The Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/4-5.6 IS STM is a solid starter lens, but not one that you should buy at full price.

Compact; Good sharpness; Optical stabilization; Inexpensive when bought in a bundle.

Some distortion; Narrow aperture; Dimmed corners when shooting Raw.

I recently purchased a sweet Canon 400D /XTi Rebel from Amazon.co.uk (￡45 cashback!) and this standard zoom lens (Canon EF-S 18-55mm ) came with it. As far as I know, you cannot purchase the Canon EF-S 18-5mm on it's own, as it's designed specifically to be sold with the 400D/XTi Rebel package.

Cheap and light

Grainy photo quality; low zoom

The Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/4-5.6 IS STM Lens is the 6th Canon APS-C kit lens having this same focal length range (not counting the EF-M variant and a III version available in a limited number of countries).

At $175 (street), this digital-only wide-to-normal standard zoom offers Canon EOS Digital Rebel shooters image stabilization for only about $35 -- and 1.3 ounces -- more than Canon's non-IS kit zoom.

I find this lens very versatile. It is also not too bulky to bring on our regular dog park visits. I can take pictures of my dogs from different distances. It performs adequately for what I intended it for.

I use this lens more than my other ones. Good combination for many occasions. Still, I'm looking for an upgrade that'll probably cost more than my camera body.

Works for me; Nice zoom range, light weight, image stabilization and good images

Could have wider aperture, closer or longer zooms; Bugs me that the end rotates for polarizer and gradient filters

Compact and lightweight, the EF-S 18-55mm f/4-5.6 IS STM packs together legendary Canon optics, a versatile zoom range and quiet operation for power on the go. Its small size lets it fit just about anywhere, making it a great lens to bring with you on a hike, to a concert or on your everyday...

Canon may have changed the finish for a better look but the principal build quality of the lens remains in line to its price class - reads: the plastic quality is still not overly impressive although it's slightly better compared to its non-IS cousin.