Samsung NX 30mm F2 Pancake Review | 54 Data compared

The Samsung NX 30 mm f/2.0 pancake lens delivers highly impressive optical performance in an exceptionally compact design. LensTip's testing reveals excellent image quality in the frame centre even when shooting wide open at f/2.0, which improves to "sensational" sharpness when stopped down between f/4.0 and f/8.0. The lens stands out for its outstanding chromatic aberration correction, which is practically non-existent at any aperture value, alongside well-corrected astigmatism, minor RAW barrel distortion (-1.13%), and overall great performance against bright light. Furthermore, despite its plastic housing, the build features a sturdy metal mount and includes a relatively silent, accurate autofocus system. However, the lens does present a few compromises due to its ultra-compact pancake form factor. The most notable drawbacks include noticeable vignetting that reaches 35% (-1.26 EV) at f/2.0 and persists unusually high even when stopped down (remaining at 14% at f/8.0). Additionally, frame edges lag behind in sharpness at the maximum aperture, requiring users to stop down to at least f/2.8 to achieve good edge-to-edge clarity. LensTip also notes a medium level of coma correction and an electronic manual...

The Samsung NX10 is a compact, interchangeable lens camera featuring a 14.6-megapixel APS-C sensor, praised for its excellent build quality, ergonomics, and fast autofocus, similar to DSLRs. It offers a bright 3.0-inch AMOLED screen and an intuitive, user-friendly menu system, though it faces competition from its era. Conversely, the review identifies significant drawbacks, including aggressive JPEG noise reduction that destroys fine detail, poor buffer management that hinders shooting, and a low-resolution live view, making precise manual focusing difficult. Additionally, the camera's Auto ISO often selects overly slow shutter speeds, resulting in potential image blur.

The Samsung NX 30mm f/2 is an exceptionally compact "pancake" lens that delivers outstanding optical performance and image quality for the NX camera series. Comprising five lens elements, its key advantages include superb sharpness, with peak technical performance achieved between f/4 and f/5.6. The prime lens yields beautifully smooth out-of-focus background images at wide apertures, easily outclassing the standard 18-55mm zoom lens at equivalent focal lengths. Furthermore, it is virtually free of chromatic aberration, ensuring crisp and color-fringe-free real-world photos. Despite its optical excellence, the lens suffers from several handling and value drawbacks due to its stripped-down design. It is the most expensive prime option in the NX lineup at the time of review, yet it lacks basic physical features like an physical AF/MF toggle switch, requiring users to change focus modes deep within the camera menus. Additionally, it is not supplied with a lens hood—unlike its counterparts—and its ultra-slim profile makes it physically awkward to hold on the NX10 body. Reviewers also noted that the freely rotating focus ring causes frustration when removing the lens, as turning it often...

The Samsung 30mm f/2 NX pancake lens is a compact, portable, and bright f/2 prime that delivers excellent center sharpness from its maximum aperture, making it ideal for street photography. The lens offers, as major pros, outstanding value, lightweight construction, and a bright aperture that enhances low-light capability. However, the review notes as a primary con that sharpness drops off significantly towards the edges and corners when shooting wide open. To achieve consistent, uniform sharpness across the entire frame, the lens must be stopped down to f/5.6 or smaller.

Despite these strengths, the lens ecosystem suffers from a few notable drawbacks. Several models display high levels of lateral chromatic aberration, which is explicitly noted as a major performance spoiler for both the NX 16mm f/2.4 wide-angle and the 60mm macro lenses. Furthermore, pricing consistency is an issue; the NX 45mm f/1.8 is deemed overly expensive compared to stabilized rivals from Sony, and it lacks consistent sharpness across the frame. Finally, the physical size of specialized glass like the 85mm f/1.4 is quite large, resulting in a focal length equivalent that may feel too long for comfortable indoor portrait use.

The Samsung NX 30mm f/2 is a highly compact "pancake" lens designed exclusively for Samsung's APS-C mirrorless cameras, offering a versatile 48mm full-frame equivalent focal length suitable for everything from landscapes to portraits. Weighing just 85 grams and extending a mere 22mm from the camera mount, this lightweight lens pairs perfectly with compact bodies like the NX500 for maximum portability. Optically, the lens delivers professional-grade sharpness and high resolution that exceeds 90 lp/mm, outperforming bulkier kit zoom lenses. Additionally, it features a fast autofocus system that avoids front- or back-focusing errors due to the host cameras' hybrid sensor-based AF systems.

The PCMag review of the Samsung 30mm NX Pancake Lens presents it as a highly fast, ultra-compact prime lens designed for the Samsung NX camera system. Measuring a mere 0.85 by 2.4 inches and weighing just 3 ounces, its short stature allows it to barely protrude from the camera body, maximizing portability. The key advantage highlighted is its exceptional optical performance; lab tests via Imatest showed that even at its maximum wide-open aperture (f/2), the lens resolves 2,155 lines per picture height, which vastly exceeds the standard 1,800 lines required to be considered "sharp". This incredible sharpness remains consistent across all apertures, allowing photographers to easily capture images with a shallow depth of field without dropping image quality. However, the review details a few notable drawbacks that come with its highly miniaturized form factor. A major con is the presence of 1.1% barrel distortion when shooting in Raw format, though this can be remedied via post-processing or left to the camera's automatic profile correction if you choose to capture images in JPG format. Additionally, to maintain its pancake-style slim profile,...

This review by Klaus Schroiff on OpticalLimits (formerly PhotoZone) evaluates the Samsung NX 30mm f/2 (S30NB), a highly compact pancake standard prime lens designed for the APS-C format Samsung NX mirrorless system. Equivalent to a classic 46mm focal length in full-frame terms, the lens is positioned as a fast, highly portable option ideal for street photography. Weighing just 85 grams and measuring a mere 22mm in height, it makes smaller camera bodies like the NX200 almost pocketable. It features a quality plastics body with a metal mount, and utilizes a fast, near-silent conventional micro-motor that relies on fine "micro-steps" to achieve very high autofocus accuracy. The review highlights several clear advantages and disadvantages regarding the lens's design and functionality: Pros: Ultra-compact form factor: The lightweight 85g build and tiny 22mm profile maximize the primary size advantage of mirrorless systems. Fast aperture: The bright f/2 maximum aperture is exceptionally fast for a pancake lens format. Solid build quality: It utilizes a durable metal mount coupled with smooth manual focus ring operation. Reliable performance: The autofocus mechanism is noted for operating quickly...

The PCMag review highlights the Samsung 30mm f/2 NX pancake lens as an Editors' Choice, praising its extremely compact design (0.85 by 2.4 inches, 3 ounces) and fast aperture. It delivers exceptional sharpness, exceeding 2,155 lines wide open and peaking near 2,500 lines, while offering an affordable entry point for APS-C NX camera users. Conversely, the lens lacks the iFn control ring for direct camera setting adjustments on the barrel. While generally high-performing, the lens produces a 1.1% barrel distortion in Raw files, and a lens hood is not included in the $299 price.

The Samsung 30mm f/2 Pancake lens, reviewed by Photo Review, is a highly compact and lightweight prime optimized for NX series cameras, offering a 46.2mm equivalent focal length. Key pros include its portable design, bright f/2.0 aperture for low-light, and solid center sharpness, along with minimal distortion and well-controlled chromatic aberration. The 5-element optical design presents cons, specifically noticeable softness at the edges when shooting wide open at f/2. To achieve optimal sharpness across the frame, users must stop down to f/5.6 or smaller, and the lens lacks built-in optical image stabilization.