Question: 18 55mm lens can zoom how far?
Answer: The lens has a focal length of 18mm at the wide end and 55mm at the long end. That's all you need to know. You can divide 55 by 18 and say it's a 3X zoom, but that doesn't tell you anything. You can go to the 35mm equivalent, which is 1.5X for the Sony, and say the lens's equivalent focal length is 27mm to 82mm.