Canon unveiled a new version of its Digital Rebel, bumping up the speed and resolution and adding a new dust reduction system to its entry level SLR.
The new Digital Rebel XTi sports a new, Canon-made 10-megapixel CMOS sensor, and a new integrated cleaning system which removes dust that can accrue on the sensor when swapping lenses. It will join the Rebel XT (which gets a price reduction) on the market.
Canon attacked dust by making the body cap and shutter more dust resistant, and applying an anti-static charge to the camera’s low pass filter with an anti-static charge. Canon also installed an ultrasonic vibrator on the low pass filter in front of the camera’s sensor to shake off dust whenever the camera is powered on or off.
In the event both methods fail, Canon integrated a “dust delete data” mode to remove dust flecks from images digitally by aiming the camera at a white wall or paper and recording the position of dust particles on the sensor. Armed with this data, the camera can remove the dust when transferring images to a PC via included software.
The Rebel XTi clocks in at 3 frames per second with longer burst rates than its predecessor. In Fine mode it can burst to 27 JPEG images or 10 RAW images.
The model also features a larger LCD, at 2.5-inches. The screen can temporarily power down when the user lifts the camera to use the optical viewfinder. The XTi also features ISO sensitivities to 1600, 9-point autofocus system, and a redesigned menu, bringing down options previously found on the company’s higher end SLRs, such six Picture Style settings for accessing image presets for sharpening, contrast, saturation and color tone.
The new XTi will ship this month in silver or black in two kit configurations: with and without an EF-S 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6 zoom lens for $899, and $799 respectively. The existing Rebel XT will stay on the market with a price reduction: $799 with lens, $699 without.
