How would you change Canon's Rebel XSi?

For the DSLR hardcore, we doubt you waited much more than a day or two after launch before securing a Rebel XSi of your own, and for newcomers to the fold, you may have snatched one up after hordes of reviewers gave it an expected thumbs-up. Whatever the case, we're eager to know what's gone right and wrong with the first thousand or so clicks. Has it lived up to your expectations? Are you decidedly joyous about the image quality? Could anything stand to be tweaked / reworked / overhauled completely? You ponied up some serious change for this thing, so don't let emotion get in the way of telling Canon how you really feel.

[Kris S. @ May 23rd 2008 6:35PM]

I'd drop the price by $200.

[BigDaddyM @ May 24th 2008 2:52AM]

Agree, the price is a bit steep for "entry" level when most people still can't afford the price.
M

[ericthebikeman @ May 24th 2008 2:08PM]

Shop around and you can easily find it marked down by $100 with the IS lens kit.

XTi is the entry level dSLR now, XSi the high end of entry level before hitting the prosumer xxD or xD lines so the price is fine. Stay in P&S if cost is a huge factor, you really won't like the prices when you get into lens upgrades.

[G Tom @ May 23rd 2008 6:37PM]

A more energy-efficient second LCD.

Better contrast focusing during live view.

Articulated LCD for Live View use.

[Jesse S @ May 23rd 2008 7:31PM]

Why the hell would you use Live View? All it does is cause more noise.

[Lazerface @ May 24th 2008 12:46AM]

@ Jesse S

Obviously you don't even own a camera like this. Live view will not add noise, only switching to high ISOs of 1600 or more will cause any noticeable noise.
Live view is just handy for those shots that are low to the ground or high above your head, or if your in-studio and want to be lazy and control your camera with your laptop from the other side of the room.

Judging by the fact that you have Dexter from Dexter's Lab as an avatar, I'd guess that your 12 and won't even have enough money for one of these unless your parents get it for you.

[Lazerface @ May 24th 2008 12:50AM]

BTW, I sell these and other consumer/prosumer/professional cameras and lenses all day. Don't argue with a guy that knows his product inside and out.

[BigDaddyM @ May 24th 2008 2:49AM]

Actually Live View does add news because extended use of live view heats up the chip causeing artifacts. You didn't think the image just magically appeared?
M

[nsb7 @ May 29th 2008 7:46PM]

Stupid moron laserface. I don't know who buys cameras from you if you can't understand what other person is saying. Which idiot has hired you as a sales person when you don't even have a good attitude towards other person.

What jesse means I think is that in the live view XSI will make noise (sound) of flipping mirror and it is absolutely correct statement.

[Jordan @ May 28th 2008 9:07AM]

Agreed, it can add noise.

But don't tell Mr. Lazerface know-it-all something that makes sense, he will just combat you with his Best Buy employism and never think "hmm, I could be arguing with someone who actually USES these cameras professionally, and not just harks them on a sales floor."

[Jordan @ May 28th 2008 9:11AM]

Oh heavens, it just occurred to me that I had better state the following: "Yes, I realize that people do not use the XSi professionally, I am speaking of other models with Live View." Like my D300. :)

[fugu @ May 23rd 2008 6:47PM]

Not to sound snobby, but most "hardcore" DSLR users probably aren't looking at entry level bodies

[Teddles @ May 23rd 2008 6:58PM]

Ditto to that. Hardcore users should / will be looking at xxD series cameras at least. Probaby 5D's. This is a "getting into SLR" camera.

[superkev @ May 24th 2008 7:52AM]

I'd call myself a hardcore user (been pro for about 5 years now) and I am considering getting something like this as a "bumming around" camera... it's lighter than a pro DSLR, and I wouldn't have to worry as much about damaging it!

[Ayman @ May 23rd 2008 6:37PM]

I would add a 50 caliber sniper rifle to it

so i can literally shoot

[Mike @ May 23rd 2008 8:26PM]

I think a rubber walrus protector would even be a better suggestion than that, cause you'd find more use for it if a talking horse walked infront of you.

Attaching a precision photo instrument to a hi-powered rifle is idiotic.

[Alex @ May 23rd 2008 8:32PM]

it was a "joke." do you know what those are?

[David @ May 23rd 2008 6:43PM]

I would drop in a full frame sensor.

[Za @ May 24th 2008 8:45PM]

Mmmm....and make Canon's digital lenses worthless? Seems like a great idea...frankly, I think one of the good things about this line of camera is that it *does* have that crop factor. The type of people that buy this camera will most likely be the ones taking photos of their kids at sporting events and whatnot, and that extra telephoto would come in very handy. It seems to me that people more likely to appreciate a full frame sensor and the associated benefits [and negatives] would be more likely to pay more for that.

[Boss @ May 23rd 2008 6:45PM]

I wish i knew how to use mine.

[Liam @ May 23rd 2008 7:24PM]

II'll swap you my Poweshot A75 for it, it's much more straightforward to use. Plus it works 'most of the time'. How could you resist?

