Canon EOS
7D
 vs
Canon Rebel
T2i

Updated (February, 2011): Compare the Canon EOS 7D vs Canon Rebel T3i

Canon EOS 7D

69
Winner

Canon EOS 7D
"The Canon EOS 7D is a camera that can convince in all areas, and at its current pricing is going to be a very serious competitor for Nikon's flagship APS-C DSLR, the D300S."
dpreview.com | talking about the 7D's overall-performance
"Excellent build quality with magnesium body and environmental sealing"
dpreview.com | talking about the 7D's build-quality

Reasons to buy the Canon EOS 7D

Viewfinder size
 Large viewfinder
0.62x
Weather sealed
 Weather sealed
Shoot in extreme weather
Continuous shooting
 Rapid fire
8 fps
External mic jack
 External mic jack
Record higher quality audio with a microphone
Shutter lag
 Barely any delay taking photos
131 ms shutter lag
Cross type focus points
 Many cross-type focus points
19
Canon EOS Rebel T2i

54
Runner-up

Canon Rebel T2i
"Quite simply, taken as a whole, it is the best camera of its class that we've ever seen, and one of those rare cameras that won't look out of date in a couple of years' time."
dpreview.com | talking about the T2i's overall-performance
"Excellent detail and resolution"
dpreview.com | talking about the T2i's image-quality

Reasons to buy the Canon Rebel T2i

Screen resolution
 High resolution screen
1,040k dots
External mic jack
 External mic jack
Record higher quality audio with a microphone
Size
 Really small
Prosumer size 129x98x62 mm
Badge
 Built-in focus motor
Autofocuses with more lenses
Thickness
 Thin
2.4"

differences

Advantages of the Canon 7D
Weather sealed Weather sealed Yes vs No
Help
 Sealed to shoot in the rain
Shutter lag Significantly less shutter lag 131 ms vs 252 ms
Help
 Around 50% less delay when taking photos
Continuous shooting Shoots significantly faster 8 fps vs 3.7 fps
Help
 More than 2x faster continuous shooting
Cross type focus points Significantly more cross-type focus points 19 vs 1
Help
 Grab focus in difficult situations
Viewfinder size Larger viewfinder 0.62x vs 0.54x
Help
 More than 30% larger viewfinder
Viewfinder coverage Much better viewfinder coverage 100% vs 95%
Help
 Around 10% better viewfinder coverage
Dynamic range More dynamic range 11.7 EV vs 11.5 EV
Help
 0.2 f-stops more dynamic range
Viewfinder Has a pentaprism viewfinder Pentaprism vs Pentamirror
Help
 Pentaprism viewfinders are typically brighter
Focus points More focus points 19 vs 9
Help
 Set focus accurately within the frame
Battery life Longer battery life 800 shots vs 440 shots
Help
 More than 80% more shots per battery charge
Fastest shutter speed Much faster max shutter speed 1/8000s vs 1/4000s
Help
 2x faster max shutter speed
Canon EOS 7D Learn more about
the Canon 7D

Advantages of the Canon T2i
Screen resolution Higher resolution screen 1,040k dots vs 920k dots
Help
 More than 10% higher resolution screen
Size Smaller 129x98x62 mm vs 148x111x74 mm
Help
 Around 40% smaller
Thickness Much thinner 2.4" vs 2.9"
Help
 Around 20% thinner
Color depth Better color depth 22.1 bits vs 22 bits
Help
 Distinguishes 0.1 more bits of color
Weight Significantly lighter 530 g vs 860 g
Help
 Around 40% lighter
Lowest price Cheaper $544.00 vs $1,549.00
Help
 The best price we've seen is $1,005 cheaper (2.8x less)
Canon EOS Rebel T2i Learn more about
the Canon T2i
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent DSLRs, and ignoring price

Canon EOS 7D Canon EOS 7D
69 vs 54
Explain scores
Canon Rebel T2i Canon EOS Rebel T2i
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Canon EOS 7D. This recommendation, however, should be taken with a grain of salt since it doesn't always make sense to compare a pro DSLR with a entry-level DSLR.

advice

Need help deciding?

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similarities

Compared to recent DSLRs

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Lens availability Many lenses available Help
162 lenses
Supports 24p 24p support Help
For that film look
Thickness Thin Help
7D:2.9"
T2i:2.4"
Storage slots Fewer storage slots Help
1
Light sensitivity (boost) Poor boost ISO Help
12,800 ISO
Autofocus No video autofocus Help
Manual focus only
HDR Neither has in-camera HDR Help
You could do HDR manually
Screen flips out No flip-out screens Help
Less flexible
Sensor size Very small sensors Help
APS-C 22.3x14.9mm
Image stabilization No image stabilization Help
Risk of blur
Panorama Neither camera stitches together panoramas Help
You could stitch photos in post
3D Neither camera can take 3D photos Help
No 3d support
Light sensitivity Poor maximum light sensitivity Help
6,400 ISO
Color depth Poor color depth Help
7D:22 bits
T2i:22.1 bits
Overall image quality Low image quality Help
66.0

dxomark

DXOMark

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon Rebel T3i

Canon Rebel T3i

Entry-level DSLR

$619 - $700 body only

$745 - $1,000 with 18-55mm lens
Screen flips out Has a screen which flips out
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the Rebel T3i vs the EOS 7D
Compare the Rebel T3i vs the Rebel T2i
Canon EOS 60D

