After months of teasing, Viltrox has released the L-mount version of its full-frame AF 28mm F4.5 “Chip” lens. It becomes the company’s second autofocusing lens for the system since it joined the alliance in September, 2025, and is a truly tiny option for people with cameras that use the mount.

The lens design has been around for a few years on Sony E and Fujifilm X mounts, and it gets its name and notoriety from its size: it’s 15.3mm (0.6″) thick, and weighs 60g. That, and its relatively wide focal length, make it an attractive prospect for anyone looking for an as-small-as-possible kit for everyday shooting.

That’s an especially interesting proposition on L-mount, where there haven’t been that many choices for that kind of lens, despite how much small, gripless cameras like the Panasonic S9 and Sigma BF would benefit from one. Panasonic itself released a relatively small 40mm F2 recently, and there are a few similarly-sized options from other brands, but even those are still noticeably bigger and heavier than the Chip. And while Panasonic’s 26mm F8 is similarly-sized, it’s quite a bit slower, and manual-focus only.

Image: Viltrox

Conversely, the Viltrox has a voice coil motor (or VCM) for autofocus and can’t be manually focused. It also includes an integrated lens cap, which you can deploy by sliding a switch to keep the front element protected if you’re sliding the lens into a bag.

The lens is made up of six elements in six groups, with two aspherical and two ED lenses, as well as coatings to reduce reflections and to repel water and oils from the front element. Perhaps its biggest is the aperture: while you may be willing to trade the speed of the ~F2 options for the size and weight savings, it is worth noting that the Chip is a fixed F4.5 lens, meaning you also can’t stop it down any further if its particularly bright or if you want to capture more depth of field or blur motion.

While it’s exciting to see Viltrox release a new lens for L-mount, especially one that fits into an underserved niche, this release also highlights the company’s relatively slow entrance into the L-mount ecosystem. In the ten months since it announced it was joining the alliance, it’s only released this lens and its 16mm F1.8 for the mount, both of which were promised at the beginning. In that time, it’s released six other full-frame lenses for other mounts (mainly Sony’s E and Nikon’s Z), with the only word on L-mount versions coming in the form of responses to Instagram comments.

Still, the release of the AF 28mm F4.5 Chip is a sign that there’s at least some work being done at Viltrox for L-mount. It’s available today for $99.

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