Canon 50D vs Rebel--what's the point?

[dwdallam]

The price difference between the Canon 50D and Rebel is about 100-150US, so why would anyone buy the Rebel? I wonder if the Rebel is going to be phased out and replaced by the 50D series camera, especially with the release of the 7D.

[Ken Bennett]

Dunno. The user interface is quite different. The build quality, too -- I expect the 50D is significantly more expensive to build.

[feppe]

The price difference between the Canon 50D and Rebel is about 100-150US, so why would anyone buy the Rebel? I wonder if the Rebel is going to be phased out and replaced by the 50D series camera, especially with the release of the 7D.

I made the opposite decision when I was upgrading from 30D - I went for 450D instead. At that time the price difference between 450D and 40D was quite substantial, and I couldn't see much benefit from going to 40D.

But currently considering 7D for the UI improvements alone.

[DarkPenguin]

The price difference between the Canon 50D and Rebel is about 100-150US, so why would anyone buy the Rebel? I wonder if the Rebel is going to be phased out and replaced by the 50D series camera, especially with the release of the 7D.

Smaller and lighter and more P&S user tuned.

[feppe]

Smaller and lighter and more P&S user tuned.

First two were big factors for my choice. And 450D has most of the bells and whistles one needs, including bracketing and MLU.

[dwdallam]

First two were big factors for my choice. And 450D has most of the bells and whistles one needs, including bracketing and MLU.

Remember, I said at only 100-150US more. The 50D can be set up to print and shoot. It's called Auto. ( I jest , but you see my point).

Would any of you but the Rebel instead of the 50D given only a 100-150US difference?

[fike]

I use a 50D and have some friends with Rebels.  The general quality feel of the 50D is much higher than the mostly plastic feel of the Rebel.  The rebel series doesn't have the wheel on the back that makes control much easier.  It also doesn't have the small lcd on the top of the camera. In general, the rebel requires you to go through menus for most things.  This is a real impediment to working quickly in the field.  With the 50D, most stuff can be done on the fly....EV compensation is only one of the things that is much easier.  Program mode with combination of EV compensation while rotating through available shutter speed/aperture combos is very valuable.  50D also has much higher rate of fire than rebels.  I would say that the 150 premium is easily worth it, but that many people are very $$$ driven, so they want a cheap option.  What I don't get is the large variety of low-end cameras.  The T1i and other Rebel both seem to be kind of redundant.

[DarkPenguin]

Remember, I said at only 100-150US more. The 50D can be set up to print and shoot. It's called Auto. ( I jest , but you see my point).

Would any of you but the Rebel instead of the 50D given only a 100-150US difference?

Yeah.  Light weight is worth $$.  The physical therapy on my back and neck has been about $125 per session.

Beyond that I know a lot of people who simply would not purchase a camera that big.  They aren't happy with a camera the size of the 450D.

[NikoJorj]

Would any of you but the Rebel instead of the 50D given only a 100-150US difference?

Yes, me, mainly for the plastic (ie the lighter weight), and a bit for the bulk too. And also because 100$ bills don't grow up on trees, at least not by me.

Btw, that made me check B&H prices : I saw more price difference, even more if one compares the 50d (900$ body only) with the 450d/Xsi (500$ body only) as both have LV but no video...

[ivan muller]

Hi,

I have been using the 450d for about a year now and have been quite impressed with the camera in general. Image quality,  I think, is good enough. Compared to my first digital, a 20d the resolution was 'just right'  for me. But I do notice more noise even at low iso's. Have been using it a lot lately doing literally hundreds of packshots for a website. Using live view and man focus. Worked great. Got a 5d2 two weeks ago with the 24-105 zoom. Fantastic feel and build quality. But very heavy and bulky.

The 450 with a 35mm f2 is very light and small, like a poor mans leica... The 50d is more like the 5d2. also I have this 'feeling' that 12mp is the optimum for 1.6 crop camera, as is about22mp for full size. (Compared to my ZD the image quality is not quite there yet. although I have not made intensive tests) The new id mkiv also has 12mp x1.3. Had a look at the 7d and was not totally convinced. My bet is that a new 2000?d or whatever with 12mp and the latest canon technology will be 'good enough'.

 I think we are entering a period, like in the days of film, where there is a lot of different cameras for different applications. In my case, the ZD with shift lens & tripod for slower contemplative personal work(in B&W). The 450d for packshots, PR etc work where the ultimate quality is not necessary. 5d for the bulk of professional work, high iso needs etc. G9 works nice as a carry anywhere. Works well when travelling, people dont notice it and, at 80iso quality is nice for big prints.

So even if the price difference is small, as a second and back up camera I would rather have a 450d than a 50d.....

Regards, Ivan

[BJL]

The price difference between the Canon 50D and Rebel is about 100-150US, so why would anyone buy the Rebel? I wonder if the Rebel is going to be phased out and replaced by the 50D series camera, especially with the release of the 7D.

