Nice and compact kit lens.Good image quality but not amazing as it is a cheap kit lens.LightweightVery reasonably priced

This is a perfect starter lens for my Pentax K-3. It isn't the sharpest lens ever made but it is easily the best kit lens I have owned. It's sharp enough in the middle and it's collapsable body allows for easy storage and transportation.

This is a great lens when bought for what it is and within that context. It's a very neat, up-to-date, standard zoom with Pentax's top-grade HD coating, complete with lens hood.* On the latest Pentax bodies, such as the K-S2. focussing is so fast and quiet it takes a bit of getting used to that it really has done it!. It doesn't have the fastest maximum aperture in the world, but gains over 3rd party lenses in size, weight and it's portability when retracted, Image IQ seems very good for such a small general zoom and in normal use I've been even pleased with it;s edge performance.

* the kit version of this lens has the older SMC coating and doesn't come with hood.

This is a great lens when bought for what it is and within that context. It's a very neat, up-to-date, standard zoom with Pentax's top-grade HD coating, complete with lens hood.* On the latest Pentax bodies, such as the K-S2. focussing is so fast and quiet it takes a bit of getting used to that it really has done it!. It doesn't have the fastest maximum aperture in the world, but gains over 3rd party lenses in size, weight and it's portability when retracted, Image IQ seems very good for such a small general zoom and in normal use I've been even pleased with it;s edge performance.* the kit version of this lens has the older SMC coating and doesn't come with hood.

PROs
+ very light and thin (perfect for travelling light)
+ high build quality for a kit lens
+ weather resistant (prevents rain and dust ingress and thus increases longevity as well as maintains resell value)
+ no wobbling or rattling (tightly assembled)
+ DC motor allows quiet auto focus
+ surprisingly good macro performance (also thanks to quick AF shift function)
+ fast, positive and accurate focusing, even in lower light (on Pentax K-S2, K-3 and K-5)
+ makes subjects feel more relaxed due to minuscule size of lens (the larger the lens, the more likely people will pull unnatural faces I have noticed over the past)
+ locks in for travelling (camera tells you when the lens is still locked which is handy)
+ no lens creep whatsoever
+ noticeably higher optical performance (sharper and slightly better, more neutral colours and higher contrast) than Canon 18-55mm IS II, Nikon 18-55 VR II, Pentax DA 18-55mm, Sony E 16-50mm OSS pancake and Samsung 16-50mm pancake
+ no noise when zooming
+ discreet design good for street and candid photography
+ allows camera to be held with one hand thanks to low weight, and results in very good weight distribution and balance on smaller cameras such as the K-r, K-500 or K-50
+ no need to stop down aperture thanks to good center and mid frame sharpness (best cross frame sharpness between f5.6-8 depending on focal length)

CONs
- needs to be manually unlocked and locked (but luckily the mechanism is rather smooth)
- needs a little bit of getting used to when you were shooting with large lenses before
- zoom is not quite as buttery as premium lenses, but very accurate for a kit lens
- perhaps not suited for people wearing gloves or have hulk hands
- lens mount is plastic

ALTERNATIVES
- Pentax DA 17-70mm f4 [~450GBP] slightly better IQ, more zoom but much heavier, quite bulky and annoying zoom creep when walking
- Pentax DA 18-135mm f3.5-5.6 [~320GBP] similar IQ, more zoom but much heavier, very bulky due to

PROs+ very light and thin (perfect for travelling light)+ high build quality for a kit lens+ weather resistant (prevents rain and dust ingress and thus increases longevity as well as maintains resell value)+ no wobbling or rattling (tightly assembled)+ DC motor allows quiet auto focus+ surprisingly good macro performance (also thanks to quick AF shift function)+ fast, positive and accurate focusing, even in lower light (on Pentax K-S2, K-3 and K-5)+ makes subjects feel more relaxed due to minuscule size of lens (the larger the lens, the more likely people will pull unnatural faces I have noticed over the past)+ locks in for travelling (camera tells you when the lens is still locked which is handy)+ no lens creep whatsoever+ noticeably higher optical performance (sharper and slightly better, more neutral colours and higher contrast) than Canon 18-55mm IS II, Nikon 18-55 VR II, Pentax DA 18-55mm, Sony E 16-50mm OSS pancake and Samsung 16-50mm pancake+ no noise when zooming+ discreet design good for street and candid photography+ allows camera to be held with one hand thanks to low weight, and results in very good weight distribution and balance on smaller cameras such as the K-r, K-500 or K-50+ no need to stop down aperture thanks to good center and mid frame sharpness (best cross frame sharpness between f5.6-8 depending on focal length)CONs- needs to be manually unlocked and locked (but luckily the mechanism is rather smooth)- needs a little bit of getting used to when you were shooting with large lenses before- zoom is not quite as buttery as premium lenses, but very accurate for a kit lens- perhaps not suited for people wearing gloves or have hulk hands- lens mount is plasticALTERNATIVES- Pentax DA 17-70mm f4 [~450GBP] slightly better IQ, more zoom but much heavier, quite bulky and annoying zoom creep when walking- Pentax DA 18-135mm f3.5-5.6 [~320GBP] similar IQ, more zoom but much heavier, very bulky due to length- Pentax DA 16-85mm f3.5-5.6 [~670GBP] significantly sharper but currently overpriced due to recen