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Once more dpreview reviews a DSLR in great detail. It is the turn of the Canon 450D / Digital Rebel XSi, the fourth iteration of Canon’s entry model after the 300D, 350D and 400D. From the review the following points are clear:

• The 450D/XSi is an incredibly able “more sorted” camera for its segment that has very few points to complain about, possibly auto WB being the only one. I would add the use of SD cards, take it as a personal preference but for DSLRs Compactflash remains my personal choice.
• Canon has been very careful not to cannibalise 40D sales by taking yet again an incremental approach.
• However, the 450D’s resolution is on par or better than the 40D’s, so performance wise the two cameras are not so far.
• EF-S lenses start to come sort of the resolving capability of DSLR sensors of 10 megapixels or more. Is the party of cheap DSLR equipment over? If you want the best possible results I am afraid yes, as you will have to get your wallet out and buy some more serious glass.
• The time when Canon entry DSLRs were the only choice around are over. Competition form Nikon, Olympus, Sony and Pentax has grown pretty stiff and performance disparities have become ever more narrow.
• For high ISO performance the 450D/XSi still seems to be king in its segment, however testing has shown that for peace of mind RAW is the preferred file format.

Finally, at $799 for the 450D body, it seems that Canon is forcing the 450D/XSi a bit more upmarket, possibly to introduce another layer of cheaper DSLR models that are going to be the company’s entry to the reflex camera world. I have already written my feelings about another less capable Canon DSLR, however models like the Olympus E-420 seems to be putting pressure on Canon to augment its cheaper model lineup.

[dpreview]