Nikon 18-200VR Vs Sigma 18-200

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Hi Chaps,

I'm looking for a bit of advice. I'm just starting off in the world of photography and have a Nikon D40X with the standard 18-55mm lens.

I am looking to get the Nikon 18-200mm lens as an everyday lens which I hear are very good and also has AF which the D40X needs as it doesn't have a motor.

My father in law is returning from Hong Kong shortly and can pick up the Nikon 18-200VR lens for about £350 out there. But the shop owner has advised him that the Sigma 18-200mm lens is better value for money. Apparently the Nikon is made in Thailand whereas the Sigma is made in Japan. He also said that the Sigma has a better VR than the Nikon. It is also about £80-£90 cheaper than the Nikon.

Admittedly I didn't know that the Sigma 18-200mm lens has VR (Vibration Reduction) - is this a new lens?

The only issue I have read regarding the Nikon is that it has problems with dust entering the lens.

I have been searching through the forum for information on this for some time but cannot find a definitive answer. As my father in law is returning soon I need to make a choice soon.

Does anyone have experience of both? Which one is best to go for?

Many thanks! :)
 
I don't have experience of the Sigma but have heard good things about it.

I do have the Nikon 18-200vr and have been very happy with it. IQ is very impressive and I have had no problems with dust. Have had two of these having destroyed one accidentally and was happy with that one as well.

Hope this helps in some way.

Chris :)
 
it is called OS (optical stabilisation) in sigmas
 
I only have experience with the Nikon which i recently purchased, i have to say in the limited amount of use i've given it i'm very happy at the moment, the problem with sigma lenses is they have quality control issues, so if you get a good one thay are normally great, but if you get a dodgy one it means eithier sending it back or sending it to sigma for calibration, which i'm not sure you can do if you,ve bought it from the far east, so just something to think about.

However what i would say if you can afford Nikon go for it, better glass in my opinion, if i could afford it i would go for Nikon glass everytime, as regards them being made in Thailand i would,ent worry about that, Nikon still have a very good reputation to live up to wherever there made (y)
 
tel48 said:
However what i would say if you can
afford Nikon go for it, better glass in my opinion, if i could afford it i would go for Nikon glass everytime, as regards them being made in Thailand i would,ent worry about that, Nikon still have a very good reputation to live up to wherever there made (y)
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Actually a recent review in What Digital Camera had the Sigma with OS head and shoulders above the rest. I'd go for that one based on the review alone.
 
NorthernNikon said:
Actually a recent review in What Digital Camera had the Sigma with OS head and shoulders above the rest. I'd go for that one based on the review alone.
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Again providing you get a good copy you could be right, bearing in mind where the OP is thinking of buying from,as i've never heard of Nikon having quality control issues.
 
tel48 said:
Again providing you get a good copy you could be right, bearing in mind where the OP is thinking of buying from,as i've never heard of Nikon having quality control issues.
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I think the sigma quality control thing is over played a little, I've not heard many complaining about the majority of there lenses it just seems the 10-22 has some issues that have tainted the rest of the range. I've never heard of anyone getting a duff Sigma 17-70 for example or an 18-200 for that matter.

Back on topic I've no direct experience of either lens although a friend has achieved some excleent results with the sigma lens on his Canon and swears by it especially the OS.
 
Thanks for your input guys.

Though I'm still unsure as to which one to go for, particularly as I just found out that the Sigma is actually £100+ cheaper than the Nikon.

I can just about afford the Nikon but it would mean I would have to hold off getting the Hoya Circular Polariser I also want.

Do Sigma lenses consistently have quality control issues or is it just isolated cases?

If I were to get the Sigma, how do you check whether it is a dud one? You cannot take goods back for a refund/return in Hong Kong unlike UK so need to be sure. What are the usual problems with them?

I had my heart set on the Nikon but the Sigma really is very tempting. :help:
 
I bought the Nikon 18-200 from Kerso for an excellent price. The quality of the lens and the resulting images are brilliant, I'd highly recommend trying to get hold of these both to try out if possible.
 
Sigma have an international warrenty (1 year) on new lenses im sure so if it wasnt spot on then will be fine to send back to sigma as tel48 said and get it sorted.
 
I have had the misfortune of buying one of the Sigma PUP's.. I purchased a while back a 18-200 non VR model and I had issues where in some instances the camera would ERR and the mirror would get stuck.

This was down to the poor quality control on the sigma items. The rear lens element had not be tightened and was protruding in to the camera workings at certain focal lengths. I returned this lens and was given the Tamron version instead which was more expensive. Cameraworld gave me this lens with no extra charge.

Since then I have purchased the Nikon 18-200 VR and was also contemplating the Sigma version willing to give it another go... I visited Cameraworld again I asked to see both lenses on a D80 and proceeded to play with them outside the shop.

I found the Sigma to be stiffer in operation and slower on focusing. I purchased the Nikon in the end as I felt the build quality was better and the lens was more responsive.

