Review by Klaus Schroiff, published December 2011

Introduction

It is a fairly large lens as you can already conclude from the image below. Size- and weight-wise it is actually more comparable to (full format) DSLR lenses with similar specs. At least upon first thought this may feel a little odd because we associate mirrorless cameras with correspondingly small lenses. However, the design advantage (smaller lenses) diminishes from about 50mm onward anyway.

The NX 60mm f/2.8 is a member of Samsung's "Optima" series thus a mainstream consumer lens. While this may not sound overly ambitious, the build quality is certainly a step above the NX 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens which is also an Optima lens. The lens body is made of high quality plastics based on a metal mount. Thanks to an IF ("internal focusing") design, the physical length remains constant across the focus range. The front element does not rotate, of course. The broad, rubberized focus ring operates smoothly and without wobbling. iFn is also available and supported by a dedicated button and control ring on the lens.

It is the first Samsung lens to feature SSA ("Super-Sonic Actuator") - an ultrasonic AF drive similar to Canon's USM or Nikon's Silent Wave Drive. AF operations are basically noiseless. The AF speed is just fine although it still takes a while to focus from min. focus to infinity but this is, of course, rather typical for macro lenses. Samsung's OIS ("Optical Image Stabilizer") works efficiently at conventional focus distances but don't expect wonders at macro focus settings due to the more pronounced angular shake here. Interestingly manual focusing doesn't seem to be "by wire" (like on other NX lenses) but directly coupled. Full-time manual focusing in AF mode is supported.