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| Canon EOS 500D (Rebel T1i) |
| Full review » Scoreboard » Gallery » |
_it00.jpg) After a few covert screenings of the Canon Eos 500D’s 1080p HD video last year, photographers and videographers were introduced to a revolutionary world where DSLRs appeared to rival certain top of the line HD camcorders. A DSLR that shoots progressive HD? That’s whack! After a thorough investigation, we’re here to tell you that it’s still safe to stick with that trusty old 60i camcorder unless you plan on shooting static subjects in bright light. That’s the only dimension the Eos 500D’s video mode excelled in, and when it did, it looked pretty guldarn good. As far as image quality was concerned, the Eos 500D performed very well, but couldn’t match the likes of the Pentax K2000. We loved he plethora of shooting features and bountiful external controls. The menus were top notch and the 3-inch Live View LCD rocked the block, but at $900, we have to wonder if the Eos 500D is a justifiable investment. If we strip away the Eos 500D’s 1080p and 720p video capability, it can’t hold a candle to the Pentax K2000. The K2000 also ships with two lenses and retails for 200 smackers less than the Eos 500D. And with our Nikon D5000 and Olympus E-620 reviews right around the corner, we implore you to wait this one out if you can’t get to the store anytime soon. Release: May 2009. Price: $900.
Pros: Great design. Excellent LCD with Live View. Very good overall image quality.
Cons: 1080p video is only equipped to handle a narrow field of shooting environments. Limited advanced features. Pricey compared to competition.
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| Pentax K2000 |
| Full review » Scoreboard » Features » Gallery » |
 If you're just breaking into photography and want to attack innocent subject matter with a DSLR rather than a fixed lens, there's a sizable market of entry-level DSLRs out there to get the ball rolling. The Pentax K2000 is one of the more unconventional models, due to its optional all-white chassis. Love it or hate it, the K2000 is a great camera to learn on, offering oodles of shooting features and modes that will toss any budding photographer into the front row of Digital Imaging 101. The K2000 also captured some killer images in bright and low light, some of which we'd deem magazine quality, as long as they were snapped in the RAW format. Pentax also throws in two lenses, a wide-angle and telephoto, and tacks an impressive interface on the K2000, complete with an intuitive menu system and generous external controls. We loved shooting with the K2000 in all shooting environments and its Digital Filters and Color options were fun to play with. If you dare to be different and lust to be the next Ansel Adams, the Pentax K2000 is a great start. Release: November 2008. Price: $700.
Pros: Great RAW image quality. Impressive feature set and interface. Solid handling.
Cons: JPEG image performance was not the best. Lens cap kept falling off.
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