size, sharp in almost full range, macro, 62mm

none for my product uses so far

Great lense, compact size, light weight, very versatile

Similar Products Used:

minolta 35-80mm Minolta 70-300mm

Price Size (62mm thread size) Weight Versatility Good focus speed

Lens hood...looks good, but vignettes at wide angle.

First of all, lets compare apples to apples. I''m going to rate this lens as a consumer level product, to keep things fair. This lens is a terrific value, and a more than reasonable alternative to carrying several lenses. I bring a camera with me everywhere I go, which made this lens a natural choice. I put this lens on a Canon A2 with very satifying results. If you''ve tried the older versions, you probably know about the slow focusing. Not so with this lens...I was very surprised, and am quite pleased with the speed of focus (operates very well in predictive AF!). This lens is as good as any consumer level zoom on the market, and delivers good performance for sharpness, contrast and ergonomics. It''s a bit stiff when new, but breaks in easily, and zooms smoothly after a bit of use. With it''s more compact size, the lens does not interfere with the built in flash, or the AF assist in low light...reducing the need to search for focus. I''m not sure why some reviews mention a noisy autofocus, mine is whisper quiet. Maybe I''m just hard of hearing

Customer Service

Not used.

Similar Products Used:

Tried older versions...didn''t like ''em. Canon zooms, Nikon MF lenses.

Good Build construction AWESOME Range Nice Lens Cap! Sharp when stopped down

Bad chromatic aberration in Daylight shots Noisy Slow focus, and would hunt forever in low light Soft near 300mm Soft wide open

To sum it up...I was disappointed with this lens. The concept of a 28-200mm lens on a D30(would make it 45-320 with the 1.6 crop factor) is awesome, and would be an ideal range for a lot of photographers. I used this lens everyday for 14 days trying to convince myself it was good enough to keep. I just couldn''t do it, so I returned it before the return period expired. The results I was getting were hot and cold. Some pics were dazzling, while most were just plain miserable. I found a lot of bad chromatic aberrations in almost all of my daylight pictures. Was reasonably sharp when stopped down...but wide open at all lengths and was soft all around near 200mm. Also, focusing is very noisy and slow. Pity...I really wanted this lens to work out...but it just didn''t cut it for me. On the plus side...build quality was very good, even though the zoom ring was a bit stiff. I liked lens cap...you can remove it very easily even with the hood on due to the recessed grips. Nice built lens, and not too big...but optically I''d just rate it average to slightly below average. I just got a Canon USM 24-85..and this is how a lens should operate, both mechanically and optically....

Customer Service

Didn''t have it long enough to need it!

Similar Products Used:

Promaster 28-200 (years ago...on a Canon Rebel), Sigma 28-200, (also years ago on a Pentax SLR), Canon 24-85 (my new lens...this one ROCKS)

- compact, light; - flexibility; - sharp compared with similar products.

- Haven''t found one yet

The lens is excellent for travel: compact, light in weight and the flexibility from wide 28mm to tele 200mm. The autofocus is fast when using on my Minolta 800si. The image is sharp with aperature F8 or smaller.

Customer Service

- Haven''t needed yet

Similar Products Used:

- Minolta AF 28-135mm (almost 10 years old) - Minolta AF 35-70mm - Sigma AF 28-200mm - Minolta AF 50mm - Sigma AF 105mm EX Macro

small, light weight. Big range of focal lengths....nice rubber grip for zoom...has a zoom lock switch.

LOVE IT!! Upgraded from an older version of the same thing (28-200 Promaster) and this was is so much smaller! nice and clear through the viewfinder (compared to my other one)...pictures turn out nice and clear even at the zoom end. Bought this type of lens for an all purpose one that stays on all the time.

Similar Products Used:

Promaster 28-200 (supposely made by either Tamron or Sigma)

Weight, size, reasonable optical quality. Good contrast, reasonable flare, low distortion

A little soft at 28mm wide open and 120+ will not equal the better zooms in this range like my 80-200F2.8D tripod mt. Nikon. But what does?

On a Nikon N80 body, the weight/balance is perfect, even the color/style matches to boot. Optically, this lens from 28mm-105 is equal in most regards to my Nikon 28-105mm. The Nikon is slightly sharper wide open and 2 stops down esp. at 28mm in the center but the Tarmron XR beats the Nikon at the edges. Overall, I give it a tie depending on your subject, of course. At the 105mm end, it is more of a even match. Considering the size/weight, which is less than the Nikon 28-105mm, this lens seems to be a reasonable choice over the Nikon if you can shoot the Tamron at F6.3 at 105mm to stop it down a little. Throw in the 105mm to 200mm range and it starts to become a ''no brainer'' if size, weight and travel are factors. Cost is a close wash. I have already sold my Nikon. You will have another lens in your bag to cover the 105+ range on a trip or just miss the shot with the Nikon 28-105. I have the Nikon 24-85mm for higher quality shots,but even it needs to be down 2 stops to really perform and to beat the Tamron XR. A real winner from Tarmon. I tried the prior gens of the Tarmon 28-200 lens several times, but the quality/weight/size/cost/close focus trade-offs failed my reqs. 4+

Customer Service

none

Similar Products Used:

Nikon 28-105mm, Nikon 24-85mm, Nikon 24-120MM. Nikon 80-200F2.8 Tried Tamron 24-135, see my review.

