The rumors had been circulating for awhile of Canon’s newest release, the Canon Rebel XS (or 1000D, as it is known everywhere but in the United States). Nikon had been scooping up the pre-entry-level SLR market for awhile with their hugely popular D40 and D40x and now the D60 whereas Canon’s entry-level consumer camera, the Rebel line had previously dominated. But now, Canon is poised to compete with Nikon for that goldmine: the set of users who are looking to upgrade from a point-and-shoot to a baby SLR.
This is a huge market for any major camera manufacturer. Whereas with the point-and-shoot market, there was no chaining people to a specific brand other than for brand loyalty. A person could get a Nikon CoolPix now and in a year get a Canon ELPH. By offering a SLR that is closer in price to a high-end point-and-shoot, Canon and Nikon can begin hooking users in for life. It’s kind of like what cigarettes companies were doing: getting kids younger and younger to smoke so they’ll be customers for life. This is the whole purpose of the D40/D40x/D60 and the new Canon EOS Rebel 1000D/XS. Once you got the SLR, sooner or later you’ll out grow the kit lens and want a zoom lens. Then it’ll be time to upgrade to a better model and since you already have these brand x lenses don’t work on brand y cameras, it wouldn’t make any sense to buy brand y cameras when you have already invested in brand x lenses and so it begins.
Nikon was smart and capitalized early on this idea. Canon had jumped in to compete against the Nikon D70 and D80, but had nothing to combat the D50. Sure the XT and XTi are great cameras and while cheaper and feature packed, Canon didn’t realize that people were willing to pay a bit more for quite a bit more camera: the D80. And then Canon released the new Canon EOS Rebel XSi, quite an improvement over the XTi for about the same price, it didn’t have a pre-entry level SLR to compete with the D60, until now.
Side-By-Side Comparison of Canon EOS Rebel 1000D/XS and Nikon D40x
The Nikon D60 is probably the SLR that the Canon EOS Rebel 1000D/XS is poised to compete against, but because of the features and price of the D40x, the new Rebel has to hold its own against this one also. Remember that comparison charts do not give the full story but rather show what one camera has over the other. A more feature rich camera does not mean it takes better photos.
| SLR Cameras | Canon EOS Rebel 1000D/XS | Nikon D40x | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year Introduced | June 10, 2008 | March 06, 2007 | |
| Price (street) | TBA | $682.63 | |
| Sensor Size | 22.2 x 14.8 mm | 23.7 x 15.6 mm (Nikon DX) | D40x |
| Viewfinder | 95%, 0.81x | 95%, 0.8x | |
| Max Resolution | 3888 x 2592 | 3872 x 2592 | 1000D/XS |
| Megapixels | 10.1 | 10 | 1000D/XS |
| ISO rating | Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600 | Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600 (with 3200 as option) | D40x |
| Auto Focus type | Multi-BASIS TTL, 7 focus points CMOS sensor | Nikon Multi-CAM530, 3 focus points CMOS sensor | 1000D/XS |
| Metering | 35 area eval, center weighted, partial, spot | 3D Matrix metering II, Center weighted, Spot | |
| Crop Factor | 1.6 | 1.5 | D40x |
| Continuous Drive | 3 fps for unlimited JPEGs, 1.5 fps for RAW | 3 fps for unlimited JPEGs | |
| Storage Types | SD/SDHC/MMC card | SD/SDHC card | 1000D/XS |
| LCD | 2.5 inches | 2.5 inches | |
| LCD Pixels | 230,000 | 230,000 | |
| Battery | Canon 1050mAh Li-Ion LP-E5 | Nikon 1000mAh Li-Ion EN-EL9 | 1000D/XS |
| Weight | 502 g (17.7 oz) | 522 g (18.4 oz) | |
| Dimensions | 126 x 98 x 65 mm (5 x 3.9 x 2.6 in) | 124 x 94 x 64 mm (4.9 x 3.7 x 2.5 in) | |
| Live View | Yes | No |
Looking at the features alone, it doesn’t look like the Canon EOS Rebel 1000D/XS has any problems competing against the Nikon D40/D40x. The only issue will be pricing. At Amazon.com, you can pick up a Nikon D40x with kit lens for about $450, which would be very hard to beat.
Side-By-Side Comparison of Canon EOS Rebel 1000D/XS and Nikon D60
So how does the 1000D/XS stack up against Nikon’s newer pre-entry-level SLR, the Nikon D60?
| SLR Cameras | Canon EOS Rebel 1000D/XS | Nikon D60 | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year Introduced | June 10, 2008 | January 29, 2008 | |
| Price (street) | TBA | $567.04 | |
| Sensor Size | 22.2 x 14.8 mm | 23.6 x 15.8 mm | D60 |
| Viewfinder | 95%, 0.81x | 95%, 0.8x | |
| Max Resolution | 3888 x 2592 | 3872 x 2592 | 1000D/XS |
| Megapixels | 10.1 | 10.2 | D60 |
| ISO rating | Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600 | Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600 (with 3200 as option) | D60 |
| Auto Focus type | Multi-BASIS TTL, 7 focus points CMOS sensor | Nikon Multi-CAM530, 3 focus points CMOS sensor | 1000D/XS |
| Metering | 35 area eval, center weighted, partial, spot | 420 segment 3D color Matrix metering II, Center weighted, spot | 1000D/XS |
| Crop Factor | 1.6 | 1.5 | D60 |
| Continuous Drive | 3 fps for unlimited JPEGs, 1.5 fps for RAW | 3 fps for unlimited JPEGs | |
| Storage Types | SD/SDHC/MMC card | SD/SDHC/MMC card | |
| LCD | 2.5 inches | 2.5 inches | |
| LCD Pixels | 230,000 | 230,000 | |
| Battery | Canon 1050mAh Li-Ion LP-E5 | Nikon 1000mAh Li-Ion EN-EL9 | 1000D/XS |
| Weight | 502 g (17.7 oz) | 522 g (18.4 oz) | |
| Dimensions | 126 x 98 x 65 mm (5 x 3.9 x 2.6 in) | 124 x 94 x 64 mm (4.9 x 3.7 x 2.5 in) | |
| Live View | Yes | No |
Against the newer D60, the Canon EOS Rebel 1000D/XS has a slight edge, but the D60 definitely will give the 1000D/XS a run for its money.
Conclusion
The biggest advantage for the 1000D/XS in the pre-entry-level market will definitely be Live View. The D40/D40x and D60 don’t have it and I’m sure when the D60x is released, it will have Nikon’s Live View. And if Canon prices this camera to be right about what Nikon is charging for the D60, I think Canon will start taking away some market share.
One of the biggest gripes I have with the 1000D/XS is that the highest ISO speed it can go to is 1600. Nikon has offered 3200 as an option since their D40, so not sure why Canon doesn’t include it. A big improvement of the 1000D over the Canon EOS Rebel 400D/XTi is the inclusion of spot metering, which the Canon EOS Rebel 450D/XSi now has also.
While the 1000D/XS is clearly aimed at the users looking to move up from point-and-shoot cameras, professionals and serious amateurs shouldn’t completely discount the 1000D/XS or even the 450D/XSi. While they may not have the same features that the pros and serious amateurs maybe accusomted to, they do make a great traveling camera that works with all other Canon lenses such as “L” lenses. And even worse case, they may make a great affordable backup body. I wouldn’t recommend any wedding photographers to use a 1000D/XS as their primary wedding camera as that would seriously impact your reputation as a professional.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Comments
One Comment so far. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.Thanks for the post