[regken]

Well my bet is the Pentax even if it is the Tamron with name and other small changes is going to be better than the Tamron. Pentax has a lot more to loose by putting out a poor quality lens. They aren't close to the top of the list of market leaders. Tamron on the other hand is well known for quality control issues.

I really don't think Pentax is going to risk customers and what little marketshare they have and not make sure the lens with their name on it isn't the best it can be for that grade of lens. This is a $500 lens.

I would also like to point out that just because specifications look the same doesn't mean that it is a Tamron lens. It could be that both Tamron and Pentax designed the 18-250 to the best specifications possible (f stop speed, etc.) and so they came out very similar for a lens that is 18-250mm. I don't know, but no one knows if it is a Tamron either. As I said Pentax has a lot more to loose than Tamron does.

Robert

Robert,

As reported by more than one owner of the new Pentax 18-250 it is clearly marked "Made in Japan". Pentax does not have any manufacturing capacity in Japan but Tamron does. It is just foolish to think a company is going to buy an OEM product and then change it. This is a rebadged Tamron lens. There is a long history of Pentax doing this and there is no reason for them to throw money away by reinventing what is getting great reviews. It is beyond me as to why you and others hang on to the idea these 2 lenses are somehow different.

Regards,

Ken

Well my bet is the Pentax even if it is the Tamron with name and other small changes is going to be better than the Tamron. Pentax has a lot more to loose by putting out a poor quality lens. They aren't close to the top of the list of market leaders. Tamron on the other hand is well known for quality control issues.

As much as I like most of the pentax products that I own I would say that the QC issues of the DA*16-50 might be easily in the top five of the year, and we are speaking about a 900$ lens. Besides, Tamron gives you 6 year warranty. I would dare to say that Pentax 18-250 is 100% tamron. My only doubt would be the external coatings.

[m8o]

I would imagine the Pentax branded lens's biggest difference is it contains the MTF tables programmed into the lens, allowing for effective use of the P/MTF mode to provide for automatic optimal lens setting operation. The Tamron would operate in a 'default' mode if you selected P/MTF, and not change the lens's f-stop settings based on selected focal length (and focus distance? and other parameters? you can tell I only have a peripheral understanding of P / MTF mode anyway at best ).

[bymy141]

Robert,

As reported by more than one owner of the new Pentax 18-250 it is clearly marked "Made in Japan". Pentax does not have any manufacturing capacity in Japan but Tamron does. It is just foolish to think a company is going to buy an OEM product and then change it. This is a rebadged Tamron lens. There is a long history of Pentax doing this and there is no reason for them to throw money away by reinventing what is getting great reviews. It is beyond me as to why you and others hang on to the idea these 2 lenses are somehow different.

Regards,

Ken

If you have a look at the Sony site, you'll find out that also Sony has added this lens to its portfolio. Having worked with Canon printer division in the past (the OEM printers to HP, actually 99.5% is Canon), my bet would be that all these lenses are the same. Japanese companies are very good in producing quality products since 1965 or so. However, they have a hard time coping with flexibility.
Getting the outside of the lens to look like a Pentax is probably enough of a challenge to them.

- Bert

[truonganh]

Could someone post a picture of the 18-250 side-by-side with the stock lens 18-55 or the 50-200? there are dimensions posted, but i like to get a visual sense of the sheer size of these superzoom.

I myself have an old Tamron 28-300 (pre digital days). That thing is definitely a beast.

[jamesk8752]

Could someone post a picture of the 18-250 side-by-side with the stock lens 18-55 or the 50-200? there are dimensions posted, but i like to get a visual sense of the sheer size of these superzoom.

I myself have an old Tamron 28-300 (pre digital days). That thing is definitely a beast.

You can find shots I took of the DA 18-250 at its shortest and longest extensions, a series of shots which assess its light falloff (NOT vignetting), and a few samples of typical subjects here: Pentax SMC-DA 18-250mm f3.5-6.3 Superzoom Lens Photo Gallery by Jim King at pbase.com

While I didn't include a shot of the kit lens for comparison, the DA 18-250 is about the same size as the my DA 16-45, although slightly heavier. It balances well on my K10D, zooms smoothly, and seems to be extremely well built, with no barrel wobble even when extended. I'm quite pleased with this lens for walkabout/travel shooting. It won't replace my DA* lenses but it is a nice supplement.

Regards, Jim

[WendyB]

Could someone post a picture of the 18-250 side-by-side with the stock lens 18-55 or the 50-200? there are dimensions posted, but i like to get a visual sense of the sheer size of these superzoom.

I myself have an old Tamron 28-300 (pre digital days). That thing is definitely a beast.

I can do that, give me a day or so. Do you want long or short?

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Last edited by WendyB; 12-01-2007 at 10:48 PM. Reason: more options

[Canada_Rockies]

HERE's some samples

I hate you. I was just repacking my LowePro Trekker tonight to switch to my new gear, and was cursing because I just couldn't squeeze the A 70-210/4 in there to cover the gap between the DA* 50-135 and the M 400/5.6 because the DA12-24 and DA*16-50 and DA*50-135 are so fat, and here you have to go and ruin my good intentions of not buying any more lenses with those shots with the 18-250 and that lens covers the gap beautifully and my LBA has come back. I just bought three (3) new, expensive (c$750 and up each) and now I have to find $500 to go out and get the lens to fill the gap and I'll have to buy a new backpack to hold it as well as the rest of my gear, and I'm ... where did I put that Visa card, anyway ... Oh, yeah. SWMBO confiscated it ... But next year is less than a month away!

[WendyB]

You can find shots I took of the DA 18-250 at its shortest and longest extensions, a series of shots which assess its light falloff (NOT vignetting), and a few samples of typical subjects here: Pentax SMC-DA 18-250mm f3.5-6.3 Superzoom Lens Photo Gallery by Jim King at pbase.com

While I didn't include a shot of the kit lens for comparison, the DA 18-250 is about the same size as the my DA 16-45, although slightly heavier. It balances well on my K10D, zooms smoothly, and seems to be extremely well built, with no barrel wobble even when extended. I'm quite pleased with this lens for walkabout/travel shooting. It won't replace my DA* lenses but it is a nice supplement.

Regards, Jim

James I came to quite the same conclusion, well said.