[maff @ May 24th 2008 6:32AM]

RTFM

[Jhongerkong @ May 23rd 2008 6:45PM]

I'd tell it to start listening to authority and to start playing by the RULES

[KanosWRX @ May 23rd 2008 6:58PM]

I got one of these about 2 weeks ago, I have been extremely impressed with the speed and image quality of this camera. Taking some amazing shots. The Auto-Focus could be a little better faster/accurate but other then that I am pretty happy. Of course their will be lots of live view comments but I find it to be more of a novelty then anything else, its way easier using the view finder for 99% of your shots. I also love how it uses SD cards instead of the out dated compact flash cards. I enjoy this camera so much I actually went out and bought a lens that cost more then the camera itself :)

[Teddles @ May 23rd 2008 7:05PM]

The lack of autofocus speed is more likely than not lens related, Canon really should put better kit lenses out there, I was impressed they stuck an image stabiliser on it though, step in the right direction.

Congrats on the lens purchase, its what SLR shooting is all about.

[Tom @ May 23rd 2008 7:37PM]

"I actually went out and bought a lens that cost more then the camera itself"

Welcome to the world of SLR. At almost any level camera you will find lenses that cost more than the body. You were smart to pay for a quality lense.

[Maestro @ May 23rd 2008 6:45PM]

I'd rename it the SEx.

[PhatheadWRX @ May 23rd 2008 6:48PM]

I love mine. No complaints at all. It is my first DSLR

[Teddles @ May 23rd 2008 6:53PM]

Drop the live view, its not the best way to take photos.

Put CF back in it, Nobody wants to buy a load of SD cards to support the 13Mpx then get a better camera and have to buy CF cards.

Use the money saved by not having all the live view electronics to provide a lens with a wider aperture.

Call it 450D in all countries, it just fits with the remainder of the product line, theres nothing Rebellious about it and nor should cameras ever be related to Kissing

[Dan Dolar @ May 23rd 2008 7:40PM]

+1 on dropping the "Rebel" name. That name was coined waaaay back when Andre Agassi was Canon's posterboy; seriously, WTF has he even been up to lately?!

But yeah, that and the CF thing.

[Ethan @ May 23rd 2008 8:50PM]

Won't the higher models probably transition to SD later anyway?

[ryusen @ May 23rd 2008 9:04PM]

i certainly hope the pro bodies don't shift of SD. CF cards are much faster and easier to handle. SD cards are just too small for my taste.

[BrettB @ May 23rd 2008 8:59PM]

I personally like the SDHC thing. It goes up to 2gb on normal SD, much higher (I think 16gb right now) on SDHC. I don't see the problem. If you're a pro moving down the ladder and have a bunch of CF cards, yes it's a pain. But for most of the people looking to buy this thing, they probably already have one or more SD cards and are moving up to a DSLR. Plus SD are smaller, lighter, and possibly more robust (no pin issues) so I think it's a natural evolution. I think you'll see SDHC moving up the food chain on DSLRs from now on. CF was great back in the day, but it's pretty much on it's way out now.
Also, I'm glad they left off the articulating screen. Sony's try at it is horrible--the screen sticks out so it is a little awkward, and it's just one more thing to break (I like to leave those at a minimum).
Personally, my only gripe is that you have to hit three different buttons to delete one image. Nikon has it right, just hit the delete button twice and the crappy shot is gone.

[Mehul @ May 24th 2008 11:50AM]

I dont mind the SD card. They're cheaper than CFs. Here is my list of improvements:

1) BETTER GRIP! (Cant believe nobody has mentioned it yet)
2) Better texture on the plastic (It cannot have metal body for that would compete with 40D)
3) CF and SD dual support
4) Live view with auto-focus
5) Swivel LCD like in the S5-is. Not like the one in Sony A350

[ericthebikeman @ May 24th 2008 2:08PM]

Go back to CF, sure SD is cheaper but there's a good reason for that. The 40D smokes the XSi in writting a full buffer to disk. More data to disk in shorter time == faster disk, plain and simple.

Look up the specs for Class 6 SD, 6MB/Sec is horrible compared to 20MB/sec for an average CF. I have yet to find a SD HC or otherwise that can even touch speeds of a good CF card.

That said I have the XSi, I rather invest in good glass that can transfer to a new Canon (50D?) in a few years.

Reference: http://www.sdcard.org/about/speed_class

[Guigsy @ May 25th 2008 7:07AM]

Not totally sure on this, but I think SDHC cards are measured in megaBYTEs per second. CF cards are generally measured in megaBITS per second. A 20Mb/s CF card is only a little faster than a class 2 SDHC.

Why does everyone hate moving card standards? Flash is so cheap now it's barely worth wiping the card, just buy another one. Moving up from a to a class 6 8GB SDHC card is only going to cost you $30.

[Razor @ May 23rd 2008 6:53PM]

Better ergonomics when it comes to the grip. The low-end Canons tend to have rather thin grips compared with Nikon, Olympus, Sony...

