The Apple iPad 2 has been released to the great unwashed in the US, with Apple stores in America stocking the device as of 4PM Eastern Time today and Apple.com shipping orders, although these are set to take three to five days to get to homes. Alongside the launch, Apple is offering up its Geniuses to set up the iPad 2 for customers so that things like emails are ready to use on the device. To be honest, as long as Angry Birds is loaded on to it that should keep the masses happy. As with all of Apple's core launches, there were queues outside the flagship stores, with Apple lovers braving the rain in New York to be among the first to touch an iPad 2.
iPad 2 release
Those back in Blighty will have to wait two more weeks for the iPad 2 UK release date, which is set for 25 March. For those hiding under an Android-shaped rock, the iPad 2 comes with an Apple A5 chip, is 33 per cent thinner and has two cameras for all your FaceTime needs. If you don't fancy the iPad 2, then Apple kindly released iOS 4.3 this week to give your original iPad an OS spruce.
It's the fifth generation of Rebel and enters the market at a difficult time - in the midst of a global economic downturn and against the fiercest competition we've ever seen in the entry-level DSLR sector. So what has Canon done to make this latest model in the longest-established family in the sector live up to the edgy and exciting image implied by its US naming?
The 500D/T1i doesn't quite have to be the everyman camera that its predecessors were. The introduction of the Rebel XS (1000D) in June 2008 means the T1i no longer has to appeal to everybody who doesn't want to stretch to buying into the 50D class. As a result, the 450D was able to bulk up its feature set to include a selection of features that price-conscious shoppers don't necessarily realize they want, such as a larger viewfinder and spot metering. The result was probably the most complete Rebel we'd seen.
There's a full explanation of the differences between the 500D/T1i and it predecessor on the coming pages but, in general terms, it's a gentle re-working of the 450D. So you get the 15MP sensor much like the one that appears in the 50D, helping this to become the first entry-level DSLR to feature video (and 1080p HD video at that). You also get the lovely 920,000 dot VGA monitor that has been slowly working its way down most manufacturer's DSLR line-ups. There are a handful of other specification tweaks that come from the use of the latest Digic 4 processor but essentially this is most of a 50D stuffed into the familiar 450D body.
And, if the loss of the letter 'X' from the US name seems a bit disconcerting, you can comfort yourself with the knowledge that the Japanese market will still know it by the odd-to-European-ears 'Kiss X3 Digital.' For simplicity's sake, we'll refer to the 500D/T1i/Kiss X3 by the name 500D throughout the rest of the review.
Although for the time being the EOS 500D will sit alongside the 450D in the Canon DSLR line-up there is no doubt that sooner or later it will replace the older model and occupy the spot between the 1000D as and the EOS 50D on its own. The most noticeable new features on the EOS 500D are the higher resolution sensor, the new high-res LCD and the HD video mode but the camera also comes with the latest generation DIGIC imaging processor which brings a few more low-key improvements such as fine-tunable noise reduction and Highlight Tone Priority or a fresher, animated menu design with it. See the list and table below for all the spec and feature changes..
Higher resolution sensor (15.1 vs 12.2 effective megapixels)
Extended ISO range up to ISO 12800
HD video capability
New 3.0 inch 920K pixels screen
Adjustable noise reduction and highlight tone priority
