PMA2008: Consumer SLRs continue to evolve

As I mentioned in my PMA preview, the SLR market continues to be very competitive, especially for consumer-targeted models. The two that caught my eye at the show this year are, not surprisingly, the Nikon D60 and the Canon Rebel XSi, both of which were announced within the past week and a half. I got to check out each up-close and personal since both camera manufacturers had them at their show booths.   (Click on the image at right for a closer look at the Rebel XSi. You'll find a clickable image of the Nikon D60 SLR further down.)

Of the two, Canon's specs appear a little beefier (although we'll reserve final judgment until we get both models into our labs for testing.) As I mentioned in a previous post on lenses, Canon now includes an image-stabilized lens in the Rebel XSi kit. (Nikon is also shipping an image-stabilized lens with the D60.)

On the camera body, Canon has bumped up the megapixels to 12.2 from 10.1 on the Rebel XTi (which is still staying in the SLR product line). Canon claims that while they've increased the number of pixels on the CMOS sensor, they’ve engineered it in such away as to keep the visual noise low.

On the processing side, the Rebel XSi includes Canon's Digic III processor, which the company says includes a 14-bit analog-to-digital conversion processor for better tone and gradations. What this means is you could shoot, for example, in RAW and then output a huge 16-bit TIFF file to make a very large print but with very good quality and excellent tonal gradations.

Canon's also upped the size of the LCD to 3 inches and has Live View capabilities, which we saw previously on the XSi's bigger sibling, the Canon EOS 40D. Canon claims it has tweaked the autofocus on the Live View function, making it feel like you're autofocusing with a point-and-shoot, the ultimate goal for live view on an SLR.

For the first time I know of, Canon has an SLR that accepts an SD or SDHC memory card, which also allowed them to trim an ounce or so off the camera's weight. They've added a 4 percent spot meter. Plus, they claim the proprietary Lithium Ion battery will last much longer than with earlier models. The camera will cost around $800 for the body-only version, and $900 with the 18-55mm kit lens. (This means the price of the Rebel XTi will be dropping.) The Rebel XSi will be available in April.

In conjunction with this camera announcement, Canon also introduced a new SLR lens: the EF-S 55-250mm f/4.5-5.6 IS lens, which will sell for around $300 and will be available in March. This will be welcome news for Canon shooters using Rebels or the 30D or 40D, since most other Canon telephoto zooms are at least twice the price of this lens. (Note that Canon's EF-S series lenses are not compatible with its SLRs that have full-frame sensors, or its Mark II or Mark III SLRs.)

In contrast, Nikon has chosen to go with a "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" approach on the 10-megapixel D60. Both previous consumer-targeted SLRs—the 6-megapixel D40 and 10-megapixel D40x—did quite well for Nikon (and both were our recent SLR Quick Picks, available to ConsumerReports.org subscribers). The D60 simply expands its feature set in a few areas, while keeping the same wonderful design and lightweight form factor.

In addition to the image-stabilized lens, Nikon's added a number of new features to the camera body. There's a new, two-fold dust-reduction system: The first is a sensor-cleaning element that vibrates the sensor to knock dust off the low-pass filter. The second is a ventilation system that diverts air inside the mirror box toward tiny vents or ducts near the base of the camera, again to minimize dust getting on the sensor.

Nikon has added an eye sensor near the viewfinder that automatically turns off the LCD when you bring your eye up to the viewfinder. Nikon says you now also have the ability to process RAW files right inside the camera, which lets you create a JPEG file before you transfer your files to a computer. They've included an Active D-lighting function that helps correct for challenging lighting situations (such as having strong backlighting in one part of a photo, and more subtle lighting in another). Lastly, they've added a stop-motion movie or animation feature, via which you can take a series of shots and have the camera turn them into an .AVI movie file.

The Nikon D60 will sell for around $750 with the 18-55mm VR lens and will be available at the end of this month.

—Terry Sullivan

Comments

[George]

Please let me know if the Canon Rebel xsi has been evaluated yet by CR and where I can find the ratings. If not yet evaluated, when do you expect to do so. Cannon is aggressively marketing this camera with good sale prices, but is the camera any good?

[C. D. Bates]

When will these cameras be tested & when will the results be shared? I am particularly interested in a digital slr with a fast shutter speed & recovery. I keep getting blurry shots of my young grandsons as they speeed by. I like the movie possibility of the Nikon. Is there sound? If super compact cameras have movies, why can't these expensive SLRs have them at a reasonable price? The Canon Xsi is about as expensive as I can go. THanks for your response. CB

[Sam]

I am surprised by the focus on Nikon and Canon at this show. Other than having great reputations they seem to be the least innovative of all right now when compared with Sony and Pentax, etc. Also, in real world terms (when critics are not looking at things under a microscope) nobody really sees the difference in the photographs.