Originally Posted by séamuis 
you have any evidence to back that statement up? and your test is a bit bogus. were these photos handheld? at 1.8, the slightest movement by you can cause a mis-focus that might not be viewable in the VF. wide open tests are so often done so poorly its just ridiculous to blame the equipment. you just don't know for sure that it is the lens. im not buying it unless you can do a proper test.
I get the feeling you pre-judged this lens right out of the box, simply because it wasn't 'made in Japan'. guess what? a hand assembled lens is a hand assembled lens. whether they are Vietnamese hands, Japanese hands, Chinese hands, Philippine hands or American hands. you think the Vietnamese workers are any less trained or skilled than the Japnese assemblers? certainly paid less, but there is no evidence to say that the Japanese worker will produce a better lens.
I dont need to convince you. you have your own conviction and I have mine. yes I quite raise a brow whenever something from vietnam whether lens or any other product comes in. your skeptic about my facts, so do I against your belief. call it bogus but I'm not changing my thinking about it unless I see some improvement. I don't simply jump or prejudge a particular product where it came from unless I saw some faults myself. honestly speaking, in majority, if not all , a Japanese worker takes pride and dedication in his work compared to any other worker. that's a known fact unless you are unaware of it. and it's been like that as long as you could even remember. here is an argument for you as well, do you have proof that vietnamese assemblers are better or have equal assembling capability comapred to their hapanese counterparts? if you could cite any improvement or advantage of vietnamese made lenses, that might lessen my skepticism.