Originally posted by rawr I'll just leave this here.... the top 4 APS-C equivalent cameras in the DXOMark RAW sensor database. Overall, and by category.
derived from
dxomark.com, via photo.net
It doesn't cover all the various camera features etc, but DXOMark does tell a lot about IQ.
While I don't place a lot of stock in DxOmark's numeric ratings (the charts are far more useful), it is worth noting that the D90, D5000, and K-x, all of which share the same sensor with minor variations in data-path circuitry, truly dominate the APS-C ratings.
However, by my own evaluations, the noise from the 7D/T2i sensor is easier to deal with by a small margin. The T2i isn't on this chart, but it was recently added and does quite well on DxOmark, so I wouldn't call it a smashing victory in this comparison.