1. Price wise, Canon 350D is the cheapest among the three. The deal which I had includes 2 sets of Lens EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II USM and EF 90-300mm f/4.5-5.6 USM, 1Gb CF card, a camera bag and a monopod. The the second zoom lens is normally priced at RM894 and I only pay RM399 under this deal . The whole package cost me RM3575, and payable in 12-Months interest free. The Price for Canon 400D with only one lens is RM3599 and there is no good discount for a second lens. The Nikon D80 is way too expensive for me and the body alone costs RM3600.
2. OK, maybe 400D and 350D is not the same in terms of the resolution but between 8 and 10 MPxs, there are not so many obvious advantages unless ones decide to print bigger than A4 size. In my case, I don't see any possibility of printing even A3 size photo. Canon 350D is already in the market for more than a year now and there are so many millions people already using it. Thus, most problems associated with the 350D usage e.g., firmware, hardware or etc., have probably been resolved. The 400D is just out and who knows, there are still unknown issues yet to be resolved. I think the RM1000 difference in price can justify the issue on resolution.
3. Why not Nikon? well it's boiled down to price and also accessories. I went to Canon Malaysia webpage and I am very impressed by the way the site was managed. It contains wealth of information for accessories and upgrades for Canon DSLR, including the street retail prices. Nikon Malaysia webpage is less informative and it's kinda difficult to plan for future lens or any upgrade without information on retail pricing.
4. For some reason I also found out the Nikon D80 or D70 is not readily purchaseable as many retailers, including Fotokem or Foto Selangor, were not given enough stock to meet the demand. For some reason Nikon has decided to create a kind of situation where the supply is low and the demand is high (so they say) and this may be the way how Nikon get higher prices in its products. In addition, most retailers have ready-stock for Canon and also, Canon is very popular among the Malaysian avid photographers making any future accessories upgrade less hassle.
Therefore, I decided on Canon 350D. The next logical thing to do now is to take as many pictures as possible and at the same time learn the real art of photography. By the way, this is my third Canon camera after the Canon AE1-P and Powershot S20, and the picture you see at the top was taken using my handphone !
