Canon EOS Rebel XT spits in gravity's face, survives 3,000-foot drop?
By Ross Miller 
posted December 16th 2009 2:26AM
posted December 16th 2009 2:26AM
posted December 16th 2009 2:26AM
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Don't try this at home.
@nrb
You probably know Jack from Beanstalk Dr.
@nrb
I did with that exact same video camera... and it wasn't pretty. the thing didn't survive a 1 foot drop without breaking... so the fat that it dies here doesn't surprise me at all.
Psht...let's see it take 3 bullets
@yulebellow
The real question is, how would a macbook withstand this impact. At least this camera's actually worth what it costs.
@ibopm : i'm not a big fan of apple but I don't think any laptop would have survived such a fall.
@yulebellow
What caliber? I figure any camera can survive a strike from a 22 on non-critical points, but what about a 9mm or larger? (.50 Desert Eagle. ^_^ I'd pay to see that!)
@ibopm That is not even a fair comparison. At least be reasonable. A PC would be in a lot more pieces than that unibody macbook after a drop like that.
@Jacob Apple Geek You know what, we can build our own pc's so lets try aluminum vs titanium(desktops). just for fun no war here.
@kitsune
Panasonic Toughbook would've. Probably, anyway.
I wonder if said skydiver had a extended warranty on that camera? And if so, does it cover repairs for 3000 ft. drops?
@Cyrs
Probably only covered it up to 2050.
Of all the claims ever made on Engadget, I think this is *the one* that deserves the request:
Pics or werk.
Next test: surviving a 3,000 foot drop onto concrete.
@VeganFreak
While it's on fire...
@DOUGSKEEZ
Without any milk
@ChaosEntity or Love
@ChaosEntity
I love you for that Spongebob reference.
Love the fact that he had his protection filter on the lens. :)
True story: I once took an accidental dive off a cliff of about 20 meters (65 feet). I was seriously injured. My Canon EOS 30 was housed in a Lowepro TLZ bag. The body took a serious beating but survived intact. I still use it today after it was inspected in a lab. The Tamron lens was smashed to small bits.
@zvikico
I can actually honestly say: 'cool story bro' :D
"Don't disturb the dirt until we get it back to the studio."
@grruse
nice one.
@grruse Is your picture from iRobot or a fetus smoking a pipe?
@MJGAMER 1991 XBL
It's a combination of I Robot, and Father Robert White's Reverend in Rhythm. ;-)
I expected more blowjob jokes. I'm somewhat satisfied but I'm not exactly "blown" away by the jokes so far. I still have hope.
@mrsheffels
What the hell does that have to do with a camera falling 3,000 feet?
This is EXACTLY why you should ALWAYS have a UV filter on your lens.
Devilishly tempting.
There's nothing like going for the primitive jugular with a bit of dirt.Look at that dirt , yes ,if I dirty up my camera a bit , ill look adventurous and the chicks will want me more.
yes, lets dirty up that shiny new thing. Inserting visions of adventurous trips to somewhere interesting, to a consumer group that would probably die if it ever ever left the house.
" the video camera was found to be without saving... " What the hell does that mean?
@steveed I think its dead, bro. :-D
good callout on the literary diarrhea...
@steveed
-without +beyond
@steveed It means that, both, the video camera and Rebel were mounted on the helmet. What took its own flight pattern was the helmet with everything on It. Maybe the Rebel survived because video camera impacted first.
@steveed Yeah, this is pretty unclear. There's also no "read" link anymore, Ross.
Adding the grass and stuff just makes it seem very staged.
no video update yet?
A 1-series EOS would have damaged the ground more than the ground damaged the camera. Those things are seriously tough.
@(Unverified) Amen!
Look at the pic, do you see impacted dirt? I see dirt placed on a camera. I see no abrasions on the plastic.
I would not be surprised that a camera could still function after a fall like this into soft soil, but this screams of fake to me.
@TexRob
Show a photo of anything doubtful these days and someone is going to call it fake. They'll even have seemingly rational arguments pointing out all the little technical reasons why it can't be real. Then it turns out to be real. Seen it too many times.
For starters, why would you expect to see abrasions (on matte black plastic, of all) when it's covered with dirt?
Can you show us a photo of a similar sized object with impacted dirt so we know we're not just going by your idea of what impacted dirt looks like?
I had a similar case. Guys don't get me wrong though, my Canon Rabel XTi did not drop 3,000ft like this one but from a two story building. I did get a dent on the Lens and it worked just fine after snapping it back in place, the lens still loose but it's fine. I never knew the Cameras are that tough.
Im not surprised. DSLR's feel really solid these days....well at least my Nikon does.
It all depends where it lands......what about dropping a wine glass 3000ft to a Tempurpedic mattress ???
I own this camera and it has no video function. Was this a feature added to current/ newer models? I'm confused.
There were two cameras. The video camera didn't survive the fall. The SLR did (sort of).
The writing in the story is very unclear on this point.
Totally possible. If the achieved velocity was only 100mph that means something on the rig was 'fin shaped' and helped to slow it down. And if it was only going 100mph it's definitely possible the camera survived. I wouldn't be surprised if its internal alignment were off, though.
I call shenanigans. Having worked with a number of the Rebel series cameras, I find it incredibly hard to believe that the pictured camera just hit the ground at 100mph. The build quality on them isn't terrible, but...I need some pretty convincing evidence to prove this one.
@(Unverified), I believe what happened is that the video camera hit the ground first, absorbing the shock of the impact for the SLR. The SLR made contact with the ground only after the rig rolled around. The fact that the video camera is pretty well destroyed supports this theory.
even if the video camera hit first, i would expect damage to the camera mirror.
shenanigans indeed, the lens cap was still on the camera when it was dropped, notice the dirt on it. The camera mounted to his helmet had the lens cap on it when he jumped from the plane to take pictures...