Mind you this is only my opinion and you might find the sigma ok for you... I would suggest visiting a shop and getting your hands on the lenses.

Cheers

Nigel
 
devitt said:
Sigma have an international warrenty (1 year) on new lenses im sure so if it wasnt spot on then will be fine to send back to sigma as tel48 said and get it sorted.
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The only problem with the sigma international warranty is they will only honour it if the VAT has been paid at source, obviously buying from HK there is no vat, so in effect no international warranty, you would have to take it/send it back to HK, i only found this out myself recently, as I've bought two sigma lenses from "one stop digital" about eighteen months ago, having said that i never had problems with either, as I've already said if you can afford Nikon go with it, leave the filter till next month :D anyway just my opinion for what it's worth.
 
I've had my Nikon 18-200 for about 18 months now. Good lens. For the £100, I think its worth sticking with your Nikon glass collection. I now tend to only buy Nikon glass.
Im fairly sure I've seen the Nikon going for a similiar price in the UK somewhere.
 
Spend some time searching the web for the best price, then if you don't like the look of the shop or it's too far away find one nearer that will do price matching.

You could also go to a local store where they have both in stock, take a couple of shots of the same thing at the same setting with each lens, take the images home and look at them very closely to decide which one you like best? Of course you are going to get a different physical lens from HK, but at least you will know which one feels best and whether you like the way it operates....
 
Thanks all for your advice. ;)

I think I will go with the Nikon. It seems to have a 100% track record and although its about £100 dearer I think I'd rather pay that for piece of mind alone. If it does have better glass that would be a bonus!

I haven't seen anywhere in the UK that sells the lens anywhere near £350 to be honest - unless its used or reconditioned. Do you remember where you saw that? Ta!
(y)
 
Camera Price Buster is the best place to check for prices from mainstream UK retailers. They're currently showing £408.95 as the best price for this lens.

Buying from Hong Kong (places like One Stop Digital) can be cheaper as there's no VAT to pay. There's also a guy called Kerso whom many people here recommend: he brings in lenses from the USA and manages to avoid VAT on them. (But I'm not sure whether he does Nikons.)

One thing to be aware of is that the warranty on an imported lens might not be as good as on one bought in the UK. For example, it might not be valid at all if you haven't paid VAT on the lens; or it might be return-to-HK only.

Interestingly, the VAT dodge makes it possible for Hong Kong suppliers to undercut UK suppliers and still make decent profits. That price of £408.95 including VAT equates to around £348 without VAT; One Stop Digital are currently charging £380. So they probably stand to make £30 more profit than the very competitive UK suppliers. If you get hit for VAT and import duty as the lens arrives then they promise to refund you, and clearly they're banking on that not happening too often.
 
Just to throw another possibility into the equation have you considered the Tamron 28-300 VC? I am thinking about a real 'walkabout' lens but having already got the Nikon 70-300vr trying to justify an expensive 18-200 seems a little excessive but the prices of the Tamron or the Sigma do make the purchase a little more 'possible'

Any thoughts on the option of the Tamron?
 
Thanks, I've looked at the 28-300, although I'm sure 300 would be nice to have, I think 200 will suffice for the shots I'm likely to take. Also as I have the standard 18-55mm lens, 18mm is sometimes not quite enough so I really wouldn't want to go above that.

I'm sure one day I'll look at getting a better range of lenses. But for now, I think my best choice would be to stick with the 18-200 but thanks for suggesting an alternative! :)
 
Have you considered the nikon 55-200vr. As you already have the 18-55, by purchasing the 18-200vr you would be effectively duplicating focal length.

They can be had much cheaper than the 18-200vr also. At around £129. Depends whether you want to change lenses or not I guess?

(Also the 55-200 is slightly slower).

Hope this helps?

:)
 
Dalton said:
Have you considered the nikon 55-200vr. As you already have the 18-55, by purchasing the 18-200vr you would be effectively duplicating focal length.

They can be had much cheaper than the 18-200vr also. At around £129. Depends whether you want to change lenses or not I guess?

(Also the 55-200 is slightly slower).

Hope this helps?

:)
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Yep, I have considered it, in fact someone offered me a new one for £70 but because the D40X doesn't have a dust cleaning function I want to reduce the number of times I change lenses.
 
Another recommendation for the Nikon 18-200. Kerso sells them for just under £400 delivered.

The lens itself is remarkably good as most of my other lenses are Nikon f2.8, and for travel and walkabout it is significantly better than the Sigma 28-300 lens it is replacing.
Specific lenses for specific projects will always yield the best results e.g. 70-200 f2.8 for sports / wildlife etc, but as a 'catch all' I'm really glad I bought it for its versatility.
 
I got mine for £400 from A J Purdy - but at the time it was a price match, and I can't for the life of me remember who they matched!! AJP's is perfect for me because they are 10 minutes away, so no delivery charges!!!

Keep searching - what I did was go on to Nikon's website and get a list of retailers and online retailers, then go through each one finding the best price....
 
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