It seems to me that there are compromises and trade-offs no matter what course you take. For me, the 18-250mm is perfect. While I realize that it might not be the sharpest lens in the bag at the extreme ends of its focal length, the fact that it covers that incredible range and gives me a one-lens-does-all convenience is more than enough to entice me to get one. We travel a lot and I want one lens on my camera without the worry of having to drag a lot of lenses around, without the worry of dust while changing lenses and without the concern of missing a shot because I was in the process of changing. These factors are over-riding ones for me but perhaps not for you. And from everything I've read, the lens appears to be reasonably sharp and have reasonable chromatic aberration control. AND the price is certainly within my budget.