Should I keep this used 30D?

I bought a used 30D on ebay.
I tested it against my old XT using the same L lens.
I told the seller it was soft and wanted to return it.
He said that was normal for the 30D.
I'm including our two emails (name removed) and the sample pix.
The yellowish one is the 30D and the whiter is the XT.

Can I get some expert opinion on the question:
Is this on OK 30D worth the 700 bucks I paid?
Is it a problem I should send it to Canon to fix since the price was low?
Should I send it back to the seller?
Is there something I'm doing wrong with the cam?

PS. I applied Photoshop CS2 Smart Sharpen, 2 pixels and 100%, and it did not remove the problem.

Thanks for your help.

Dear Seller,
Got the camera on Friday.
According to me the camera is very soft and I would like to return it.
I have attached two photos taken with the same lens, a Canon EF 17-40 L.
The one was taken with my present camera, the Canon Digital Rebel XT
and the other was taken with the 30D I received from you.
These are 100% crops of a small portion of the picture for comparison.
The 30D should have at least as much sharpness as the XT.
I have tried other shots and they are all similar.
Sincerely, Harry

Harry,
This is quite normal. The camera manufacturers have built the consumer DSLR's eg. Canon rebel XT and Nikon D40 to have fairly high in-camera sharpening, under the assumption that consumers want sharp out of the camera pictures without any adjustments. The pro level cameras, e.g. Canon 30D and higher generally do not use in-camera sharpening or other adjustments, under the assumption that these are pro users who will use photoshop or other programs to tweak the images out of the camera where they have more control over adjustments. Many people experience this phenomenon. I understand that many people use "unsharpen mask" in photoshop to adjust sharpness of their pictures.
Regards, Seller

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Sounds fishy to me as my XTi images still need sharpening anyway, but you can check the claim. Compare the raw images. To me the 30D looks OOF.

hmmm, lots of stuff here. Don't know how you shot this, but if jpeg, both cameras do some processing of the image. If set for action, landscape, etc. both will also further process the image...but even in raw, the image should be sharper than what I am seeing here!

Regardless of whether there is anything wrong with the camera, the seller is blowing smoke up your a**.

He is either just bulls*itting you or like so many, he thinks he is a tehnical guy with all the answers, when in fact he seems to know very little.

Image quality between the two should be identical. "Sharpness" typically is not going to be a factor of the body, but of the lens. I would try another test or two and use identical settings with the cameras. You're using Program/f4/.5s on the XT and Av/f8/1.6s on the 30D. 1.6s is a long exposure time that allows a lot of movement potential in the image. It also looks like focus is off on the 30D image. Set up a shot in brighter light and use similar settings on both cameras to test.

His reply is flatout Bulls**t !! Sounds like a salesman to me.

Try to shoot something outside, plenty of light, tripod mounted, and 1/60 or faster and do a direct comparison. See what you get.

The XT shot is 1/2" at f4, no flash
The 30D shot is 1/6" at f8, no flash

I think both shots are suffering camera shake.

scrumpy wrote in post #4050002
The XT shot is 1/2" at f4, no flash
The 30D shot is 1/6" at f8, no flash

I think both shots are suffering camera shake.

I have to agree,

The only way to compare these camera's will be to set them both up on a tripod in manual mode using the same settings. Remove as my human error as possible from the test.

Looks like a front focusing problem, which some cameras have. It can be adjusted, but at a cost if it is out of warranty.

tmcman wrote in post #4049537
I bought a used 30D on ebay.
I tested it against my old XT using the same L lens.
I told the seller it was soft and wanted to return it.

The seller may not know much about cameras...

The issue looks at first like Camera shake so take a picture at 1/100 or faster. Next even if your picture is still soft it may be the lens. Just because it worked well on the XT does not mean the 30D is out of spec. Maybe the XT was. In any event you have a fine camera and a major step up from the XT non-cross-type non-high-precision AF.

I don't think the seller meant you any harm.

Agree'd

Head out side in some good natural bright light use Manual mode setup the camera on a tripod using the manual setting set acordingly, And use a decent sized subject ( object that does not move) and use the timmer on the camera's Ensure both are the exact same settings shot in RAW and post both the unprocessed raw files.

Send us the link. Because of this close community, I'm sure most of us will side with you hearing the information presented. However, if there was specific wording in the auction (such as "as-is"), or you're dealing with someone with 100% positive feedback, we might look at the situation differently. Nothing wrong with posting a link here as we're here to help you solve this problem, not bombard the seller with emails.

The seller is telling you a line. The 30 is sharper then the picture you posted.

That being said, it could have been your tech, or the lens even. To just blame the camera is silliness at this point without more CONCRETE info. It COULD be the camera, but the pictures you posted dont tell us that for sure....

It certainly could be the camera but for the seller to proclaim that that is the design and it should appear soft is pure silliness.