Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I'm a pure Canon lens user for the past 3.5 years. Currently using EOS 40D. This is my very first third party lens & initially was quite skeptical. After thinking it over, I went ahead to give it a try because I can't afford the Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM. After playing with the new Tamron lens for almost two weeks, here's some of my 2 cent comments: Good News first (wow so many don't know where to begin): -Great optical performance! All photos taken are really sharp. -Accurate, consider fast and consistent autofocus. -Zoom ring isn't cramped or stiff, easy to turn (opposite direction of Canon lens). -Surprisingly at 17mm I hardly can see any barrel distortion! -I can't detect any chromatic aberration & Vignette problem. All photos look clean & accurate. But it doesn't mean they are not there. Maybe I need to get my eyes checked. :-) -Nice weight (lighter than my Canon 24-105L) & feel, will be my new walkaround lens. -AF is noisier than Canon USM. It sounds like soft "mechanical turning & twisting". Some photographers may find this annoying but I'm perfectly alright with this. It's not too loud & certainly won't disttract your subject or model. In fact, I'm getting used to the sound & feel good knowing my lens is working properly (see below too). -Manual focusing is easy to use. -AF is fast & accurate, so you can hardly hear the AF noise except under extreme low light situation (the AF is a bit tad slow & the noise is more obvious). -Bokeh. I love it! -The Vibration Control VC feature is also great & I can go down really low & pic still sharp. -Sharpness of this Tamron lens is at par with my Canon 24-105L. On color comparison, I find Tamron produces a bit more saturate & brighter. Bad News (hmm...I have to think of some negatives because no lens are perfect): -The focal length lock is a nice feature & but it can only lock at 17mm. Would be nice if it can also lock at other focal length. -No manual booklet. Only a piece of info sheet in Japanese. There's no English version. -Hmm...at f/2.8 photo results are slightly darker than other aperture used. I tried both AV & Manual mode but still the same. No big deal, I can use the exposure compensation. -Also at open wide f/2.80 image is slightly softer but super tack sharp once reach f/4.0. Overall View: Well done Tamron! It's light-weight and has a fast maximum aperture of f/2.8 for shooting in low-light, this is a solid lens. At 50% cheaper than Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM & with great IQ, will use the amount saved on other camera accessories. I'm as happy as a Jolly Bee, have totally no gripe at all. I do not hesitate to recommend this lens for anyone who wants a fast, constant aperture, light-weight standard zoom lens. The image quality is great and the VC works good.