Labs

The market for sub-£500 10 megapixel DSLRs is hotly contested, but Canon's EOS 400D is the one with the widest appeal. Most of its specs are fairly typical, but its nine-point auto focus is more upmarket than most, for seriously quick focusing even in low light. Continuous shooting is at 3fps for the first 30-35 shots, after which

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the memory buffer is full and performance varies.

The mode dial has all the usual auto, manual exposure and scene preset options, plus an automatic depth of field mode which reduces the aperture when multiple subjects are detected to keep the whole frame sharp. Other photo options are comprehensive, including PictureStyles presets that govern sharpness, contrast, saturation and colour tone, plus the ability to create custom profiles. The camera has a three-pronged attack for dealing with dust that gets in when swapping lenses: anti-static coatings on the sensor, ultra-sonic vibration, and software-based removal for anything that remains.

The 400D's trump card is its image quality. Photos are incredibly detailed, with barely a hint of noise at ISO 400. Even at ISO 1600 shots are up to scratch, with minimal noise and hardly any evidence of noise reduction. Superb auto exposure gives rich, lifelike colours.