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Canon EOS 1100D review

Our Rating :
Price when reviewed : £499
inc VAT

It might be short on exciting extras but the Canon EOS 1100D's ability to take gorgeous photos is hard to fault

Specifications

22.2×14.7mm 12.2-megapixel sensor, 3.0x zoom (29-88mm equivalent), 495g

http://www.johnlewis.com

The Canon EOS 1000D was a fantastic camera, giving frugal shoppers a foothold onto the esteemed EOS range for a breakthrough sub-£400 price. However, its 2.5in screen, lack of video capture and limited performance mean that it’s not such a tempting prospect in 2011.

The 1100D is designed to take Canon back to the top of the entry-level SLR podium. It’s a little bigger than its predecessor but also a little lighter. With its 2.7in LCD screen, 720p video capture and an HDMI socket, the 1100D addresses all the key areas where the 1000D was showing its age. The autofocus sensor is up from 7-point to 9-point and the battery life is up 40 per cent to 700 shots.

It’s pricier, too, although we suspect that it’ll come down a little as more stock arrives on these shores. However, those in search of a bargain should be careful to make sure the bundled lens is the Mk II IS version (where IS stands for image stabilisation). A Mk III lens without stabilisation brings the price down further but the stabilised lens is well worth the extra outlay.

Canon EOS 1100D front
The more expensive Mk II lens is worth getting

Spot metering is still absent, but it’s not something many people will miss. Continuous RAW performance remains more of a problem, though. It set off at 2fps and slowed to 0.8fps after just three frames in our tests. That doesn’t compare well with the similarly priced Pentax K-r which captured 13 RAW frames at 5.4fps before slowing to 2fps.

At least continuous JPEG shooting – which matches the 1000D’s 3fps performance – is now available at the same time as noise-reduction processing. Noise reduction was either (nominally) on or off on the 1000D, but now there are four strength levels. Selecting the maximum setting reduced continuous performance to 1.6fps, but the standard setting is strong enough for our tastes. Otherwise, performance was excellent, taking just 0.5 seconds to switch on and shoot, and the same time between subsequent shots. RAW shots were just under a second apart.

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Basic Specifications

Rating****
CCD effective megapixels12.2 megapixels
CCD size22.2×14.7mm
Viewfinderoptical TTL
Viewfinder magnification, coverage0.80x, 95%
LCD screen size2.7in
LCD screen resolution230,000 pixels
Articulated screenNo
Live viewYes
Optical zoom3.0x
Zoom 35mm equivalent29-88mm
Image stabilisationoptical, lens based
Maximum image resolution4,272×2,848
Maximum movie resolution1280×720
Movie frame rate at max quality30fps
File formatsJPEG, RAW; QuickTime (AVC)

Physical

Memory slotSDXC
Mermory suppliednone
Battery typeLi-ion
Battery Life (tested)700 shots
ConnectivityUSB, mini HDMI, wired remote
Body materialplastic
Lens mountCanon EF-S
Focal length multiplier1.6x
Kit lens model nameCanon EF-S 18-55 IS II
AccessoriesUSB cable, neck strap
Weight495g
Size100x130x78mm

Buying Information

Warrantyone-year RTB
Price£499
Supplierhttp://www.johnlewis.com
Detailswww.canon.co.uk

Camera Controls

Exposure modesprogram, shutter priority, aperture priority, manual
Shutter speed30 to 1/4,000 seconds
Aperture rangef/3.5-22 (wide), f/5.6-36 (tele)
ISO range (at full resolution)100 to 6400
Exposure compensation+/-5 EV
White balanceauto, 6 presets with fine tuning, manual
Additional image controlscontrast, saturation, sharpness, colour tone, noise reduction, highlight tone priority, Auto Lighting Optimiser, colour space
Manual focusYes
Closest macro focus25cm
Auto-focus modes9-point
Metering modesEvaluative, partial, centre-weighted average
Flashauto, forced, suppressed, slow synchro, rear curtain
Drive modessingle, continuous, self-timer, wired remote, AE bracket, WB bracket

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Reviews | DSLRs