Details are scarce, but there's good reason to believe China is more than capable of producing AF zoom lenses
(Image credit: Gareth Bevan / Digital Camera World)
Fujirumors has shared a Weibo post that claims as many as three Chinese lens manufacturers are developing autofocus zoom lenses. Sadly there are no further details on what these lenses may be. However Fujirumors also spoke to Chinese lens manufacturer Viltrox last year, asking whether it was planning to release zoom lenses for Fuji X-mount. The response from Viltrox's marketing director:
We will have zoom lenses, but we are not sure about the focal length yet. But we have zoom lenses in our plans. What we are sure is that we will have Cine zoom lenses, for example 22-220mm, 30-300mm and 42-420mm cine zoom [manual focus] coming at the end of this year maybe. We have plans for zoom lenses for stills, but those still need some time.
Mandy Lee, Marketing Direct, Viltrox
The Viltrox AF 16mm F1.8: a superb Chinese AF lens, albeit a prime, not a zoom (Image credit: Matthew Richards)
Whether any of these proposed lenses will feature autofocus is uncertain, but if any Chinese lens manufacturer was to release an autofocus zoom lens, we'd bet on it being Viltrox. We've tested and revied numerous Chinese lenses, from the likes of Laowa, Yongnuo, TTArtisan and 7Artisans, but the majority of these have historically been 'dumb' primes with no electronic lens-body communication, and therefore no autofocus. Viltrox, on the other hand, has produced multiple autofocus prime lens, with full electronic communication, and the kind of build and handling to rival the likes of Sigma and Tamron. In fact, the quality and performance of the E-mount Viltrox 16mm f/1.8 AF led Phillip Reeve to assert that:
"it was only a matter of time before the Chinese lens manufacturers start to outdo the Japanese ones and this lens might be where it begins".
Phillip Reeve
And having tested the Viltrox AF 13mm F1.4,AF 23mm F1.4,AF 33mm F1.4 and AF 56mm F1.4, we're tempted to agree - they really are superb lenses. Consequently we wouldn't be surprised to see Viltrox leading the Chinese charge to produce autofocus zoom lenses. It also shouldn't come as much surprise that China as a country should be developing autofocus zoom lenses, or that they're likely to be as good as anything Japan or Germany produces. After all, China is the manufacturing center of the world, and if the latest iPhone or electric car can be produced there without issue, then why shouldn't China be able to manufacture another precision object like an autofocus zoom lens?
Ben is the Imaging Labs manager, responsible for all the testing on Digital Camera World and across the entire photography portfolio at Future. Whether he's in the lab testing the sharpness of new lenses, the resolution of the latest image sensors, the zoom range of monster bridge cameras or even the latest camera phones, Ben is our go-to guy for technical insight. He's also the team's man-at-arms when it comes to camera bags, filters, memory cards, and all manner of camera accessories – his lab is a bit like the Batcave of photography! With years of experience trialling and testing kit, he's a human encyclopedia of benchmarks when it comes to recommending the best buys.