Canon EOS 60D

Pro DSLR

$848 - $1,304 body only

$1,177 - $1,342 with 18-135mm lens
Screen flips out Has a screen which flips out
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the EOS 60D vs the EOS 7D
Compare the EOS 60D vs the Rebel T2i
Nikon D7000

Nikon D7000

Entry-level DSLR

$1,000 body only

$1,100 with 55-200mm lens
Overall image quality Has significantly better image quality
Color depth Has significantly more color depth
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the D7000 vs the EOS 7D
Compare the D7000 vs the Rebel T2i
Nikon D5100

Nikon D5100

Entry-level DSLR

$500 - $597 body only

$600 - $697 with 18-55mm lens
Overall image quality Has significantly better image quality
Color depth Has significantly more color depth
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the D5100 vs the EOS 7D
Compare the D5100 vs the Rebel T2i
Canon EOS 5D Mark II

Canon EOS 5D Mark II

Pro DSLR

$2,130 body only

$2,875 - $2,999 with 24-105mm lens
Low light performance Is slightly less noisy at high ISO
Overall image quality Has significantly better image quality
Built-in flash Doesn't have a built-in flash
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Compare the EOS 5D Mark II vs the EOS 7D
Compare the EOS 5D Mark II vs the Rebel T2i
Nikon D90

Nikon D90

Entry-level DSLR

$897 body only

$1,047 with 55-200mm lens
Overall image quality Has slightly better image quality
Color depth Has slightly more color depth
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the D90 vs the EOS 7D
Compare the D90 vs the Rebel T2i
Canon EOS Rebel T1i

Canon Rebel T1i

Entry-level DSLR

$475 - $629 body only

$549 - $580 with 18-55mm lens
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
External mic jack Lacks and external mic jack
Compare the Rebel T1i vs the EOS 7D
Compare the Rebel T1i vs the Rebel T2i

Canon EOS 7D Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon EOS 5D Mark III

Canon EOS 5D Mark III

Pro DSLR

$3,499 - $3,500 body only

$4,299 - $4,300 with 24-105mm lens
Low light performance Significantly lower noise at high ISO
Overall image quality Significantly better image quality
Lens availability Fewer lenses available
Continuous shooting Shoots slower
Compare the EOS 5D Mark III vs the EOS 7D
Sony SLT-A77

Sony SLT A77

Pro DSLR

$1,398 body only

$1,998 with 16-50mm lens
Overall image quality Significantly better image quality
Color depth Better color depth
Viewfinder Has a digital viewfinder
Lens availability Significantly fewer lenses available
Compare the SLT A77 vs the EOS 7D

Canon EOS Rebel T2i Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Nikon D3100

Nikon D3100

Entry-level DSLR

$500 - $547 with 18-55mm lens
Color depth Better color depth
Autofocus Video autofocus
Screen resolution Much lower resolution screen
External mic jack Lacks an external mic jack
Compare the D3100 vs the Rebel T2i
Canon Rebel T3

Canon Rebel T3

Entry-level DSLR

$333 body only

$489 - $500 with 18-55mm lens
Battery life Longer battery life
Weight Slightly lighter
Screen resolution Much lower resolution screen
Screen size Much smaller screen
Compare the Rebel T3 vs the Rebel T2i

appearance

Canon EOS 7D Canon EOS Rebel T2i
Canon EOS 7D Canon EOS Rebel T2i
Canon EOS 7D Canon EOS Rebel T2i

discussion

Showing 4 comments

Anon (9:11 PM, May 15, 2012)
The t2i is known as the 'baby 7d'. They're both great cameras, but if you are newer or looking for a bang for the buck, get the t2i.
 
Dave Cumming (5:40 AM, November 09, 2010)
When I look over the Score Analysis [between the T2i and 7D], it seems the biggest [glaring] difference is in the intrinsic realm of ... "popularity". How often people look up and check out a model, yes? At more than one half the price less, no suprise there. And so it "earns" a bunch more points, gaining the victory in the matchup on the "total points" basis. Seems like that would be a good [2nd location] for your comment from the beginning, on comparing different types of camera's.
 
Avatar for Alex Black Alex Black (9:22 PM, March 12, 2010)
Thanks for pointing that out Vonnie! 24p does seem to be a sought after feature by those looking to get a film look in their video, see wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/24p

We'll look at including whether or not a camera records video in 24p in our comparisons the future.
 
Avatar for vonniedavis vonniedavis (9:03 PM, March 12, 2010)
At the Canon site, it states that the Rebel T2i also shoots 24p -- but you don't show this here.