The very first user review at BHphoto (Click here) is negative because the user didn’t get it how to use the manual :). He writes:
“I just received Zeiss Batis 85mm. Well, the OLED just stopped working. I am returning it. So so disappointed.”
But as our reader Aldro noticed this is not a fault on the Zeiss lens:
Something tells me that guy didn’t read the manual. I had mine ‘die’ on my first day of my hands on review too. It didn’t die. I just turned the focus ring too far and somehow the setting switched it off. You can configure the display by turning the focus ring very far. It’s described in the manual.
ThePhoBlographer posted a first impression review:
“So far, we’re really liking the image quality that this lens can deliver. But we have a lot more testing to do. Autofocusing with this lens seems to be the way to go over manual focusing in the current weather conditions as we stated earlier.”
Zeiss Batis 25mm semi Review with alot of photos by Albert Dros. Discussion on SonyAlphaForum.
A beautiful lens that without a doubt will sell very well. It’s beautifully designed both inside and outside. It’s tack sharp wide open from corner to corner, suffers from little distortion (without lens profiles for LR) and little CA.
Batis store links:
Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8 lens in US at Adorama, Bhphoto. In Eu at Amazon DE, WexUK. In Asia at Digitalrev.
Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2.0 lens at Adorama, Bhphoto. In EU at Amazon DE, WexUK. In Asia at Digitalrev.
50 Responses
something tells me that guy didn’t read the manual. I had mine ‘die’ on my first day of my hands on review too. It didn’t die. I just turned the focus ring too far and somehow the setting switched it off. You can configure the display by turning the focus ring very far. It’s described in the manual.
LOL. I was going to write “What a drama queen.” But after reading your comment it’s even funnier.
Could you show a link to the manual saying “turning the focus ring very far”? The way OLED works (according to your descriptions) sounds a bit confusing and misleading.
Thats why always read the manual first~
Yup, there’s an acronym for that: RTFM 😉
I would love to say out loud but one shall not recite the holy F word else the almighty mod will be mad and banish your comment to eternal void of darkness.
why OLED instead of eInk or something similar?
Why not nixie tube?
How about CRT?
E-ink’s refresh rate is not high enough for anything that needs to change quickly. E-ink has a lot of residual ghosting, something that OLED tends to handle very well. The “no power draw when not refreshing” advantage of e-ink is irrelevant due to the display needing to be refreshed so often. The only display tech that might be better than OLED for this would be Qualcomm’s Mirasol, pretty much a faster, full color e-ink. Or a physical scale, of course.
mirasol displays and e-ink display are not emitting light, so they can’t be used in the dark. Neither can physical scale by the way…
Both mirasol and e-ink can be backlit, as evidenced by the Kindle Paperwhite and the QC Toq. You can likewise make LCD displays without backlighting. Physical scales can have glow in the dark paint (lol). I’ve actually used glow-in-the-dark Duracoat(for gun sights) on the aperture ring markings and focus scale of a couple of my older lenses. It works pretty well, even though it isn’t that bright.
It seems to be similar ot the SmartWatch 3 display that is visible in both active and passive mode, so that super birght daylight does not hurt visibility! I found that glare hurts visibility a bit as the Batis screen is round and there is always some glare to be had….It seems to be RGB display which is a bit pecualiar given that it merely shows few digits and occasional arrow
Imagine that, a ‘reviewer’ doesn’t read the manual and runs to the internet claiming a problem that’s actually their mistake. Shocking.
Many reviewers already claim that the display only works in manual focus mode. That’s the factory setting, it can be switched off as well as set to be used in both manual and AF mode.
I believe it is a deliberate act of a Nay sayers of OLED on lens movement
Will not be the first time! Read DPR A7 review – full of those I do not know how ot use the camera moments.
It’s like someone who posts a response on SAR without reading the rumor first. I think it happens a lot.
The original post was changed by the Admin.
