Canon 500D Comparison Review

The Canon EOS 500D (called Canon T1i in some regions) is a DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera that was officially introduced in March 2009 and is equipped with an APS-C sensor. It offers a resolution of 15.1 megapixel.

Is the Canon 500D a good camera? The 500D has a Camera Elo of 1336. This rating puts the 500D below average of all digital single lens reflex cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (APS cameras), the 500D also ranks below average. – Well, the Canon 500D is more than 12 years old, and there have been many other good digital cameras released since 2009.

Read on to find out more about the camera's size, sensor, features, reception by expert reviewers, and how it compares to other digital cameras.

Body comparison with a credit card

The side-by-side display below illustrates the physical size of the Canon 500D vis-à-vis a credit card. Three successive views from the front, the top, and the rear are shown. All width, height and depth measures are rounded to the nearest millimeter.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the Canon 500D alongside a set of comparators. If you want to review a camera pair side-by-side, just select a right-side comparator from among the camera models in the table. Alternatively, you can also move across to the CAM-parator tool and choose from the broad selection of possible comparisons there.

Body Specifications

		Camera Model	Camera Width	Camera Height	Camera Depth	Camera Weight	Battery Life	Weather Sealing	Camera Launch	Launch Price (USD)		Street Price
1.		Canon 500D	129 mm	98 mm	62 mm	520 g	400	n	Mar 2009	799
2.		Canon 750D	132 mm	101 mm	78 mm	555 g	440	n	Feb 2015	749
3.		Canon 760D	132 mm	101 mm	78 mm	565 g	440	n	Feb 2015	649
4.		Canon 1200D	130 mm	100 mm	78 mm	480 g	500	n	Feb 2014	449
5.		Canon G1 X Mark II	116 mm	74 mm	66 mm	553 g	240	n	Feb 2014	799
6.		Canon 700D	133 mm	100 mm	79 mm	580 g	440	n	Mar 2013	649
7.		Canon 650D	133 mm	100 mm	79 mm	575 g	440	n	Jun 2012	849
8.		Canon G1 X	117 mm	81 mm	65 mm	534 g	250	n	Jan 2012	799
9.		Canon 600D	133 mm	100 mm	80 mm	570 g	440	n	Feb 2011	599
10.		Canon 550D	129 mm	98 mm	62 mm	530 g	440	n	Feb 2010	699
11.		Canon 450D	129 mm	98 mm	62 mm	524 g	500	n	Jan 2008	799
Notes: Measurements and pricing do not include easily detachable parts, such as add-on or interchangeable lenses or optional viewfinders.
Convert to Imperial

The listed prices provide an indication of the market segment that the manufacturer of the cameras have been targeting. The Canon 500D was launched in the US market at a price of $799. Usually, retail prices stay at first close to the launch price, but after several months, discounts become available. Later in the product cycle and, in particular, when the replacement model is about to appear, further discounting and stock clearance sales often push the camera price considerably down. Then, after the new model is out, very good deals can frequently be found on the pre-owned market.

Sensor comparison with a 35mm slide

The size of the imaging sensor is a crucial determinant of image quality. A large sensor will generally have larger individual pixels that offer better low-light sensitivity, provide wider dynamic range, and have richer color-depth than smaller pixels in a sensor of the same technological generation. Further, a large sensor camera will give the photographer additional creative options when using shallow depth-of-field to isolate a subject from its background. On the downside, larger sensors tend to be more expensive and lead to bigger and heavier cameras and lenses.

The Canon 500D features an APS-C sensor and has a format factor (sometimes also referred to as "crop factor") of 1.6. Within the spectrum of camera sensors, this places the Canon 500D among the medium-sized sensor cameras that aim to strike a balance between image quality and portability.

For most cameras, data on sensor performance has been reported by DXO Mark. This service assesses and scores the color depth ("DXO Portrait"), dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports") of camera sensors, and also publishes an overall camera score. The following table provides an overview of the physical sensor characteristics, as well as the sensor quality measurements for a selection of comparators.

Sensor Characteristics

		Camera Model	Sensor Class	Resolution (MP)	Horiz. Pixels	Vert. Pixels	Video Format	DXO Portrait	DXO Landscape	DXO Sports		DXO Overall
1.		Canon 500D	APS-C	15.1	4752	3168	1080/20p	21.7	11.5	663		63
2.		Canon 750D	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/30p	22.7	12.0	919		71
3.		Canon 760D	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/30p	22.6	12.0	915		70
4.		Canon 1200D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	21.9	11.3	724		63
5.		Canon G1 X Mark II	1.5-inch	13.0	4160	3120	1080/30p	21.5	10.8	581		58
6.		Canon 700D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	21.7	11.2	681		61
7.		Canon 650D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	21.7	11.2	722		62
8.		Canon G1 X	1.5-inch	14.2	4352	3264	1080/24p	21.7	10.8	644		60
9.		Canon 600D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	22.1	11.5	793		65
10.		Canon 550D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	22.1	11.5	784		66
11.		Canon 450D	APS-C	12.2	4272	2848	none	21.9	10.8	692		61

Many modern cameras cannot only take still pictures, but also record videos. The 500D indeed provides movie recording capabilities. The highest resolution format that the 500D can use is 1080/20p.

