Nikon D40
(The Nikon D40 currently typically sells for less than $500)
According to the NPD Group, the entry-level D40 was second only to the Canon XTi in sales in January 2008, and it was PopPhoto.com’s Editor’s Choice for 2007 - and all for excellent reason: for the longest time, it was the only premium-brand entry-level camera that was worth its salt.
They had to cut some corners to get the price where they needed it, but that doesn’t mean that it’s a bad camera: in fact, it’s a mighty fine picture-taking machine, at a truly compelling price.
The D40 gets high marks in most categories from the professional reviewers, yet pro-level photographers remain resistant to its charms. For beginners, however, it is a serious contender!
CNET:
“If you’re just looking for a great, cheap dSLR, the faster, higher-resolution Canon EOS Rebel XT is probably a better bet; and if you’re an experienced shooter, you might want to spend more for the Nikon D80″. (full review)
Imaging Resource:
“Gripping the Nikon D40 is like settling down in your favorite chair. Not only do you feel right at home, the chair feels at home with you, having formed itself to match your shape”. (full review)
PopPhoto.com:
“Its AF system is exceptionally fast, though the three large, widely spaced focus points are less well suited to moving subjects than the nine points in Canon’s Digital Rebel XTi”. (full review)
DCResource:
“If you’re ready to enter the world of digital SLRs, the Nikon D40 is a great way to do it. It offers a compact, truly portable body, great performance and photo quality, and a really user friendly interface for not a lot of dough. I can recommend the D40 without hesitation”. (full review)
Ken Rockwell:
“My D40 is the best camera I know of for people and family photography”. (full review)
DPReview
“In everyday use the D40 is just what it set out to be, a very capable, compact, lightweight and easy to use camera which makes a perfect first step for anyone wanting to get into digital SLR photography” (full review)
Photographyblog.com
“Ultimately the Nikon D40 provides almost everything that most photographers need in a camera (digital or otherwise), whilst delivering great ease of use.” (full review)
By Thom
“Nikon has proven once again that they know how to suck every last little bit of quality out of the 6mp sensors they’ve been using for more than four years. And amazingly, the included kit lens doesn’t let the sensor down” (full review)
Digitalcamerareview
“With the D40, Nikon wants to make sure that you’re not intimidated by the controls or size of an SLR and I think that they’ve done a good job. Also, by including plenty of “help” features into the camera, it becomes very easy to figure out which setting does what” (full review)
Let’s go Digital
“Normally I’m not much impressed by entry-level models, but I really enjoyed testing the Nikon D40 SLR. It’s not often that I’m this enthusiastic about a camera. It’s a nice looking camera, wonderfully compact but still sturdy”. (full review)
Made up your mind to buy the Nikon D40?
The links below take you directly to the Nikon D40 page of the retailers, and will help to find you the very hottest deals out there!
here