Where are you getting that price difference? At B&H, the most expensive Rebel body only is the T1i (500D) at $609, vs $941 for the 50D body only: a $332 difference.

Anyway, stepping out of the stratospheric pricing most often relevant in this forum, $100-150 would already be enough to encourage many people to prefer the Rebel T1i/500D, especially given that the advantages of the 50D are not high on most consumer-level SLR buyers' wish lists (higher frame rate, slightly larger VF image, more weight ...)

Imagine that you are a sales assistant in Best Buy, and try to explain why the bigger, heavier, more expensive 50D which lacks the video recording ability of the Rebel T1i and has the same pixel count is a better choice than the Rebel T1i.

[dwdallam]

Where are you getting that price difference? At B&H, the most expensive Rebel body only is the T1i (500D) at $609, vs $941 for the 50D body only: a $332 difference.

Anyway, stepping out of the stratospheric pricing most often relevant in this forum, $100-150 would already be enough to encourage many people to prefer the Rebel T1i/500D, especially given that the advantages of the 50D are not high on most consumer-level SLR buyers' wish lists (higher frame rate, slightly larger VF image, more weight ...)

Imagine that you are a sales assistant in Best Buy, and try to explain why the bigger, heavier, more expensive 50D which lacks the video recording ability of the Rebel T1i and has the same pixel count is a better choice than the Rebel T1i.

Those are good reasons. I did get the price from B&H assuming they would be inline with others. I would tell the shoppers that if they are more serious about photography, then they should purchase the 50D and then explain why. Those are good reasons though. especially since you point out the true difference between the 50D and the T1i is not 150 but 330.00US difference. I didn't realize the 50D didn't have video capability.

[bradf]

G'day,
I'm a beginner and have just bought the 500D. Price aside, I liked the light weight, small size and esp. the HD video. If I have regrets it would be that I didn't save up for the 7D (ie the ultimate spec crop canon). I couldn't really see where the 50D fitted in.
Cheers,
bradf

[feppe]

I would tell the shoppers that if they are more serious about photography, then they should purchase the 50D and then explain why.

And if a salesman told me that I'd tell them they're full of shit.

I guess that's why I shop my cameras online...

[dwdallam]

And if a salesman told me that I'd tell them they're full of shit.

I guess that's why I shop my cameras online...

And you'd be wrong, for simplicity of operation (navigation)  alone.

[Brad Proctor]

The price difference between the Canon 50D and Rebel is about 100-150US, so why would anyone buy the Rebel? I wonder if the Rebel is going to be phased out and replaced by the 50D series camera, especially with the release of the 7D.

I would and did.  Because I don't have deep pockets and have to make do with what I can afford.
For me personally, I didn't see that the 50D did much extra that I cared about anyway. I take 99% of my shots from a tripod so the small size only means lighter to carry around for me and the faster shots per second is irrelevant. I hear build quality as an argument a lot, but I have a friend who has a 40D that I've handled a lot and I never saw what the big deal was.  I don't throw my camera around so as long as it doesn't fall apart in my hands it can be made out of paper mache for all I care.

[DarkPenguin]

I would and did.  Because I don't have deep pockets and have to make do with what I can afford.
For me personally, I didn't see that the 50D did much extra that I cared about anyway. I take 99% of my shots from a tripod so the small size only means lighter to carry around for me and the faster shots per second is irrelevant. I hear build quality as an argument a lot, but I have a friend who has a 40D that I've handled a lot and I never saw what the big deal was.  I don't throw my camera around so as long as it doesn't fall apart in my hands it can be made out of paper mache for all I care.

I fell down a hill with my original digital rebel.  I tomahawked that bastard into the hill.  Took me a bit to vacuum the dirt out of the dials but the camera was just fine.  I bounced a tripod once and dropped my 20D about 2 feet.  The 20D required $300.  The lens on it another $150.

[DarkPenguin]

And you'd be wrong, for simplicity of operation (navigation)  alone.

Depends on what you're doing.  Now for what YOU'RE doing I would agree.  For a lot of people it doesn't need to do much more than hold a sensor up behind the lens.

[dwdallam]

Depends on what you're doing.  Now for what YOU'RE doing I would agree.  For a lot of people it doesn't need to do much more than hold a sensor up behind the lens.

Yes, but I said if you are "more serious about photography. . . ." And that is a true statement.

[Misirlou]

Then there are the issues with pricing from the manufacturer and the dealer. It could be that a dealer has a lot of 50Ds sitting around gathering dust, and wants to get rid of them to make room for 7Ds that can be sold at a higher profit margin. So the price difference at that dealer might be artifically low. You might come back the next day and find that the price delta has changed dramatically due to factors totally unrelated to customer desire. Another dealer might sell that at different price points. A few weeks ago, I saw a new 40D on Amazon advertised for about $50 less than a new 50D. That seemed a little silly to me, but maybe someone had some specific need for a 40D, and didn't mind. Or maybe the 40D never sold.