First DSLR - Suggestions

A pedantic point to start off: it's the T4i, not the T41.

Huh? In what way is the sensor "faster"?

I don't any of the major review sites would support that conclusion. The general consensus is that the image quality is pretty much exactly the same as that from the T2i/T3i.

Has potentially better focusing abilities when taking video, maybe. I don't believe the actual video capabilities are any better, and nobody seems particularly taken with the on-chip PDAF of the T4i/EOS-M.