NIKKOR Z 24-105mm f/4-7.1

Reviewers found it sharper than its price and aperture suggest. The centre is excellent across the range even wide open, the edges are good, and performance is most even from 24mm to 70mm. Sharpness drops a little towards 105mm, where the 24-120mm f/4 S is clearly better, and diffraction is visible from f/22.

The main compromise is the f/7.1 maximum aperture at the long end, which costs about a stop and a half against an f/4 zoom in dim light and limits background blur. Testers note the lens relies on in-camera corrections for distortion and vignetting, and that there is no VR, so it leans on body stabilisation.

Early owners like how small the Z5II or Z6III kit becomes with it, and many say it replaced the 24-70mm f/4 S as their walkaround lens because of the extra reach and the half-life-size close focus. The price is seen as fair for a full-frame kit zoom.

The complaints are the slow long end indoors, a plastic-feeling barrel, and the lack of any switches or function buttons. Some users who already own the 24-120mm f/4 S see little reason to switch except for weight.