you can get some distortion toward the edges of your shots.

Sure, it''s made of plastic. Sure, it costs about as much as dinner for four at your average restaurant. Though it may look and feel cheap and cost next to nothing, this really isn''t a bad lens. For the range of zoom, you can''t beat the price and the build quality - anyone who''s dead-set on having "Canon" or "Nikon" stamped on every single one of their lenses might not go for this one, but if you''re more interested in performance vs. price, you have a pretty good choice here.

Customer Service

Haven''t needed it - which says something about the quality of the build.

Similar Products Used:

Canon 50mm f1.8