> For the DSLR hardcore, we doubt you waited much more than a day or two after launch before securing a Rebel XSi of your own...

Hardcore and XSi don't quite go together. Don't get me wrong, I think it's a great entry-level camera, but if I was going hardcore I'd at least want a metal body and weather-sealing, and most entry-level DSLRs don't have either.

[Hero @ May 23rd 2008 6:55PM]

drop the price. Add image stabalizer to the body

[Teddles @ May 23rd 2008 6:58PM]

But that would negate paying for IS lenses, and Canon dont want that :D

[Josh Bradshaw @ May 24th 2008 10:40AM]

IS is meant to be in the lens, each lens is different and each IS unit is different, element size and quality. Plus having a piezoelectric crystal to shift the sensor in the body is just a hassle because it adds more weight, and IS is not always needed.

[tk2k @ May 23rd 2008 6:57PM]

BRING CF BACK!!
it's the standard for professional cameras!

[Ethan @ May 24th 2008 10:18AM]

Some of it's been said already, but SDHC > CF. I own an original Rebel (and I own several CF cards), but I recently bought a HF100 video camera, which uses SDHC. My experience with SDHC has been better than that of CF.

Compact Flash is a relatively old and slow format compared to SDHC. Many modern laptops have an SDHC slot but no support for CF because the cards are literally too big. I also get better performance from my SDHC class 6 card - the card has less electronics in it than CF, allowing for more improvements via the reader. Also, one of CF's biggest advantages in the past - being compatible with PCMCIA slots with only a pin convertor, is quickly disappearing as laptops drop those slots in favor of ExpressCard.

BTW, Canon has begun migrating its high-end cameras to SDHC as well, as it has done with the 1DmkIII, which supports both CF and SDHC. I imagine that eventually everything will transition to the newer, more "compact" format.

[TK @ May 23rd 2008 6:57PM]

Anything that makes geotagging easier will do.

[Prezzie @ May 23rd 2008 7:12PM]

It is not enough of an upgrade to warrant it's purchase over the XTi (which I own).

Also, Live View is pointless.

If it had a Full Frame Sensor though...things might be different.

[gb @ May 23rd 2008 7:54PM]

It's not the ideal shooting method, but I've found live view useful on some occasions, like when I'm trying to shoot something close to the ground on a horizontal plane, like a duck or something. It's just a useful method for framing a shot when you can't a good look through a viewfinder. Plus, with multiple AF choices in live view, you at least have a choice between speed and camera noise. Again, not ideal, but I wouldn't say its totally uselss.

Plus, it helps me take shots of strangers on the subway without making it obvious that I'm taking their picture. Ah, spring!

[photog @ May 23rd 2008 7:14PM]

fugu is correct, DSLR hobbyists would jump to get this - not the hardcore users. You don't see many pros using a Rebel in the field. Nikon D3 is the hot new thing for the pros. Although there are plenty of good Canon DSLRs for the truly hardcore.

For consumer/hobby level DSLR this Rebel provides good bang for the buck. But DSLR hardcore users will buy the Nikon D3.

[Liam @ May 23rd 2008 7:22PM]

I shall be ignoring it and trying to get the cash together for a 40d instead, as all it has over this is price (not exactly a gulf there mind) and pixels (ditto). I personally prefer SD to CF (smaller, you can plug them straight into a USB slot), but I believe I'm in the minority, and CF is the proven standard I suppose.

I'd add a pentaprism as opposed to a pentamirror for the viewfinder. With these reduced size sensors, you need all the light you can get. I don't get why the 40d can have a control wheel and this one can't, either. They're both changes that would improve the handling, but wouldn't cost a great deal.

Oh and I would change the stupid name to the European equivalent, the 450d. I think the reduced size sensor is a god thing, EF-S lenses should be able to be just as good but for less money. Problem is that Canon hasn't really made many of those lenses yet. The pros will continue to use full-frame, and the rest of us will turn to sigma or others for our lenses.

[Troutmask @ May 23rd 2008 7:23PM]

All the "hardcore DSLR" people would still keep using whatever DSLR body they already have, and get some good lenses instead.

People need to quit obsessing over minor incremental upgrades from anything with electronics in it.

[JohnnyB @ May 23rd 2008 7:25PM]

I almost bought one, then I found the Sony Alpha200 for $300 less. 10.1MP vs 12MP - not enough difference to consider; no live view - don't need it; In camera stabilization - cheaper than lens-based IS; and...

The Canon XSi grip is still just tooo too small for normal size north american hands.

Simple fix? stop scrimping on the plastic and make the grip a tad bigger. Fix that ONE issue, and I might go back to Canon.

Really, I'll probably save my dukets for the next version 40D with the extras; I'll be done with entry-level DSLR in about a year or so.

[Jesse S @ May 23rd 2008 7:32PM]

Not make denser sensors that only introduce more noise while the added resolution does nothing for most.