I’m not sure why Tamron now feels the need to announce a product development one week, and then announce it officially the next week, but that’s what we have again, here: last night, Tamron announced that the new 70-300mm f/4.5-6.3 Di III RXD lens for Nikon Z-mount will be available September 29th for a price of $699. Surprisingly, the Nikon mount lens costs $200 more than the same lens for Sony E-mount that hit the market last year.
Tamron proclaims that this lens is the smallest and lightest lens in its class, which is not hard to believe, having used the Sony version. The weather-sealed 20.7 oz. lens is only 5.9 inches long, and features the 67mm filter threads that Tamron shooters expect these days.
My tests of the the E-mount version of this lens showed that the lens was excellently sharp with good autofocus performance for shooting action. With the price jump in the Nikon version, I expect AF performance to be at least as good, if not better.
So, why is the Nikon version 30% more expensive than the Sony version? I haven’t gotten an answer from Tamron yet, but it’s likely a combination of worldwide inflation and perhaps licensing costs from Nikon.
Want to pre-order it? It’s available now at B&H Photo and Adorama.
