Sony Vario-Tessar T* E 16-70 mm F4 ZA OSS Lens

Product Type

 Lens

Product images (click to enlarge):

Specifications

Brand

Sony

Model

Vario-Tessar T* E 16-70 mm F4 ZA OSS

Purchase type

One time

Full name	Sony Vario-Tessar T* E 16-70 mm F4 ZA OSS
Type	zoom
Producer Site	link
Announced	2013-08-27
In production	Yes
Product code	SEL1670Z
Price - launch (EU)	€ 1100
Price - launch (US)	$ 900+VAT
Weight	308 gr.
Length	75 mm.
Diameter	67 mm.
Amazon offer

Mount	Sony E
Sub-type mount	E (APS-C)
...for sensor / crop	APS-C 1.52x
Focals
Nominal focal range	16-70 mm.
Equiv. focals (35mm)	24-106 mm.
Zoom Ratio	4.4x
Powered zoom	No
Zoom extends	Yes
Aperture
Max aperture	f/4
...at longest focal	f/4
Aperture blades	7
Aperture ring	No
Clickless aperture	No
Customizable ring	No
Focus
Autofocus	Yes
Internal focus	Yes
Focus drive	Indirect
Focus distance info	No
Min focus distance	35 cm.
Max magnif. (eff.)	0.23x (35mm. equiv)
Build
Stabilization	Yes
N° of lenses/groups	16/12
Special elements	4 aspherical of which 1 super aspherical
Extra Low Dispersion	1
Front filter	55 mm.
Weather sealing	No
Electric contacts	Yes

Ken Rockwell
Sony's Zeiss 16-70mm OSS offers optical and ergonomic near perfection. There is no better zoom made for Sony APS-C cameras. The 16-70mm is ultra sharp at every aperture, has smooth bokeh that makes images look 3D, focuses fast and super close, and it has the perfect focal length range. It could easily be the only lens you'd need.
OpticalLimits 4.3/10
Sony/Zeiss did many things right - range, build quality, image stabilization but optical quality is not part of the list. Yes, the center quality is outstanding but the corners are often mediocre or even dismal. The 70mm setting is especially terrible here. Lateral CAs are high in the lower range [...] The build quality is impressive. [...] This Zeiss lens is both heavily overpriced and below average by today's standards.
Phillip Reeve
The center sharpness is excellent at all focal lenghts, only above 50mm I would stop down to f/5.6 for best results. The corners are not very good at the wide end of the focal range, demanding landscape photographers won’t be happy with this performance. Photographers who do not print big will like the lens a lot as a great one lens solution: It is fast, small, versatile and the images are very punchy. And the OSS is a handy feature.