The Leica Vario-Elmar-T 18-56mm f/3.5-5.6 ($1,750) is one of a pair of lenses that launched with the T (Typ 701) ($1,398.24 at Amazon) mirrorless camera. It's not Leica's first attempt at an autofocusing zoom with this range—the X Vario uses a similar zoom lens—but it's the first for an interchangeable camera system. The Vario-Elmar is quite compact and plenty sharp through its range, though edges are on the soft side at 18mm. But it doesn't include any sort of image stabilization system, and its f/3.5-5.6 variable aperture is unambitious as far as zoom lenses go.

The 18-56mm ($1,895.00 at Amazon)  lens is designed to match the APS-C sensor used by the Leica T, so its field of view is more like a 27-84mm zoom on a full-frame camera system. At 2.8 by 2.6 inches (HD) and 11.6 ounces, it's fairly compact for a zoom lens, and its front element is on the small side, so you can use 52mm threaded filters. A reversible petal-style lens hood is included, as are the standard front and back caps and a carrying pouch. The lens can focus as close as 11.8 inches, which is typical for a zoom of this type.

The Vario-Elmar is styled just like a black Leica rangefinder lens. The focal lengths are marked in yellow at the base of the black metal barrel, and the 18, 24, 35, and 56mm positions are marked in white on the zoom ring. Both the zoom control and manual focus ring feature ridges, so they're easier to grip during operation. One thing that is missing from the lens is image stabilization. Most standard zoom lenses for competing systems zooms offer that function, including the Fujifilm Fujinon 18-55mm F2.8-4 R LM OIS ($659.00 at Amazon) for Fuji X mirrorless cameras. Stabilization helps to capture sharper images at longer shutter speeds, and also steadies handheld video.

I used Imatest to check to see how the lens performs with the only compatible camera at this time, the 16-megapixel T (Typ 701). At 18mm f/3.5 its performance is the weakest, but it still scores better than the 1,800 lines per picture height we require to call an image sharp. Its center-weighted score is 1,928 lines, with good even performance through most of the frame. The outer edges of the frame are a little bit soft (1,455 lines), but that's not atypical for a zoom of this design. There's very little sharpness to be gained by stopping down—at f/5.6 the score improves to 2,011 lines, which isn't a significant increase. Barrel distortion is very well controlled; images show about 1.4 percent, which is much less than most 18-55mm designs show.

At 35mm the distortion goes away, and the maximum aperture narrows to f/5. The lens scores 2,116 lines here, with solid performance through the edges of the frame (1,906 lines). Stopping down to f/8 shows a modest increase in the center-weighted score (2,212 lines) and edges (2,120 lines). At 56mm the maximum aperture is a narrow f/5.6, and the center-weighted score is still quite good (1,968 lines). The edges are just a hair shy of the 1,800-line mark at 1,747 lines, but they do hit 1,800 lines at f/8. Distortion is still a nonissue at 56mm.

There is some behind-the-scenes distortion correction going on in camera, but it's applied to both JPG and Raw output, so it's not anything you'll have to worry about when processing images. The processing varies a bit based on the file format. The camera leaves behind some yellow and purple color fringing at the edges of the frame when shooting in JPG, but Lightroom automatically removes it from the Raw file. Lightroom also applies a bit more advanced distortion correction, so if you shoot Raw+JPG and look at the images closely, you'll see that the Raw image has a slightly tighter field of view due to more aggressive distortion correction.

The Leica Vario-Elmar-T 18-56mm f/3.5-5.6 is a fine performer from an optical standpoint, but for its asking price you'd expect optical stabilization, a wider aperture throughout its zoom range, or both. Leica equipment is generally priced at a premium, but even with that in mind the $1,750 sticker price seems on the high side, which prevents the zoom from getting a higher rating. If you've made the decision to invest in the T system, it's your only choice at the moment for zoom lenses. We'll have to wait and see what lenses Leica will release to round out the system in the future.

Best Lens Picks

• The Best Fujifilm Lenses for 2020
• The Best Leica M Lenses for 2020
• The Best Micro Four Thirds Lenses for 2020
• The Best Pentax SLR Lenses for 2020
• More Lens Reviews
• More from Leica

Further Reading

• Tamron Details Affordable 70-180mm F2.8 Zoom Lens
• The Best Sony Mirrorless Lenses for 2020
• The Best Nikon Lenses for 2020
• The Best Canon Lenses for 2020
• Oops! $13K Camera Lens Sells for $95 Due to Prime Day Error