Outstanding optics Large and smooth zoom ring Constant f4 aperture Nice size with a very solid build Works Excellent as a Macro with the Nikon 5T close-up lens

Tiny MF ring! AF a little slow No "D" chip

A beautiful lens. Very solid feel. It is a very smooth lens. And sharp looking too! The optics are fantastic. It out performed the similar products listed bellow. Colors were true and the sharpest of the bunch. I shoot a lot of Macro stuff so I was looking for a macro lens I could afford! This lens with the Nikon 5T close-up lens is a great combo. Gets down to 1:1.5 ish. Using the zoom, this combo allows you to frame your macro shots with out having to move the tripod much. Also has a great working distance! The f4 aperture allows for lost of light to focus by!

Customer Service

NA

Similar Products Used:

Nikkor 75-300 f4.5-5.6 Sigma 180 macro f5.6 Sigma 75-300 DL Macro f4-5.6 D

Excellent image quality. Lightweight. Uses cheaper 62mm filters.

A bit slow at focus even on my F100. Good examples are hard to find.

Everyone seems to want a lens in this range."Many" years ago I wished for but could not afford the Nikkor 80-200 F4.5. I finally bought one used & It was a dog. Later i found yet another one in near mint condition;another failure.With its excellent reputation I was dissapointed. I moved to auto focus & tried again ,this time with the 70-210 f4.Another failure as it would not focus properly.Undeterred I bought yet another 70-210 F4 & finally found a winner..This lens is brilliant & rivals good primes including my 85mm F1.8.It is lightweight & reasonably small & above all produces excellent image quality. This lens cures my desire for the 80-200 F2.8. The latter lens may have only one advantage over the 70-210 & that is focus speed. Buyer beware with this & any used auto focus lens!!They do not allways focus correctly.(new ones too)

Customer Service

Not required

Similar Products Used:

Nikkor 80-200 F4.5 (two examples) Vivitar 90-180 (an excellent,big ,heavey lens.

Sharp.?xD;?xA;No vignetting.?xD;?xA;Accurate focus.?xD;?xA;Easy zoom action.?xD;?xA;Very good bokeh.?xD;?xA;f4.

Slow AF action (other than F5, F100).?xD;?xA;Noisy.?xD;?xA;Worst MF feel.?xD;?xA;Rather bulky (Is EF70-200/4 smaller?)

Who jealous of EF70-200/4? Nkon made it 15+years ago. It should be one of the best AF Nikkor non-pro zoom even produced.

Customer Service

-

Similar Products Used:

80-200/2.8?xD;?xA;75-300?xD;?xA;75-150?xD;?xA;50-135

Quite light and compact for what it does, especially with regards to the constant aperture of f/4. It is light enough that I can hand-hold it comfortably with my F4s in one hand, though I always use two to minimize lens shake. I am very happy with the glass... it is VERY sharp in my experience, and it has good "bokeh." ë

AF is not so great if there is not a large amount of contrast in the scene (or between the object you want to focus on and the rest of the scene), or if it''s slightly dark. The AF in my 50mm and 85mm is better in these circumstances, as is the AF in a Tamron zoom my father uses. However, I have not experienced the "autofocus error" at both ends of the zoom; it works very well with the exception of the above circumstances, during which it searches in and out of focus. It could stand to be a little quieter. But for the price of a cheap third-party zoom, considering it''s Nikon optics, I''m not complaining too loudly!

The best price/performance of all of my lenses (50mm 1.4, and 85mm 1.8), the 70-210mm with constant f/4 is a great compromise for those who cannot afford, or do not want to carry, the 80-200 f/2.8. I paid around $250 but it can be had for under $200 now if you know where to look.

Customer Service

I haven''t had the occasion to use it.

Similar Products Used:

Tamron 28-200 AF (not sure of the model), Nikon 50mm 1.4 AF, Nikon 85mm 1.8 AF.?

****contruction
***compatability with other nikon bodies
***price/affordability
**color saturation
**sharpness
*focal range

--rotating focusing rim
-plastic feel of the barrel

I bought this lens at the pawn shop for $50. The pawn shop didn't know if it worked or not and sold it with as is. It's the best $50 I spent all year.