Weight, size, reasonable optical quality. Good constrast, reasonable flare, low dist.

A litte soft at 28mm wide open and 120+ will not equal the better zooms in this range like my 80-200F2.8D tripod mt. Nikon. But what does?

On a Nikon N80 body, the weight/balance is perfect, even the color/style matchs to boot. Optically, this lens from 28mm-105 is equal in most regards to my Nikon 28-105mm. The Nikon is slightly sharper wide open and 2 stops down esp. at 28mm in the center but the Tarmron XR beats the Nikon at the edges. Overall, I give it a tie depending on your subject, of course. At the 105mm end, it is more of a even match. Considering the size/weight, which is less than the Nikon 28-105mm, this lens seems to be a reasonable choice over the Nikon if you can shoot the Tamron at F6.3 at 105mm to stop it down a little. Throw in the 105mm to 200mm range and it starts to become a ''no brainer'' if size, weight and travel are factors. Cost is a close wash. I have already sold my Nikon. You will have another lens in your bag to cover the 105+ range on a trip or just miss the shot with the Nikon 28-105. I have the Nikon 24-85mm for higher quality shots,but even it needs to be down 2 stops to really peform and to beat the Tamron XR. A real winner from Tarmon. I tried the prior gens of the Tarmon 28-200 lens serveral times, but the quality/weight/size/cost/close focus trade-offs failed my reqs. 4+

Customer Service

None

Similar Products Used:

Nikon 28-105mm, Nikon 24-85mm, Nikon 24-120MM. Nikon 80-200F2.8 Tried Tamron 24-135, see my review.

Light weight, small, sharp.

The zoom ring is quite stiff.

I bought this lens together with my Canon EOS 66 Date as a back up camera. The lens itself is surprisingly small, it''s just a bit longer than basic lens from EOS 66 kit. Pictures are sharp. I also own Nikon F80D with several lens. When I tried this XR28-200, I think I''ll get one for my Nikon too.

Customer Service

-

Similar Products Used:

Nikon F80, Canon EOS 50E, Nikon 28-80, Nikon 70-300, Sigma 28-70

weight, size, filter diameter (62mm comparing to 72mm on most 28-200 zooms. filters ar much cheaper for the XR). sharpness. lock switch - very convenient.

as with most super zooms, aparture is a bit slow (f3.8-f5.6). plastic feeling - some don''t like it. sharpness at wide apartures and long focal length decreases a somewhat at the side of the picture.

Great all-around lens. very light, average or above average AF speed, quality is surprisingly high for this kind of a lens. very easy to operate, although u do pay a price for the size and weight - the focus ring is very small, so when you focus manualy at 25-50MM focal length, u have to remove the sunshield. at AF- no problem. although, the zoom ring moves a bit slowly from 28mm to 100mm - and then a small move takes u from 135 to 200mm - a bit unproportional. sharpness is very good, especialy in small apartures - between f/8 to f/16. for a matter of fact, the sharpnes is much better not only from similar lenses but also from some good 100-300 lenses achive at 200mm. i tried the lens with several print and slide films (mostly kodak, some fujipro), and the quality was higher than i expected based on former experience with super-zooms. very low distortion, relatively. flare is well controlled - unless you focus with the sun inside the frame, or very close above. of course, i would''ve liked the lens more if it would have a faster aparture - but at this size, i see no reason to complain. i have some other lenses, and used some more, and of course this lens won''t replace my 50/f1.4 lens or very costly wide-aperture lenses. but as an all-around lens, especialy when the weight is a consideration, this lens is for now without real comptetition.

Customer Service

didn''t need.

Similar Products Used:

minolta 50mm f1.4, sigma 28-200 (on Canon camera), Vivitar 135MM f2.8 (old, MF), Minolta 28-105MM (f3.5-f4.5), Minolta 100-300MM f4-f5.6, Canon 75-300MM III f4-5.6., 105F2 Nikkor

Light, good price, comes with a lens hood

Autofocus not as fast as with the original Canon lens

I bought this lens as I was looking for something with greater zoom than the original Canon 28-80 that came with the camera. I decided for the Tamron because the price/value ratio seemed OK. I shot a couple of rolls so far and do not regret bying the lens at all. The zoom range is just about perfect for casual photography. The lens is light, a great advantage when you''re travelling outdoors. The pictures I''ve taken so far are clear, landscape photos taken with small aperture are perfectly sharp. Overall, I would suggest this lens to anyone needing a versatile lens.

Customer Service

Still waiting for the rebate.

Similar Products Used:

None