I recently picked this lens up for about $20 with shipping from the local auction site. I’ve been looking for a replacement for my Nikkor 18-55 kit lens which bit the dust (literally) about 2 years ago and which has been hors-de-combat since then, at least where AF is concerned.
So, I’ve been keeping my eye out for a cheap replacement. This Sigma has a screw-drive lens, not HSM, which probably drove down the price.
Compared to the Nikkor, this one has a lot of advantages, build-wise. Sure, it’s plastic, but it has a metal mount and a focusing scale. The manual focusing ring is also less awful than on the Nikkor.
I haven’t compared them side by side, but I get the feeling that the Sigma is more compact.
Image quality wise I think they’re on par. I notice more CA from the Sigma, but I might be more critical now than when I had the Nikkor.
However much (or little) I paid for the Sigma, it still feels just adequate in handling (just like the Nikkor). Even if I know intellectually that the images from the lens will be indistinguishable from more expensive lenses, the plastic feel and lack of aperture ring put me off. I bought it as a party and travel lens, and though I’ll try to get it out and about and take great images with it, it will never be my primary lens.