I have tested this lens on a Nikon F100, a D100 and a D200. This lens is rock solid, it looks that way and it feels that way. Everything is metal, including the filter thread. Nikon has provided this lens with enhanced weather sealing, among other things there's a rubber gasket at the rear end of the lens. Although it is not exactly a lightweight lens, it doesn't look bulky or heavy because the lens barrel is smaller in diameter than its predecessor. The finish is beautiful with smooth crinkled paint and a gold colored identification plate. Looks very professional. All markings are engraved on the lens. I could find no play in the focussing ring, although it moves very light. There is no play in the zoom ring either. Focussing and zooming occurs internally, so the front of the lens does not turn and it always remains at the same length. Auto focussing is extremely fast and accurate. There's a switch to lock the lens on manual or auto+manual focus. If you set it at auto+manual, you can grab the focussing ring for manual override any time. At the front of the lens there are a couple of extra buttons to lock focussing. There's also a switch to limit focussing from 2.5 metres to infinity instead of the full range. Vibration Reduction (VR) can be switched on or off. When on, there are two modes: Normal mode and Active mode. Normal mode is used for normal shooting conditions. VR will detect panning, but will not try to correct for that movement. Active mode is used for unstable shooting conditions, for instance on a boat. In Active mode VR will try to correct motion in any direction. According to Nikon, VR has to be switched off when the camera is mounted on a tripod! The tripod mount is newly designed. It consists of a non removable rotating collar on the lens and a foot that locks into the collar. A twist knob on the side locks it all securely. In my opinion this design is a big improvement over the previous ones. It provides a very good support for the lens, feels very sturdy and you can take the foot off without taking the lens from the camera, so it's easy to switch between tripod and handheld.

Sharpness
This lens is very, very sharp at all apertures and focal lengths. Corner sharpness is excellent. It is sharper than its predecessor. Even wide open at f/2.8 it is very good. But stopped down to f/5.6 it is tack sharp!

Color and contrast
Vibrant colors with good saturation. Contrast is excellent, but decreases fast when the sun directly hits the front element. There is no trace of colour fringing. The image quality is very impressive.

Flare and ghosting
There's a lot of glass in this lens, and the more glass there is, the more susceptible a lens is for flare and ghosting. This lens is no exception. On the contrary, I found this lens a lot more vulnerable to flare and ghosting than any other lens I have ever used. You need the supplied hood on this lens, period!

Light falloff
There is a bit of falloff at f/2.8 and f/4, it's gone at f/5.6. With the lens mounted on a D1/D2 series digital camera this is less of an issue because of the smaller angle of view.

Geometric distortion
Slight distortion at 70mm, some pincushion at 200mm and perfectly neutral in between. Very good! Again, if you mount the lens on a D1/D2 series digital camera distortion is less of an issue because of the smaller angle of view.

Bokeh
Out of focus area looks very pleasing and subtle. No harsh lines anywhere. Bokeh is nicer with VR off!

Vibration Reduction (VR)
I can be very short on this subject. It works! I was able to take sharp photographs without a tripod in low light conditions at 1/25 sec. (and slower!!), which I could not have taken without VR. The number of "keepers" will definitely increase! Just look at the bear shot above, taken at 1/8th of a second, and you'll know what I mean.

Working with this lens is a feast, it's very versatile, the sharpness is out of this world and bokeh is beautiful. It's packed with the latest technology, like the extremely fast and quiet AFS and a Vibration Reduction system that really works! There is only one disadvantage with this lens and that's the issue of flare and ghosting, but usually there are plenty of ways around that. Its superior performance and professional build quality make this lens a definite winner!