The contruction on this early AF Nikkor is far better than the current production. Granted it's not a Nikkor "D" lens, I feel that the sharpness is increadible. These lens are better in my opinion because at the time japan inspected majority of it's exports and they placed that famous gold inspection sticker.

It's still a pretty slow lens, but you can't beat a $50 Nikkor lens with that old school Nikon construction!

Similar Products Used:

-Nikkor 70-300mm f4-5.6 ED/D
-Nikkor 70-210mm f4-5.6 D

1. Fairly sharp. Use small apertures, say F8.
2. Sturdy and well built
3. Aperture stays fixed as you zoom from 70 to 210.
4. Neutral colors.
5. Common filter size of 62mm.
6. Little distortion.
7. No perceptible vigneting

1. Heavy
2. Filter ring rotates during focusing making the use of polarizers difficult.
3. bulky since it is somewhat long and heavy at the lens front end.

A good lens if you don't mind the weight and bulk.
Produces sharp portraits. Neutral color.
The constant aperture makes its use convenient especially for determining proper exposure. I can zoom in to the area of middle gray , set the exposure, then zoom out to the FL I want to shoot the picture.

Great value but now discontinued and replaced by a variable aperture lens - not OK!.

Customer Service

None yet tried

Similar Products Used:

Vivitar Series 1 70-210
Tokina 35-200
Kiron 80-200

Nice focal range. Quite sharp, without any perceptible falloff at the ends. Affordable.

Pretty slow. Moderate light throughout the focal range. Has been discontinued. 25% heavier.

I have been pleasantly surprised with this lens. I picked it up used for $220, knowing that for a few dollars more ($260 at B&H) I could get the
70-210 f/4-5.6 with a warranty. Most people will still opt for the new one, but I don't regret my decision. This lens rates a 4.5 in David Ruether's Nikon Tables, whereas the new version gets a 3.5-4. Anything over a 4 he calls a 'pro' lens. I don't know about that, with the 2.8 readily available. But this one doesn't suffer the distortion that the other model supposedly does (I have no firsthand knowledge of this).
But for those unable to afford the 80-200 f/2.8 who want something within this focal range, this lens does give them another option. I see one or two a month in the photo mags, going for $190-230. If you went this route, you would want to buy from a reputable dealer - one whose
ratings you could trust. Or better yet, try and get a physical look-see. It is about 25% heavier than its newer counterpart. I'm not sure when it
was discontinued.

Customer Service

Haven't used

Similar Products Used:

None in this focal range

Very sharp optics. Very contrasty.

VERY slow/noisy AF (even on an F5), no IF, manual focus ring to narrow, discontinued model (!)

if you can't afford the 80-200 zoom, this is the ONLY real alternative. The variable aperture 70-210 is crappy compared to this one. Nikon should put out a new version with better AF, better manual focus ring and a D-chip!

Similar Products Used:

Nikkor 70-210 f4-5.6

This lens is razor sharp at all apertures, solid and well built. Constant arperture.

none

I've tested all above mentioned lenses. This one is the best. Agree with D Legaspi : "if you can't afford the 80-200 zoom (f2.8), this is the ONLY real alternative".

Similar Products Used:

Canon and Nikon Lenses:
-Canon 200 f4 MF
-Canon 80-200f4-5.6 AF
-Nikkor 70-300mm f4-5.6 ED/D
-Nikkor 70-300 f4-5.6 G
-Nikkor 70-210mm f4-5.6 D

SSSSSHHHHAAAARRRRRPPP LENSE!!!
i took a close up at my mom.....i swear i could see all the pores in her face!...i was going to get the 80-200 2.8...but couldnt afford it, but after reading these reviews, i decided to buy it...
just as the two other people said: this is the ONLY alternative!
sharp lense!

while this is a long and somewhat heavy lense...it is still lighter and smaller than the 80-200 2.8...a good alternative...
this lense is also a slow design, so the focusing is a LITTLE slow, but ascceptable...the front element also rotates

a great lense and a great alternative if you cant afford the 90-200 2.8, or if you dont like the size and weight. For 200 dallors,this was a GREAT deal!

Customer Service

havent tried...

Similar Products Used:

sigma 70-300 apo
nikon 70-300 ed
80-200 2.8 ed
pentax 80-200