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View Full Version : SOme thoughts on the xt vs the 300d


smittymike19
30th of April 2005 (Sat), 07:44
Woo hoo, my new xt just arrived after fighting with dell for awhile. It was delivered to my door for $809 (withe kit lens).
Here are my initial thoughts vs the 300d that i returned.

1. Speed. Incredibly faster than the 300d. i can turn on the camera nad take a picture almost simultaneously, which is good for taking pictures of kids as it seemed to hamper me in the month I had the 300d. Also the write speed on it is amazingly faster. I can take raw pictures on it almost continuosly. with the 300 d i was always getting hung up with a busy signal if i took a few raw pics in a row. with the xt the busy signal comes on for a half second and even then i can still take a nother shot. I did the following last night. i set the camera in large jpg mode and took 45 pictures in a row (holding down the shutterbutton) only then did it say busy, and i only had to wait a half second before i could shot another, and withing 1 second the buffer was clear (no busy signal). on the 300d i was getting a busy signal, a bar that went across the screen, and i had to wait for tens seconds for teh bar to disappear and the camera to be ready to go again. I had a similar experience when shooting in raw mode. This is the main reason i returned the xt. not because ill take 45 pictures in a row, but the writing in general was too much of a hang up. The other thing, when reviewing the pictures i can scan through them at lightning fast speed. with the 300d when i was showing people the pics on the camera, it was really slow and kept saying busy when scanning through raw pictures.

2. Size. I dont know if it from reading this forum or what but the size is definitely annoying. i dont mind the general smallness, its the distance from the shuitter button to the outer side. when i press the shutter button my hand feels somewhat cramped. i guess the only positive about that is that i fiund myself really getting my left hand involved holding the camera to get comfortable, so maybe itll help stabilize the camera.

3. layout. the screens and cross keys are great. i like the fact taht everything is easily accesible right from the cross keys. would like to see a FEC button somewhere though, instead of digging through the menu.

there are plenty more improvements over the 300d. but these so far have been the major ones. Glad i spent the $50 difference between the 2 cameras. I would highly recommend the xt over the 300d for the speed alone. Oh yeah did i mention you get 2 more megapixels too?
When i first set out to get the camera i argued here that the xt was overhyped and that the 300d was plenty sufficient, and most people here yelled at me that the xt was better and worth the extra money. at that point is was a $300. differnece and im still not completly sold that this camera is 50% better than the 300d. but i do know that for the extar $50, its a no brainer. B&H is elling their kit 300d for 820 (no tax or shipping included in that price). My suggestion to all is to wait for dell to offer this deal again and jump on board. its well worth the wait..:)

cfcRebel
30th of April 2005 (Sat), 07:52
So u recommend we wrestle with Dell for 72 hours on the phone to upgrade our 300D to XT? :D just j/k.

Glad u got a slick deal and a better camera. Now i'm sitting here waiting for Dell's coupons to show up. ;)

smittymike19
30th of April 2005 (Sat), 09:09
well yeah i wrestled for about 8 hours (at work). but i see others here who didnt have the smae problem. if they hadnt messed up dell preferred acct info, i dont think much wrestling would have occurred at all. get the coupons and the xt. just hope the order goes through smoothly..:)

Hellashot
30th of April 2005 (Sat), 09:41
$50 price difference? Try more like a $300+. I've seen the Drebel for $650 or so and the XT lists for $1000.

What country are you in? There's something wrong if B&H is selling the Drebel for $820 when its list price is $799 or $800. Illegal to sell products in the USA for more the list price without telling the customer they are selling over list price.

markubig
30th of April 2005 (Sat), 10:23
well yeah i wrestled for about 8 hours (at work). so technically, you got a new DSLR for a good price AND you got paid for it! good deal! http://www.photography-on-the.net/forum/images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif

bauerman
30th of April 2005 (Sat), 10:49
Yeah - I would have really preferred all the speed enhancements in a body of the same size as the 300D - but alas - people want smaller and smaller. Don't you also have to go into menus on the XT for white balance and ISO?

abhorred
30th of April 2005 (Sat), 10:54
You're killing me. I had the dreb for a 3 weeks then sold it and ordered the XT kit from dell for $733 almost 3 weeks ago and still waiting - no camera - reading manual and playing with lenses and flash and bag...

I had the same issue with the drebel speed - drove me crazy - rescued by crazy dell discounts - "no cost upgrade"

smittymike19
30th of April 2005 (Sat), 15:17
You're killing me. I had the dreb for a 3 weeks then sold it and ordered the XT kit from dell for $733 almost 3 weeks ago and still waiting - no camera - reading manual and playing with lenses and flash and bag...

I had the same issue with the drebel speed - drove me crazy - rescued by crazy dell discounts - "no cost upgrade"

yeah we ordered the xt the smae day (on th other post). but i reordered mine in silver as they didnt have the black left. im just glad its here safe and sound, although i wanted the black.

smittymike19
30th of April 2005 (Sat), 15:18
so technically, you got a new DSLR for a good price AND you got paid for it! good deal! http://www.photography-on-the.net/forum/images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif

god bless america!!! :)

smittymike19
30th of April 2005 (Sat), 15:19
$50 price difference? Try more like a $300+. I've seen the Drebel for $650 or so and the XT lists for $1000.

