Any suggestions on this lens (Tamron AF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 Di LD)?

I currently have a Nikon D5200 with the kit lens, and i'm looking to buy a new lens. I have a really limited budget and would really like a zoom lens (for sport photography mainly) I found this lens; Tamron AF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 Di LD. I can get it for $160 where I live. I know it's a really small price for a zoom lens (any lens infact) and i know it has slow autofocus and no IS. But will it give me good results? Will it have the same sharpness as the 18-55 kit lens? And things i should know about?

IS is really useful when handholding a 300mm lens. Otherwise to get a sharp shot you need to use a shutter speed faster than 1/500th. If that isn't a problem then go ahead.

You already know it does not focus fast, so why do you think it will be able to keep up with the action for sports photography? In addition it has small maximum aperture, which means it will be useless for sports in any lighting get besides outside in bright sunlight. You can forget using it for any nighttime or indoor sports.

It's an "OK" lens. The zoom range is good, the slow maximum aperture not so much.
Most buyers report that it's very soft and lacks contrast from 200-300mm.
In the "macro" mode, you have to focus manually.
It shows a fair amount of chromatic aberration at all focal lengths, and shows barrel distortion at the long end, pincushion distortion at the short end.

For about $40 more, you can get a much better lens: the Sigma 70-300mm "APO" f/4-5.6 lens. It has *some* of the same shortcomings as the Tamron (slow max aperture), but AF is usable in macro mode, and it is quite a bit sharper and shows a lot less chromatic aberration, and less barrel and pincushion distortion.

Here's a link:

http://www.photozone.de/...ew?start=1