The DA18-250mm, for example, is far better than most tests suggest if you focus at 250mm and zoom out to the desired focal length to take the picture.

You can also enjoy a day out in London, if you like. You can travel by Stenaline and take the nightboat twice so you can spend a full day in London (from 8.45 hrs to 20.15 hrs). The cost per person is 168 euros, including train journeys, hut, breakfast, etc.

You are right with your remarks about edges and corners.

To be quite honest I don't care much about tests. If two lenses are tested by two different persons the conclusions will also be different. If we look at a test on the DA16-45mm, for example:

Photozone:

"The Pentax SMC-DA 16-45mm f/4 ED AL produced very good resolution figures in the MTF lab. At 16mm the center performance is superb straight from the max. aperture. The borders are good to very good. Stopping down improves the image contrast, less so the resolution on the focus plane (although the perceived sharpness improves due to the bigger depth-of-field)."

http://photozone.de/pentax/134-pentax-smc-da-16-45mm-f4-ed-al-review--test-repor...

DPReview:

Decidedly indifferent at 16mm, where it needs to be stopped down to F11 for best results, the lens improves markedly at longer focal lengths, and is at its best around 28mm. Image quality improves significantly on stopping down , with F8 and F11 the sweet spot;

http://www.dpreview.com/lensreviews/pentax_16-45_4_p15/page3.asp

I have had many lenses and the DA16-45mm is the only lens that focuses properly at the WA setting. All my other lenses I had or have (Sigma 18-125mm, Sigma 18-50mm /2.8 EX, Sigma 17-70mm (for Canon and Pentax), DA18-250mm, DA17-70mm) give the sharpest results if I focus at the tele end, lock focus and zoom out to the desired focul length to take the picture. DOF is enormous at WA and may easily result in less accurate focussing.

That depends on the camera. A 10mp sensor can handle 2000LPH, so it is no use to have a lens that can produce more lines.

I have both the DA16-45mm and the DA17-70mm. The DA17-70mm certainly has a better build quality, but is also heavier than the DA16-45mm. Its range is more useful. There is little difference in IQ between the DA16-45mm and the DA17-70mm. When I look at pictures made with the DA16-45mm and the DA17-70mm at 100%, the difference in IQ is mainly caused by focussing.

Unfortunately, Konijnberg offers the DA17-70mm at too high a price. I bought my copy in London at a price of 349,99 pounds which is quite reasonable.

Last October I sold the DA18-250mm and sold my Sigma 17-70mm. As to sharpness there is little difference between these two lenses when you use aperture 8.0. On March 27th I bought the DA17-70mm when I was in London.

Compared to the Sigma17-70mm, the DA17-70mm suffers slightly more from CA and is a little heavier. The DA17-70mm gives nice pictures with good contrast and colours.

The Sigma 17-70mm lets people think that aperture 2.8 has an advantage but the pictures are quite soft at that aperture. Apertures 5.6 and 8.0 are really necessary to give good IQ.

As the IQ the Sigma and the Pentax are similar I would say, but I like the DA17-70mm better than the Sigma 17-70mm because of the SDM which means fast and silent focussing and Quickshift. These things are quite personal. Both lenses are quite solid, but the zoom ring turns the other way round which I don't like because I have more Pentax lenses.

The Tamron 17-50 and the Pentax 16-45mm both cost 269 pounds.

What you need depends on what kind of photography you like: WA, modest tele, etc.

The one mm extra WA the DA16-45mm has, means quite a lot. Personally I like WA and also have the DA12-24mm.

The DA17-70mm is a nice general walkaround lens. I have used it for two photo shoots and 20% of my keepers were in the 50-70mm range.

The price difference is big for this lens and less big for other lenses. There is hardly a price difference in cameras.

Each country has an organisation which imports Pentax products. There is a close cooperation between these organisations. Most Pentax repairs are done by Pentax Germany, for example.

The one I bought at CameraWorld was bundled with a K20D.

The suggested retail price in The Netherlands is 545 pounds, in the UK it is 449,99 pounds, a difference of 20%.

SRSMicrosystems offers the DA17-70mm some 25% below the suggested retail price for the UK and 40% below the suggested retail price in Holland.

I certainly will. It is a nice lens to use.