Stunningly Sharp
If image quality trumps equipment cost every time, either because you're a pro or because you're an aficionado with lots of cash, this is the zoom superwide to normal for you. Paired with a 70-200, the 55-70mm range is seldom missed and you have exceptional and fast glass for about every situation...
This lens is probably the pinnacle of superwide to "normal" zooms (which most DX shooter tend to find the most versatile range) ever made for the Nikon F-mount; Nice and fast fixed 2.8 aperture, and the crispness of the images it yields is stunning.
Extremely expensive; Very heavy and very large, especially with the lens hood attached-- literally twice the size of the Nikkor 18-70 and the Sigma 18-50; The lens hood just clips the corner of the frame at 17mm, which I'm at a loss to understand how Nikon let slip by one of their marquee DX lenses.