From another review: “One of the most important features is the OLED screen. …. How does it work? Well, by default, when you work in autofocus mode, the screen remains deactivated. It is only when you turn on the camera that the Zeiss name briefly appears…. When you switch to manual focus from the camera’s quick menu or function button, the screen turns on and gives you various information. …”
http://www.mirrorlessons.com/2015/07/21/zeiss-batis-85mm-f1-8-review/
I am waiting for Batis 85mm and like to understand the potential issue with the OLED on the lens. I know the OLED works only in the manual mode and lights up when the focus ring is turned. But I never heard about turning the focus ring “very far” to turn on or off the OLED display. By far, the way the OLED works sounds pretty weird. I hope it does not become a high tech marketing gimmick.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZDkr2xwvpU
It’s not complicated at all.
RTFM!
Release The Funny Melon
What if Zeiss uses plasma display instead of OLED? Well, just saying~=D
Zeiss supplied a lens with a Lazy Photographer Detector embedded. Very good.
I guess Zeiss Olied about the quality. Man, I’m off to a bad start today. First try folks, first try.
Nothing’s wrong with the quality. Love mine. Head over to DPReview for bunch of first impressions. Get it, you’ll be happy if you like to shoot 85mm.
No doubt. From what I gather it’s a real winner. I think Zeiss is on to something here. I eagerly await the 135mm.
That is plain stupid. Andrea plsease change the title.
The lens comes with a manual that explains how the OLED works….. The thing is you can set it to light up never, during MF or always. I bet this guy has it set to MF (default) and the OLED only blicks on startup 🙂 fun
That’s all I need… another instruction manual in my life.
So nobody at Zeiss noticed that by implementing that switching off behavior they’d get just this kind of response? No one reads user manuals of lenses. It’s f*ing lenses, not a camera body.
Already made savings by replacing mechanical coupling with cheap fly-by wire stuff and then being too stingy to add a simple physical button to toggle that display? I guess this serves them right.
No, guy. You actually “don’t know”. It works perfectly fine in all focus modes if you so desire. The references to turning the ring “too far” refer to hoe you control the settings. The idiot who is sending his lens back is a lazy stupo.
Is the lens info also displayed on camera’s LCD?
If people don’t want to learn about their tools, how can you expect them to use it well? Would you hir a photographer who has no master of the tools that he is using? At least somebody will be able to get a discounted, fully functional Batis.
Of course, the lens could actually be defective.
Maybe it is a deliberate act just to get some major news coverage or he is just a real life troll~ Because, really, did you see anyone reacted this big from a “sorta defect unit” before? I don’t know
It should have a bigger screen so I can read my Kindle books while I’m out and about.
And don’t forget a HDMI input for the blueray player.
Haha, and it should come with a few naked women pics preloaded ;p
unfortunately I can’t. I already had to return the lens :(. But it said something about turning the focus ring 360 degrees. It’s just that the OLED actually has a menu when you turn the focus ring for a certain amount, which I actually didn’t know after reading the manual. I’m sure someone who owns the lens can clear that up here, as I can’t find the manual on google.
I bought a faulty CD last week too. It’s supposed to play Britney Spears songs but the disc’s just sitting there on the desk not making a sound. A lot of faulty equipment around nowadays.
More electronics = more things to break. Better off with the manual lenses, they’ll last longer
Right, mechanical things never break.
Loxia?
Yup
Uh oh, better stick with my SAL85 1.4 ZA for at least 10 more years 🙂
Useless feature, I look through the viewfinder when I’m focusing.
still useful for zone focusing and hyperfocal distance setting
Hackers will find a exploit, turn on you A7xx wifi and take control of your aperture and focus. Then you will be blackmailed to send $20 in bitcoins to gain access back to your lens. Not science fiction, it happened “Fiat Chrysler recalls 1.4 million cars after Jeep hack”
I got my Batis today and the manual is very tiny.. its hardly 10 lines in total instructions..