Canon EF-S 17-85mm F/4-5.6 IS USM

892 reviews

May, 2024

Positive
price (125)
usability (111)
reliability (46)
size (32)
design (19)

Negative

General overview
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alaTest has collected and analyzed 892 reviews of Canon EF-S 17-85mm F/4-5.6 IS USM. The average rating for this product is 3.8/5, compared to an average rating of 4.4/5 for other products in the same category for all reviews. People are impressed by the design and size. The reliability and usability also get good feedback.

price, usability, reliability, size, design

On average, users rate this product 77/100 and experts rate this product 74/100.

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(Based on 892 reviews)

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Consumer review (amazon.co.uk)

Amazon.co.uk review summary for Canon EF-S 17-85mm F/4-5.6 IS USM

alaTest has collected and analyzed 7 user reviews of Canon EF-S 17-85mm F/4-5.6 IS USM from Amazon.co.uk. The average user rating for this product is 4.7/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.5/5 for other products in the same category on Amazon.co.uk. People are impressed by the size. The usability is also appreciated. Some have doubts about the reliability. Reviews are divided on the price.

usability, size

reliability

100% of the reviews on Amazon.co.uk give this product a positive rating.

May, 2024

Consumer review (amazon.com)

Amazon.com review summary for Canon EF-S 17-85mm F/4-5.6 IS USM

alaTest has collected and analyzed 342 user reviews of Canon EF-S 17-85mm F/4-5.6 IS USM from Amazon.com. The average user rating for this product is 4.0/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.3/5 for other products in the same category on Amazon.com. Opinions about the design and size are overall positive. The reliability and usability are also mentioned favorably.

price, usability, reliability, size, design

89% of the reviews on Amazon.com give this product a positive rating.

May, 2024

Expert review by : Andy Westlake and (updated July 2008) (dpreview.com)

Canon EF-S 17-85 mm F4-5.6 IS USM Lens Review

First announced in August 2004 to coincide with the launch of the EOS 20D, the EF-S 17-85mm F4-5.6 IS USM is Canon's logical upgrade from the basic 18-55mm kit lens supplied with its APS-C dSLRs. With a 35mm-equivalent focal length of 27-136mm, it...

Decent build quality - much better than any of Canon's 18-55mm kit lenses ; Very useful focal length range, almost ideal for a walkaround lens ; Highly effective image stabilization ; Excellent autofocus and manual override ; Consistently high image...

Poor performance at wideangle, with marked barrel distortion, high levels of light falloff, and intense green/magenta chromatic aberration ; Slow maximum aperture ; Very average close-up performance

The EF-S 17-85mm is a major step up from Canon’s EF-S 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 II kit lens, adding an extended focal length range, image stabilization, fast and silent autofocus with a decent manual focus option, and substantially improved build quality. This...

Jan, 2008

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Expert review by : Bryan Carnathan (the-digital-picture.com)

Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens Review

Is the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens right for you? Learn all you need to know in The-Digital-Picture.com's review!

May, 2021

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Expert review by : Webmaster (digitalphotographygear.com)

Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens Review

The EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS standard zoom lens is a great all-around lens for the consumer grade photographer looking to update their stock lens setup. It is designed with the consumer level photographer in

Jan, 2012

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Expert review by : Photocrati Staff (photocrati.com)

Canon 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM EF-S Review Round-Up

The EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 USM IS is a lens that promises many things. It is certainly a very versatile standard zoom with a long zoom range and an image stabilizer that can save the day in many situations. However, the build quality is somewhat...

Apr, 2009

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Expert review by : Bob Atkins (bobatkins.com)

Canon EF-S 17-85/4-5.6 IS

A good lens with a very effective Image Stabilization system. Perhaps the best "one lens" choice for the Digital Rebel XT and EOS 20D/30D.

The construction of the EF-S 17-85/4-5.6IS USM is good and typical of Canon's mid-price consumer lenses. It has a metal lens mount and has a semi-matte black finish. The zoom and focus rings are patterned for better grip and the barrel has switches on...

Mar, 2006

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Expert review by : Gordon Laing (dslrtips.com)

Canon EF-S 17-85mm f4~5.6 IS USM lens review

Useful 5x optical zoom ratio ; Effective Image Stabilisation ; Fast USM focussing motor ; Polariser-friendly internal focusing

Visible light fall-off at wide and tele ; Relatively expensive for specification ; Lens hood not included ; Only compatible with EF-S bodies ; Scores ; (relative to wide zooms) ; Build quality ; Optical quality ; Specification ; Value

UPDATE: we have now tested the Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM lens and compared it against the three lenses here using our latest charts. Visit our Canon EF-S 17-55mm review for the latest results. To see how these lenses also compare on an EOS 400D...

Dec, 2005

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Expert review by : Camera Labs (cameralabs.com)

Canon EF-S 17-85mm f4~5.6 IS USM lens review

In practice though, the Canon EF-S 17-85mm is a slightly mixed bag. On the upside, the range is considerably more useful than the basic 3x of the 18-55mm, squeezing in fractionally more at the wide angle end, and offering far more scope at the...

Useful 5x optical zoom ratio, Effective Image Stabilisation, Fast USM focussing motor, Polariser-friendly internal focusing

Visible light fall-off at wide and tele, Relatively expensive for specification, Lens hood not included, Only compatible with EF-S bodies

Dec, 2005

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Expert review by : Matthew Richards (techradar.com)

Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM review

The first step up Canon's ladder of standard zoom lenses

Jul, 2011

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Expert review by : Jon Tarrant (whatdigitalcamera.com)

Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM

Boasting an impressive 5x zoom range this is a versatile lens.....

Solid feel and 5x zoom range

Barrel distortion, wide-aperture resolution

Overall, the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM lens doesn't really live up to its promises. The zoom range is excellent but in all other respects there are better alternatives in the Canon stable.

Oct, 2008

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Expert review by : Robert Olech (lenstip.com)

Canon EF-S 17-85 mm f/4-5.6 IS USM

After introducing the APS-C detector (1.6 times smaller than the full-frame) digital DSLR cameras, users of this kind of equipment had to face a lack of wide anlge lenses. Except for the Canon EF-S 18-55 mm kit lens they had nothing but expensive...

Sep, 2007

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