A-type:

High-gloss black finish and aluminum DOF ring (1965-1967, to 1969 for the preset lenses) – The first Hexanon AR lenses include automatic and preset lenses, produced until 1967 and 1969, respectively. They have a high-gloss black finish, an aluminum DOF ring, and a metal focusing ring with splines. Their technical specifications are engraved on the front ring in large bloc letters while the depth-of-field and aperture scales are indicated in very small and thin characters. There is no automatic exposure lock on the aperture ring of the automatic lenses and the ‘EE’ mark is most often preceded by a little dot (• EE). The very first automatic lenses of this version had a dot on the aperture ring instead of the ‘EE’ indication. As the Auto-Reflex is a camera without TTL metering, the flange next to the aperture linkage originally had no notch on it to transfer the lens’ largest aperture value to the body, but most were later modified by Konica. The preset lenses have 12-blade apertures that close down to f22. Some lenses of this version can have a distance scale in meters only.

B-type:

Flat black finish with aluminum DOF ring (1967-1970) – Lenses of the second version are commonly associated with the first version of the Autoreflex T. While they still have the aluminum DOF ring and the all-black focusing ring with splines, the finish on their black parts has a mat and more discrete finish. The fine and narrow letters of the aperture and depth-of-field scales have been replaced by larger and fuller lettering. The aperture ring was provided with an automatic exposure lock and a little round unlock button. The earlier lenses of this version still have the large block letters on the front ring, but the later ones were given the smaller font common to later versions. As it became necessary to transfer the largest aperture value of the lens to the body with the introduction of TTL metering with the Autoreflex T, the flange next to the aperture linkage on these lenses has a notch whose width corresponds to that value. Sometime during the time of this lens version, Konica introduced its new Color Dynamic Coating, which turned the dominant hue of Hexanon lenses from gold-amber to blue-purple. This change may coincide with the change of character font on the lenses' front ring to a smaller block type.

Notes:  There are early and late B-type lenses. On the early ones, the inscriptions on the lenses’ front ring are in large block characters; the inscription “Made in Japan” is located on the aluminum DOF ring; the splines on this ring reach across its entire thickness; there is often no AE lock button on the aperture ring; distances on the focusing ring are given in “meters” and “feet” (not ‘m’ and ‘ft’); and they usually have Konica’s older, amber/straw anti-reflective coatings. On the later ones, the inscriptions on the lenses’ front ring are in much smaller font, and include the inscription “Made in Japan”; the splines on the aluminum DOF ring reach only 1/3 of that ring’s thickness; there is an AE lock button on the aperture ring; distances on the focusing ring are given in ‘m’ and ‘ft’ (not in “meters” and “feet”); and they usually have Konica’s later, blue/violet Color Dynamic Coating (CDC). The change seems to have taken place over several months in 1968, soon after the introduction of the Autoreflex T. For some B-type lenses (the exceptions being the 21/4.0, the 85/1.8, the 100/2.8 and the 135/3.5), the change from early to later type usually coincides with a change of serial number series: 706 to 716 for the 28/3.5; 705 to 715 for the 35/2.8; 748 to 780 for the 52/1.8; 732 to 750 for the 57/1.2; 734 to 760 for the 57/1.4; and 743 to 746 for the 200/3.5. It is interesting to note that the B-type 21/4.0 and 135/3.5 had an aluminum DOF ring of the first type for their entire production period, with only the “Made in Japan” inscription being relocated to the front ring. The 200/3.5 in turn lost its first stage aluminum DOF ring when it became a Hybrid lens (see below).

C-type:

All-black mat finish with no aluminum ring (from 1970 to 1974) – Lenses of the third version were produced from 1970 to 1974 and are associated with the second version of the Autoreflex T (the so-called T2) which was introduced at approximately the same time. From 1970 on, most lenses became entirely black as the aluminum DOF ring was replaced with a black one. The lenses kept the focusing ring with splines and the yellow ‘EE’ indication. All lenses of this version have the newer smaller character font introduced on lenses of the previous version. With this version, Hexanon lenses were progressively stamped with a production code showing the year and month in which they were made. The coding of lenses was introduced over a one-year period, starting in early 1972. Roughly half the lenses of this version do not have such a code.

D-type:

All-black mat finish with rubber focusing ring (1971-1988) – This version is often associated with the introduction of the Autoreflex T3 in 1973, largely because Konica introduced many new lenses that year and they were all D-type lenses. In fact the very first D-type lenses were those that initially had both an aluminum ring AND a rubber focus ring (see about Hybrid lenses below). In 1973, the yellow ‘EE’ indication on some lenses began to be replaced with a green one. By the end of the year Konica decided to replace the 'EE' indication by 'AE' (automatic exposure), also in green, so lenses with a green ‘EE’ indication are fairly rare. The introduction of this version coincided with the introduction of many new lenses that extended the Hexanon range considerably. Most importantly, the previous 52/1.8 and 57/1.4 standard lenses were replaced by the 50/1.7 and the 50/1.4, respectively. This version represents the last ‘stylistic stage’ for the Hexanon AR lens range, as the rubber covered focusing ring would remain on all Hexanon lenses, including E-type lenses, made until 1988, when Konica withdrew from the SLR market.

E-type:

All-black finish with rubber focusing ring, compact size (1976-1988) – The introduction of Hexanon lenses of a new compact form is usually associated with the introduction in 1976 of Konica’s first compact SLR, the Autoreflex TC, even though at least one of the new lenses, the 300/6.3, first appeared in 1973. Lenses of this version have barrel parts that are thinner, smaller and lighter while their optical formulas call for smaller and, often, fewer elements. In many cases the optical formula remained the same but the coatings were more advanced. The manufacturing of many compact lenses, especially those introduced in 1978 or later, was contracted out to Tokina. These have a thin aperture ring with a rectangular lock button and an aperture closing down to f22. Their introduction coincided approximately with that of the FS-1. The compact versions of the 28/3.5, 50/1.4, 50/1.7, and 135/3.5, as well as the 200/4 and 300/6.3 were manufactured by Konica, however. The serial number on all lenses of this version was placed on the lens barrel, opposite the DOF scale.