The Sony 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 SSM G is member of a rare species. Usually such slow speed 70-300mm zoom lenses are budget-oriented items whereas some kind of 80/100-400mm lens is filling the quality gap at the upper end of the food chain. However, the Sony lens belongs to the G ("Gold") lineup - Sony's designated professional-grade lenses. The price tag is accordingly high at around 800€/US$ which is quite a bit beyond the mainstream (but e.g. the new Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 USM L IS is far more expensive still). The full format lens can be regarded as the successor of the highly popular (but naturally discontinued) Minolta AF 100-300mm f/4.5-5.6 APO D although the two lenses differ quite a bit in terms of size and pricing.