Best all-around DX lens (and almost perfect)
I bought this lens after owning the Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 G ED-IF AF-S VR DX Zoom-Nikkor Lens for about seven months. This lens is much sharper, and is a great performer wide-open. Some functionality is lost compared to the 18-200, but many of the images I took with that lens were much softer, and the wide-open performance was pretty bad. It could have been a bad sample. In any event, I echo the comments of many others here - this lens is a winner. I think it's either a love it or hate it compared to the 18-200 (Ken Rockwell's comparison of these two lens was quite subjective as he gave the 18-200 glowing reviews compared to the 16-85, even after admitting to the 16-85 having better IQ). Also, the 18-200 has significant lens creep (which is unacceptable); this 16-85 seems to be constructed the same way (albeit slightly smaller) but has no creep. I prefer to couple this lens with my Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED IF AF-S VR Zoom Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras for traveling and get superior image quality over the 18-200.

My only beef with this lens is that it's rather slow. If this was a constant f/4 lens, I think it would have better Nikon product line-up positioning and would make the perfect DX lens (even if this makes the lens just a tad larger and a little more expensive).

This is a purchase you will definitely be happy with if you are after a very good lens with decent coverage that's very sharp across its focal length and aperture range. It will not disappoint!

Wonderful lens
I've had this lens for about a year, and it has never failed to deliver wonderful results. As an everyday lens, it wipes out the 18-200mm since it's lighter, sharper, has no lens creep. Photozone.de reviews this lens in depth and gives it a rare 4 star rating overall. This lens is worth every penny, my advice, just get one, you won't be sorry.

Great DX lens
This is a very sharp lens with a very good VR, quick focus and range. For what it is, a very sharp DX lens for a good price it does a great job. I think with this lens and the 70-300 VR any Nikon DX shooter has almost everything that they need. Maybe a 50mm wide aperature f/1.8 or 1.4 and a 10-24 or 11-16mm even better added later on. This lens has a nice range at 16mm for those wide shoots when you need them. Of course theres purple fringing once in a while and some distortion but all these minor faults can be corrected in PS CS5 so in reality it's a great lens. And with the VR you have the ability to shoot in low light situations especially with Nikons sensitive sensors. Very nice.

Great Lens
This lens replaced a 18 - 105 VR nikkor. The lens is sharp and well made.

LOVE IT!
I bought this lens a few months ago. It has not been taken off my camera (other than cleaning) since. It takes great pictures and is the perfect range for my photography.

Depends on how you carry your camera...
I just purchased this for my Nikon D-90 recently. I do like the fact that if I carry the camera by itself it will help protect it from minor bumps and scratches. I do feel it will only help fractionally for a major drop on hard surfaces. Meaning a drop of more that about three feet and depending on how it strikes the surface, of course.

While nearly all of the buttons are accessible and marked, the one I use most often, the power switch on top, is the hardest to get to with this on. You must press in a bit to get a firm enough grip on it with your thumb to spin it with the Snug It in place.

I would recommend this to someone for use when carrying the camera outside of a bag regularly. Otherwise, I use a Tamrac Velocity 9x bag that slides around quickly from back to front and carries my telephoto lens, extra memory cards and filters to boot.

Not bad considering.
Let's start with the Pros. It's (1) Lightweight, (2) compact, and being a zoom lens there's (3) a lot less interchanging of lenses. The VR feature is also very helpful at the higher focal lengths. Especially if either you or your subject are moving. It helps keep your shots in focus when you snap the shot. The final pro ofcourse is that it's affordable, but you already knew that.

The negatives though seemingly slight are important if you want to do more professional photography. This is really a convenience lens. It's not a substitute from one day getting say the 70-200mm f/2.8. Without that extra versatility and aperture range, this lens limits you from being able to shoot hand held in reasonably low light situations; think of shooting city scenes at dusk/dawn for example. You'd probably have to raise your ISO settings which in turn increases your image noise levels. The extra stops can save you that. In certain situations you can also pretty much kiss good depth of field shots goodbye.

