Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Nikon 24-70mm f2.8 Mug Review

Well I finally bit the bullet and found somewhere that shipped one of these things to my doorstep for $25. (Here). It took about 2.5 weeks, was mailed from Hong Kong and labeled as toys to evade taxes.

So far so good. The 1st gens I saw were OK but a lot was left to be desired. They had plastic inserts and leaked a fair amount. The finish was shiny and the labeling was no where close to the real Nikon lens.

I finally saw the new 3rd generation version and a few pics from the website and with the reduction to $25 shipped I decided to order.

I want to give my impressions of this and a few tech specs that aren't really mentioned anywhere that I could find. I'll put the pictures at the end of the post.

Q: Does it actually hold liquid?
A: Yes, quite well I might add. My version has a stainless steel liner.

Q: Does it leak?
A: Not so far. The lens cap is threaded and has a silicone gasket on the underside where it meets the lip of the cup. I put water in it ans shook it around for a bit and nothing leaked out.

Q: How long will it keep coffee hot?
A: I am actually finishing up running my test on it right now. I started out with 180F water in a 72F room with the lid off. It has taken 29 minutes to reach 125F which is still acceptable for hot beverages.

Q: How much does it hold?
A: About 12 oz with room to spare at the top. This will get you into a "Tall" beverage at Starbucks.

Q: Does it attract attention?
A: The baristas at my local Sbux got a kick out of it. I have yet to take it to work with me. Hopefully I can get it through security with no issues.

Q: How does it compare to the real deal?
A: As far as aesthetics are concerned, it's pretty darn close. There are little things here and there and the finish isn't quite right but these are things you wouldn't notice at all unless you've spent a fair amount of time with a real 24-70mm. You'd be hard pressed to pick one from another at 5 ft. Look at the pictures below to judge for yourself.

Q: Does it mount to a body?
A: No, I tried.

Q: Does the end cap come off?
A: Yes. I am afraid of loosing mine so I might be epoxying mine on later.

Q: Do the switches and zoom rings work?
A: No. Not on my model. I have seen copies that did zoom and the M/A switch worked but they were the lower quality finishes. Not something I had to have. I'd rather have a higher quality finish than a zoom function.

Q: Would you buy it again?
A: In short, Yes.

Anyways, if you have more questions, ASK! I hope this helped and I can only say good things about the company I ordered through. Their order process was quick and painless and I got Email replies withing 24 hrs when I asked questions.

I really think Nikon and Canon are really missing out on something by not producing these things themselves.

On to the pics!



(See it is hard to tell!)


18 comments:

  1. nice review! i had the same experience with the Lens Mug.

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  2. Very nice review! I just had to have mine too. Was an early birthday present to myself, and I'm afraid i'm going to mess it up, so I hardly use it! LOL

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  3. Thanks... Just trying to answer the questions I still had when I ordered mine.

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  4. I bought one for my brother and he is really pleased with it. He took it to work and someone asked if that was a new lens he had got? He said, 'yes, take a look' and then threw it towards him! The look on the guys face trying to catch what he thought was a $2200 lens was priceless apparently!

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  5. It doesn't look very stable- any issues with stability?

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  6. And how about the drinking experience- the threading looks like it might not be the smoothest for putting your lips on and getting a good seal...

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  7. I don't have any stability issues at all. I don't, however, place it on unlevel surfaces...

    As far as the threading goes, it doesn't bother me. Let your lips do their job and conform to the surface of the rim... I also wouldn't reccomend chewing on the mug so you don't destroy the finish.

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  8. My boss has a Canon one he got as a gift, but we just use it for pens right now--quite functional as a penholder! After reading this review, I think we should use it for coffee. Though maybe the Canon won't be as good as the Nikon mug...

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  9. Nice review. I might get one. I found on web selling similar mug for 22.99. much better price than the other website. u guys might be interested, www.nikonmugz.com

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  10. i have the non zoom one myself, the golden ring is actually yellow. i just came across the new version that zooms in hong kong. it looks even more like the real deal than my older 1. the gold ring are actually golden, and the switch have more details. btw, i got mine for $30 US, this i saw cost roughly $20 at the street side.

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  11. Bokeh is delicious.

    And yes the newer versions are much nicer than the 1st gens that used yellow vs gold details.

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  12. Does the cap have an open close valve, or do you need to remove the cap entirely to drink?

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  13. Buyers - beware.
    If you order these from NikonMugz.com then you have to pay by paypal, which gives you no redress when your item does not arrive. The company will ask you to wait longer if you tell them your mug hasn't arrived, until the 45-day paypal dispute deadline has passed.
    You would be better to deal with a local importer (whatever your country) that allows payment by a recognized credit card.

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  14. Thanks for the heads up on that ^^.

    I'd like to point out that my order was from: www.nikon-mugs.com and I got nothing but good service and I would not hesitate to do buisness with them again.

    I'd also like to say that everyone should practice safe Internet purchasing techniques. If you are going to use Paypal, pay with a credit card to your Paypal account. This gives you 2 forms of protection if a seller were to default.

    Another update on the Mug. I am 4 months in and the Mug is still working well. The finish has held up and I still have no complaints!

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  15. My boss got me this for Chrismas - it rocks!

    There's a 5mm formed metal lip on the top, of there's not ergonomics problems and stability also seems to be OK, although it's only on my desk.

    Keeps the drink nice and warm, evern with the lid off which I DO NOT USE when full of drink as it seems that the lid thread fills with tea (I'm British) which ends up covering me when I open it which is poo.

    Tricked my colleague with it too :)

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  16. Very nice review! I just had to have mine too. Was an early birthday present to myself.

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  17. You can still buy them (Canon and Nikon) at www.lensmug.net

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