Five years ago Canon launched the 350D or Digital Rebel XT. This also happened to be my first digital SLR camera and lead to my passion in photography taking on new heights. Today on dpreview.com I noticed that Canon have recently announced the 550D / Rebel T2i. The thing that struck me about this camera is its 18 megapixel sensor, the 350D having only 8 megapixels of course. To put it another way Canon’s entry level DSLRs have increased resolution by and average of two million pixels per year every year for the last five years!

Image copyright Canon.com

If this madness continues in another five years the 850D or whatever it will be called will have 28 million pixels, all being resolved onto a sensor the size of a postage stamp through a sub-standard kit lens. So fellow photographers, did you think the megapixel war was over? I would say from this that it is just warming up!

Will make a cracking lightweight backup for the 5D mk2 though :)

Canon 550D sample shots can be had at:

http://www.canon.co.uk/For_Home/Product_Finder/Cameras/Digital_SLR/EOS_550D/samples_EOS_550D.asp

http://www.dpreview.com/previews/CanonEOS550D/page13.asp