Thread Rating:
  • 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
next PZ lens test report: Pentax DA 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 WR
#2
[quote name='Klaus' timestamp='1302954835' post='7677']

Avoid ...



[url="http://www.opticallimits.com/pentax/597-pentax_18135_3556"]http://www.opticallimits.com/pentax/597-pentax_18135_3556[/url]

[/quote]



A couple of comments:



Optical Rating: The DA18-135 is an optical doppelganger of the [url="http://www.opticallimits.com/canon-eos/462-canon_18135_3556is?start=1"]Canon EF-S 18-135mm[/url], but the latter gets an extra +0.5 stars.



Not to mention the Canon benefits slightly from a smaller sensor size.



Further, the DA 18-135 is pretty tiny at 73mm length while the EF-S is 101mm, so the optical rating should be tempered a bit by the size...some concession can be made to trade-off for portability.



Price/Performance Rating: The DA 18-135 is only USD49 more than the EF-S 18-135 (according to the B&H ad beside the ratings), but the DA 18-135 includes the 2-pc hood (retail $60 value, FWIW), weather seals and metal body. Yet the Canon gets +1.5 stars. Sorry that the Europeans are getting shafted on the pricing, but the Price/Performance rating would be more fair with regional conditions (although they were mentioned at the beginning of the article, anyone jumping to the rating/conclusion would not get that).



That said, it's still only a mediocre lens, but the rating and "Avoid!" warning seem a bit harsh.



Also, I wonder how much the K-5 body will show up lens uneveness. As noted in the Canon review "...it's really surprising to see that this lens is bundled with the EOS 7D which is even more demanding in terms of required lens quality than the EOS 50D used for this test.".
  


Messages In This Thread
next PZ lens test report: Pentax DA 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 WR - by dave9t5 - 04-16-2011, 03:16 PM

Forum Jump:


Users browsing this thread:
1 Guest(s)