It is hard for me to type T2i, its predecessor the T1i was just starting to feel natural and here, less than a year later, we have the follow up. Announced today and shipping in early March the T2i looks on paper to be an amazing camera at an equally amazing price. So much so folks are wondering where the rumored to be announced soon 60D will sit. The Rebel line has been Canon’s entry level line since 2003 with their introduction of the 300D, nearly seven years later the T2i takes that entry-level moniker and stands it on its head offering a very serious camera under $900.

Updated: DPreview has the following summary line – Quite simply, taken as a whole, it is the best camera of its class that we’ve ever seen, and one of those rare cameras that won’t look out of date in a couple of years’ time.

Key Features:

• 18.7 MP -3″ Widescreen LCD with 1M dots, current “nice” LCD screens have 920K dots. Additional the screen is now the same aspect ratio as the images you shoot, no more letterboxing- just screen filling goodness of your photos.
• 1080p video at full 30fps(lower resolution selections at fast FPS) AND external stereo mic port – Up to now all the entry level models have relied on cheap mono mike for recording, sometime you even get the sound of the camera focusing in the audio track.  An external mic port allows for some seriously great audio quality.  At the recent CES in las vegas many of the bloggers/reporters were using Canon’s 7D w/ external mics attached  for recording interviews.  The T2i is now offering the same quality at 1/2 the price.
• Exposure Compensation +/- 5.0 (Excellent for HDR photography)- For years Canon has limited in camera exposure compensation to 2 stops +/-.  Moving to 5 allows for much greater latitude and control especially when shooting with HDR in mind.
• Auto ISO with selectable max
• Eye-fi specific menu settings, letting you setup and work with Eye-fi cards

On the Canon side this camera is now sitting between the T1i and the 7D, much closer to the 7D then the T1i

On the Nikon side this blows the D5000 out of the water and when comparing most features it also sits up the D90 which has been my “best camera for the money” pick for the last 6+ months.  D90 is still a better build, bright viewfinder and most folks find the ergonomics and balance to be better but if you care about video the T2i is an exceptional camera and value.  Even if you don’t care about video the features of the T1i look extremely exciting.

Full Press release

Pre-order T2i/550D at Amazon
Now in Stock at B&H Photo

Will you be upgrading?  From what? Leave your thoughts in the comments.

Related posts:

1. DSLR advantages (vs traditional P&S)

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