Viltrox 25mm f/1.7 Air Review: Performance Without Price

Mar 03, 2025

Chris Niccolls

Viltrox is steadily expanding its line of lenses and I’ve committed to making 2025 the year that I review more of them. Viltrox lenses have earned a glowing reputation and I very much enjoyed the 135mm f/1.8. But the latest 25mm f/1.7 comes in at an incredibly low price of $179. Can a lens this affordable make a favorable impression or is it too good to be true?

Buy the Viltrox 25mm f/1.7 Air new on Amazon.com Buy the Viltrox 25mm f/1.7 Air used on KEH.com

We are committed to reviewing more Viltrox lenses, especially if they turn out as good as the 25mm.

A city street with wet pavement reflecting sunlight. Leafless trees line the sidewalk with tall buildings in the background. A person walks in the distance. The scene suggests early spring or late autumn. — Bounced light off of the downtown buildings is always fun to hunt for.

Viltrox Air 25mm f/1.7 Review: How It Handles

Part of the low cost of this optic is attributed to the fact that this lens is made to cover a smaller APS-C sized sensor and gives the lens a full-frame equivalent focal length of roughly 37mm. It is very compact with 52mm filter threads on the front and weighing in at only 170 grams (six ounces). It has very little in the way of tactile features, too: there is a rudimentary manual focusing ring and not much else. There is no AF/MF selector switch and no weather sealing but at least the mount is solid metal.

The 25mm f/1.7 is compact and bright. It belongs on everyday-carry cameras like the Sony A6700.

A person wearing a coat and hat walks past a red brick building with the word "SQUARE" in large gold letters. The street is wet and lightly dusted with snow. A fire hydrant and a yellow pole are visible along the sidewalk. — The Viltrox makes for a discreet street lens with compact proportions.

The Viltrox 25mm uses an affordable stepping motor to focus the lens but it does a fantastic job shifting the lens elements quickly and quietly. The lens can also focus fairly close but this is no macro lens: close-up shots may not be magnified but they are at least sharp.

Two yellow dumpsters stand on a slightly wet, snowy area against a red brick wall. Reflections of the dumpsters are visible in the water on the ground. Signs labeled "Private Property" and caution signs are on the wall. — Temperatures might be starting to warm up a little but I don’t want to jinx it.

A vibrant mural depicts a colorful peacock with extended feathers, surrounded by large leaves, pink lotus flowers, and butterflies. A second bird is partially visible in the background, blending with the lush scenery. — I could go for a tropical paradise right now but a mural painting will have to do instead.

Viltrox Air 25mm f/1.7 Review: How It Shoots

I had a bright and sunny day available to test this little lens so I pointed it towards the sun to get some flare examples. The coatings do a great job of controlling washed-out areas of exposure and contrast is well-maintained. Ghosting was minimal even at tight apertures. The sun stars are pretty bland, however, with no real definition, but I don’t think many users will mind on a lens like this.

Sunlit urban scene with a tall residential building and a wall mural. The sign "Ryan's Used Office Furniture" is visible on a smaller building. The sky is clear, and the sun is shining brightly, casting long shadows on the almost empty street below. — Flare is controlled well with minimal ghosting present.

Close-up of a camera lens facing a Sony camera body with no lens attached, placed on a dark wooden surface. The camera and lens are partially illuminated, highlighting the metallic mount and electronic contacts. — The lens isn’t designed to be rugged but it does have a metal flange mount. Note the USB-C port for firmware updates.

Although this lens isn’t what I would call a shallow depth of field kind of lens, the bokeh is quite nice with a swirly cat’s eye look at f/1.7. However, the specular highlights are pretty distracting with onion rings and some soap bubble effect to them. This makes the background somewhat distracting when shooting at wide apertures. In most situations though, this lens is not going to deliver an ultra-shallow look to the focus so the results are acceptable for the price.

Close-up of a wooden surface on the right, with a blurry background featuring warm yellow bokeh lights creating an abstract pattern. — Bokeh is ok but the lens does have a distracting look to highlights and harshness.

A black-and-white photo of several stacks of wooden chairs in a covered outdoor area. The sunlight casts a grid-like shadow on the floor and tables in the foreground, highlighting the patterns of light and shade. — The best part about the Viltrox 25mm lens was that I forgot about the hardware and simply found myself enjoying the picture taking instead.

The Viltrox 25mm f/1.7 has some lateral chromatic aberration problems and you can see these purple smears quite clearly when shooting contrast-y subjects. At this price, a lens isn’t going to correct for these aberrations but remember that they are easily removable in post. It’s the longitudinal chromatic aberrations (LoCA) that are more critical because they are difficult to remove in editing. Luckily, the LoCA is pretty minimal when shooting at f/1.7 with only a slight color shift in the out-of-focus areas.

The corners can get a little dark at f/1.7 but they get much better at tighter apertures.

A Canadian flag with a red maple leaf flutters on a pole against a clear blue sky. In the background, several skyscrapers and buildings are visible, along with a mural on the side of a nearby structure. — I like the sharpness of the Viltrox and the contrast is good too.

Can a cheap lens be sharp? The answer is a resounding yes. The Viltrox shows good detail and contrast in the center of the frame and any improvement from stopping the aperture down is minimal. The corners are a little soft at f/1.7 and the vignetting is very apparent but this largely goes away with a tighter aperture.

A side-by-side comparison of two images featuring a resolution test chart with currency image details. The left image is labeled f/1.7 and the right f/4, showing how aperture affects depth of field and sharpness. — The center sharpness is excellent at the widest aperture and contrasty too.

A sloped entrance to a parking garage with a clearance sign reading "4.1 m 13' 6". The area is surrounded by teal barriers, and the ground is wet with scattered snow. Overhead lights are illuminated, casting shadows along the walls. — I didn’t expect such a handy little lens with full autofocus to be such a good price.

Incredible Performance for a Lens This Affordable

What’s not to like about a cheap and cheerful lens that delivers excellent results? The lens is bare bones for sure but the results deliver excellent value for the $179 price. Viltrox has shown that it can produce premium lenses like the 135mm and useful value optics alike. I truly wish that Viltrox will produce more affordable primes in the future if they are anything like this latest little wonder.

A person wearing a gray beanie and black jacket is holding a camera up to their face, taking a photo. They are standing on a city street with buildings and a few cars in the background. The street has patches of melting snow. — The focal length equivalent may not be my favorite but the optical results punch way above the price of the Viltrox 25mm.

A reflective puddle on the ground shows a wooden surface with an obscured sign, surrounded by bare branches. The scene is illuminated by warm sunlight and scattered fallen leaves. — I hope to see a whole line of Viltrox primes lenses that keep the cost down while pushing the image quality up.

Are There Alternatives?

In Fujifilm X-mount, the 23mm f/2 is an option with comparable image quality, albeit at a higher price. The XF 23mm f/1.4 provides way more light for way more money. It’s a similar story with Sony when you look at its 24mm f/1.8 that comes in at twice the price.