Nikkor 18-135mm opinions

Best review of it I've seen so far is here. He likes the 18-70 and 18-200 much better.

http://www.bythom.com/18135lens.htm

I've had and informally tested the 18-70, the 18-200, and the 18-135. The 18-70 is the sharpest, and I've actually kept it. The other two I returned. The Sigma 18-50 seems to be a bit sharper than any of these three lenses as long as you don't shoot wide open at f2.8, particularly at 18mm focal length. The 18-135 was actually the worst lens I tested. The 18-70 is also set up pretty nicely, with its own focusing motor, the focus and zoom rings in good places, and a decent lens hood. The 18-200 was better than the 18-135 within the 18-135 range. Beyond that I found it getting a bit soft for my liking. The 55-200 is decent, even if the build quality and setup are not as nice. I have kept the 55-200. My strategy is that the 18-50, or the 18-70 will work most of the time, and they're both good lenses. The 55-200 will serve on those few occasions when I need that range of focal lengths. Hope all this rambling helps you!

Thanks. That's good info to know.

I bought the D80 + 18-135 kit, this lens bears no comparison to the excellent 18-70. I sold the lens on within a week! Go for the 18-70 for sure.

This Lens came with my D80 it is very sharp, but prone to distortion, CAs and vignetting all off which can be controled by Capture NX and other software. It's a good value for the money.

While not as good as my 180mm 2.8, at the 135mm setting it handles shooting into sun much better than the 85mm 1.8.

I've found my 18-135 to be very sharp in good light. The better the light, the sharper the pics. It is actually sharper than my 70-300 VR lens. It does have other issues, but a lack sharpness is not one of them, with my lens, at least.