standard 350d lense - EF-S 18-55 is it rubbish??

For what you pay for it....its great value. Mine is quite sharp.

I see a few people referring to "18-55mm USM" kit lens ...mine is definitely not a USM, and I've never seen a USM version in the UK - so are we talking about 2 different lenses here?

Apart from that, the (non-USM) 18-55mm kit lens is a good lens for the price - especially if you're just starting out.

jessops do the silver 350d with the USM kit lens
http://www.jessops.com …OW=1&SUBS=&WORD​_SEARCH=N&

Guys, be aware that the "new" kit lens with USM only has a micro USM motor ie. not what I would call "proper" USM ie. a ring USM motor, therefore you are not getting the benefits like FTM focusing.

EDIT - here is a link explaining it all a bit more eloquently than I can LOL... http://www.photo.net/e​quipment/canon/lens-motors

Hello everyone... Thanks for your responses!!! it has been a helpful insight to the standard kit lenses..

Yesterday i went out and tested it with a Polarizing Circular filter... just messed around with the settings... I noticed at full size the images are not very sharp.. could just be user error and i have alot to learn how to get crisp clear shots.. either way was alot of fun.. Below are some pics i took with the camera, resized to 800x600 and colour correction in photoshop.. comments appreciated...

HTTP response: 404 | Byte size: ZERO

I owned the 18-55mm kit lens a year ago. It's not bad actually. A friend praised for its sharpness after stopped down the aperture. For its small size and weight and very good focal range, it's a good starting point for photography. Of course its biggest weakness is its small aperture and without full time manual focusing. The focusing speed is ok.

LeVi_AcTiOnSlaCkS™© wrote:
jessops do the silver 350d with the USM kit lens
http://www.jessops.com …OW=1&SUBS=&WORD​_SEARCH=N&

But the lens pictured at Jessops is exactly the same as the one I just got with my 20D - and this is not USM

Apart from the ring USM "L" lenses I've got, I also have a 28-105 USM lens, which has the micro-USM motor Nick mentions - and this lens has gold trim (rather than silver), plus is clearly marked as "USM" and "Ultrasonic".

Looking on Canon UK's website, they only list an 18-55mm - no mention of an 18-55mm USM. Canon are marketing-savvy, and I cannot believe they would make a USM lens and then not physically identify it as such.

Only reason I asked this was I wondered whether there was a USM version available elsewhere, and, if so, how its optics compared to the non-USM version?

Rob