So, not to discourage from getting this. The price difference is too good to ignore. Even if you own the 70-200/f2.8, it's actually still worth getting this lens if you know you won't be shooting in extreme conditions on a given day. It takes far less space in your camera bag and weighs oodles less. For the budding pro, it's a great stepping stone to the bigger and better lenses.

What I've been waiting for
This lens delivers everything it promises. The VR technology makes a huge difference and I'm sure it has convinced me to stick with lenses that have it. The lens is also surprisingly small for a telephoto which is nice if you are using it to travel or for general purpose photography. Keep in mind that with a telephoto with this focal length, you have to be a few feet away to get good focus on anything.

The VR is well worth the money.

Buy this lens locally!
Problem: 70-200mm lens has excessive "play" when mounted. It rotates about 1/16 of an inch.

I have 6 other Nikkor lenses I use with my D300. All are tight when mounted with no excessive movement.
I have checked with 3 other photographers who have this lens - their lenses are "tight."
The excessive play shows up as rotational motion blur and irritating camera rotation on tight shots.
Not something you would expect for a "pro" lens.

The local Nikon rep says it's normal, but I think it's out of spec - poor quality control.
Under warranty I can sent it in for repair. But, more expense, more time lost and no guarrantee
the problem will be resovled. Nikon screwed up a past warranty issue.

In the future I will buy expensive lenses locally so I can try them first. It will cost more
initially but what price do you put on the irritation factor and loss of resale value.

Must have lens
This is a must have lens for anyone serious about their photography. I take pictures of my daughters softball team and as their games start at 5:00 they end as dusk is settling. With this lens i can go 3 shutter stops faster and have little or no blur. Its worth every penny i spent on it.

You get what you pay for
I've had this lens for about 4 months now and am amazed at the quality of the images from it. Coupled with my D300s, it produces sharp images at f/2.8. I really have not tested it at the small end of the aperture scale. I recently shot some high school basketball games and was very impressed with the results. As many may know, lighting in high school gymnasiums is not the best. Yet, with this lens, I was able to get excellent images. Focusing is fast and quiet. The build quality is excellent--no compromises here. It is a hefty lens, but with the D300s + grip, it balances out reasonabley well. I recommend extended use to be with a monopod or tripod. It is an expensive piece of glass, but each time I see the results from it, I smile!!

Yummy
If you're a pro or an avid photography enthusiast, chances are you have or want this lens. Rightfully so, my friend, rightfully so.

I upgraded from a Tamron 70-200 2.8. Worth the cost? Yes. Build quality of the Tamron is sub-par at best and AF speed is like night and day between the two.

The Nikon is definitely professional grade and AF's fast even in low light, so if you can justify the cost, by all means... Have one of the nicest lenses in history. :)

High maintainence lens
I've had this lens for about 5 months and it has been at Nikon USA Service for most of it.

Just after I bought this lens (B & H - not Amazon), the autofocus started to malfunction. Once the autofocus completely failed, it was sent in for repair. The first trip to Nikon USA took about 3 weeks and was returned un-repaired. The AF was still non-operative.

Now here is where it gets a little wierd. The AF would fail 100% on my old D70s body and fail about 50 - 75% of the time on my D2Xs body. Nikon of course said it was a problem with my D70s. I used a rental 70-200 and the other lens worked perfectly with both of my bodies. My lens was sent back a second time. This time I also sent Nikon my D70s body as well for them to use.

Finally after 3 round trips, Nikon sent a brand new lens.

If that wasn't enough, I have now tried this lens on my new D3s. There is now vignetting. It is soft around all four edges. Just as others here have pointed out, this is a problem with all FX format cameras. Well now that I have upgraded from the D2Xs to the D3s, it looks like a lens I did not think I would have to replace, will be sold. Just a few months after Nikon USA service sent me a fixed lens.

Straight shaft hole
The umbrella shaft hole in this unit is straight, parallel relatively to the flash shoe, it is NOT at an angle. The flash burst won't be aimed at the center of an umbrella. Better choice is Photoflex Light and Umbrella Shoe Mount Clamp.

Better then Expected
Very impressed when this product arrived. Very solid, and I am easily able to personalize it for my setup. This will last me a long time.