Feature comparison

Apart from body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a variety of features. For example, the 500D has an optical viewfinder that provides a field of view of 95% and a magnification of 0.54x. The adjacent tables list some of the other core features of the Canon 500D along with similar information for a selection of comparators.

Core Features

		Camera Model	Viewfinder (Type or 000 dots)	Control Panel (yes/no)	LCD Size (inch)	LCD Resolution (000 dots)	LCD Attach- ment	Touch Screen (yes/no)	Mech Shutter Speed	Shutter Flaps (1/sec)	Built-in Flash (yes/no)	Built-in Image Stab
1.		Canon 500D	optical	n	3.0	920	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.4	Y	n
2.		Canon 750D	optical	n	3.0	1040	swivel	Y	1/4000s	5.0	Y	n
3.		Canon 760D	optical	Y	3.0	1040	swivel	Y	1/4000s	5.0	Y	n
4.		Canon 1200D	optical	n	3.0	460	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.0	Y	n
5.		Canon G1 X Mark II	optional	n	3.0	1040	tilting	Y	1/4000s	5.2	Y	Y
6.		Canon 700D	optical	n	3.0	1040	swivel	Y	1/4000s	5.0	Y	n
7.		Canon 650D	optical	n	3.0	1040	swivel	Y	1/4000s	5.0	Y	n
8.		Canon G1 X	optical	n	3.0	922	Swivel	n	1/4000s	1.9	Y	Y
9.		Canon 600D	optical	n	3.0	1040	swivel	n	1/4000s	3.7	Y	n
10.		Canon 550D	optical	n	3.0	1040	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.7	Y	n
11.		Canon 450D	optical	n	3.0	230	fixed	n	1/4000s	3.5	Y	n

One convenient feature of the 500D is the presence of an on-board flash. While this built-in flash is not very powerful, it can at times be useful as a fill-in light to brighten deep shadow areas.

Connection comparison

For some imaging applications, the extent to which a camera can communicate with its environment can be an important aspect in the camera decision process. The table below provides an overview of the connectivity of the Canon EOS 500D and, in particular, the interfaces the cameras (and selected comparators) provide for accessory control and data transfer.

Input-Output Connections

		Camera Model	Hotshoe Port	Internal Microphone	Internal Speaker	Microphone Port	Headphone Port	HDMI Port	USB Port	WiFi Support	NFC Support	Bluetooth Support
1.		Canon 500D	Y	mono	mono	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
2.		Canon 750D	Y	stereo	mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	Y	Y	-
3.		Canon 760D	Y	stereo	mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	Y	Y	-
4.		Canon 1200D	Y	mono	mono	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
5.		Canon G1 X Mark II	Y	stereo	mono	-	-	mini	2.0	Y	Y	-
6.		Canon 700D	Y	stereo	mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
7.		Canon 650D	Y	stereo	mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
8.		Canon G1 X	Y	stereo	mono	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
9.		Canon 600D	Y	mono	mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
10.		Canon 550D	Y	stereo	-	Y	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
11.		Canon 450D	Y	-	-	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-

Expert reviews

While the comparison of the spec-sheets of cameras can offer a general idea of their imaging potential, it says nothing about, for example, the handling, responsiveness, and overall imaging quality of the 500D in practical situations. User reviews that are available, for instance, at amazon can sometimes shed light on these issues, but such feedback is all too often partial, inconsistent, and inaccurate. This is why hands-on reviews by experts are important. The table below summarizes the assessments of some of the best known camera review sites (amateurphotographer [AP], cameralabs [CL], dpreview [DPR], ephotozine [EPZ], photographyblog [PB]).

Review Scores

		Camera   Model	AP   score	CL   score	DPR   score	EPZ   score	PB   score	Camera Launch	Launch Price (USD)			Street Price
1.		Canon 500D	..	+ +	74/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Mar 2009	799
2.		Canon 750D	5/5	..	75/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Feb 2015	749
3.		Canon 760D	5/5	+	77/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Feb 2015	649
4.		Canon 1200D	3/5	+	..	4/5	4.5/5	Feb 2014	449
5.		Canon G1 X Mark II	3/5	+	77/100	4/5	4.5/5	Feb 2014	799
6.		Canon 700D	..	..	76/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Mar 2013	649
7.		Canon 650D	4/5	+ +	77/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Jun 2012	849
8.		Canon G1 X	5/5	+	76/100	4/5	4.5/5	Jan 2012	799
9.		Canon 600D	3/5	o	77/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Feb 2011	599
10.		Canon 550D	..	+ +	77/100	4/5	4.5/5	Feb 2010	699
11.		Canon 450D	..	+ +	+ +	4/5	4.5/5	Jan 2008	799
Notes: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (..) not available.

The above review scores should be interpreted with care, though. The assessments were made in relation to similar cameras of the same technological generation. Hence, a score should always be seen in the context of the camera's market launch date and its price, and rating-comparisons among cameras that span long time periods or concern very differently equipped models make little sense. Also, please note that some of the review sites have changed their methodology and reporting over time.

Camera to camera comparisons

If you would like to see a side-by-side review of this and another camera, just make your choice using the following search menu. There is also a set of direct links to comparison reviews that other users of the CAM-parator app explored.

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