What country are you in? There's something wrong if B&H is selling the Drebel for $820 when its list price is $799 or $800. Illegal to sell products in the USA for more the list price without telling the customer they are selling over list price.

like i said dell delivered it to my door for $809. and the lowest price i found was 709 + tax =759. 50$ difference.

here is a link to b& h for the drebel for 749 after tax and shipping your looking at $800+ for the 300d. http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=297501&is=REG

ps i live in nj (usa)

Perfect_10
2nd of May 2005 (Mon), 14:33
... although i wanted the black.
and I think you always will ..

MarkK0120
2nd of May 2005 (Mon), 18:31
smittymike - I ordered the black rebel xt kit three weeks ago also, and today found out Dell cancelled my order. Do you have any tips for dealing with them on this? If so, email me at mek17@sbcglobal.net. Thanks for your help

Mark

faust
2nd of May 2005 (Mon), 21:26
smittymike - I ordered the black rebel xt kit three weeks ago also, and today found out Dell cancelled my order. Do you have any tips for dealing with them on this? If so, email me at mek17@sbcglobal.net. Thanks for your help

Mark

Good luck with Dell, they jerked me around for over a month with my order for the 10-22 lense.

Said it would ship in a week or less and then would send me an email saying there was a 3 day delay then a 5 day delay, etc etc etc. Ended up waiting almost 7 weeks for it.

jporter12
2nd of May 2005 (Mon), 21:54
I wish I had waited the couple weeks from the time I bought my D rebel, to the time the XT came out, but I'm not sure I could've gotten the 1GB CF card and extra battery if I had bought the better body, and they have both proven very useful to have!

I think when I upgrade, it will be to the 20D, mainly due to the small size of the XT. I dunno, it will probably be the next generation or even further out before I get to upgrade again, I need glass!

sf_1857
4th of May 2005 (Wed), 12:17
butterflyphoto.com has DReb for $659.

I bought my 300D on ebay for $600.

Tried the XT at the retail store and it is just too small. I have normal size hands but there is no place for your pinky to wrap around the grip. Unless you add batt grip and I could not afford all that cost.

JulianL
4th of May 2005 (Wed), 12:26
Why does anyone buy stuff from Dell? I just checked out their website and the 20D is listed at $1499.95 with a $149.95 instant rebate which puts it at the exact same price as B&H Photo.

I know someone who bought the Rebel XT (black body) from Dell a couple weeks ago and he's still waiting for it. B&H has them in stock right now though.

My .02

cfcRebel
4th of May 2005 (Wed), 15:09
Why does anyone buy stuff from Dell?
I don't simply just go and buy things from Dell. For those of us who try to save a penny or two, and don't mind long waiting for delivery, we wait until the 20D deal at Dell goes something like:

$1499.95 - $149.95 - additional 20% - $35 coupon - [whatever] promotion code = US$1000 shipped! :cool:

That's why we buy from Dell. Dell is not for those who have $$$ and want their baby delivered at the door the same day. ;)

bauerman
4th of May 2005 (Wed), 18:58
Can anyone confirm for me that you do in fact have to go into a menu to adjust while balance and/or ISO settings on the XT? I have yet to spend much time with one........

Michaelmjc
4th of May 2005 (Wed), 21:10
There is a button right on the camera, with white balance, iso, and AF. it takes you directly to the menu.

insomnia
4th of May 2005 (Wed), 21:31
I made an order last month from Dell for the 350d kit and 1 Gig sandisk Ultra II and they are STILL screwing it up, I have never delt with a worse customer service. I paid $800 for the kit but it's not worth the hastle. Also I got an e-mail today saying they don't "manufacture" this camera anymore >:(

smittymike19
4th of May 2005 (Wed), 22:08
lmao. they tried all of these tactics with me. like i said i spent 8 hours on the phone with them before i got through to soemone who would rcognize my order. As far as wanting the black, i am not one of those people taht care about color. really, i couldnt care less. Its the performance and price i was after, and i got em both. when i show people my pictures there is no silver tone to them, they actually look the SAME as the black camera pictures, so really i dont care. If you guys want the black one from dell its my understanding that they are out of em. They have plenty of silver ones though, so maybe switch up your order and grab a silver one. As far as the size is concerned i noticed the difference when i first bought it, but now i just use it, and it isnt even an issue. I would think if anyone hwould have a problem it would be me, as I am about 6'3", so i have decent sized mitts. Trust me it really isnt taht significant, really. Let me ask you this, how big are your cell phones buttons? im sure you can text message and dial on it fine. this is much larger, it may be smaller than what you are used to if you used a normal sized 35 mm, but you will get used to it. you can overscrutinize the size thing and the color thing to death, but the bottom line is, for 809 delivered, it is a mighty fine camera. Youd be hard pressed to find this much camera anywhere for the price.

smittymike19
4th of May 2005 (Wed), 22:14
Can anyone confirm for me that you do in fact have to go into a menu to adjust while balance and/or ISO settings on the XT? I have yet to spend much time with one........
there is a white balnce, iso, auto focus and meter selector mode buttons on the cross keys. pushing them opens up the appropriate menu in the camera directly. im telling you this thing is bad azz.:D i was showing my brother in law how i can turn the camera on and hit the shutter button at the same time and snap off like a million pics in a row. he just bought the drebel and was salivating and mad at the same time. he agrees that it was worth the headache.