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Excellent Value for Money
OK, there are many, many more feature-packed cameras available.
OK, it's only capable of 6.1 megapixels
OK, it's not the most amazing at producing indoor shots without flash.
OK, you have to get expensive AF-S lenses to get auto-focus with this camera.

Well, forget all those things and buy this camera now. It's excellent. If you, like me, are looking for your first 'proper' camera (ie. an SLR), then, in my opinion, you need look no further than this wonderful piece of kit. It's just so much fun to use... it just feels so right -- good size, good weight, good picture quality, pretty fast, easy to use, nice 'idiot' mode, nice 'helper' pictures to remind you what the different settings do... it has the same (excellent) sensor as some of the more expensive models too, so that can't be bad.

Most of all though... you are getting a well-featured PROPER SLR CAMERA for about £250. It's an absolute bargain and I really can't tell you just how much better your photos will be if you buy one of these, read a few articles on photography, get a couple of books on the subject and just start shooting.

To summarise: buy this camera -- it's ace.

Nikon Gold
I will avoid a technical angle in this review as it has been admirably covered by previous buyers.
I took the plunge and bought this camera late Sunday night and received it early Tuesday morning, which is excellent.
The camera itself so far has been superb and gave me a superb days first shoot of 750 pictures.
I had been using a Coolpix for two years and have been amazed at what it could do, but the D40 is superb. A previous reviewer stated that I would be delighted at how well the wide angle lens works, and they were right.
I take a lot of action shots in Sports mode of myself and mates clay pigeon shooting, and on day 1 came home with action shots of shooters breaking clays. (these clays are on an Olympic Skeet layout, the birds are moving at 90mph, yet the camera caught the action perfectly).
I know I am going to love this camera more and more.
One tiny criticism though is the operators manual. It's crap. Obviously written by Nikon nerds who don't own a camera but who are software geeks. Thank God Amazon offer a digital guide to Nikons for well under a tenner/that's the next purchase.
I boughta 4GB card for the camera which give me 2,100 shots per day. Beat that. this is a great camera making a suoperb companion piece to my Coolpix and Nikon binoculars.

Great entry level DSLR for the novice.
Back in the early 80's a friend of mine got me into (sort of) serious photography and I purchased a Pentax MV SLR. The MV was great as it wasn't too compilcated as it had aperture priority and also AUTO mode.Suited me down to the ground.

Years went by and my MV was locked away and forgotten about.After I got married my wife had a Canon 35mm point and shoot which became the 'family' camera that was used for holidays, weddings etc. Just before the birth of our son in 2005 I wanted to get something special so I could take all the baby shots and as my experience with Pentax was great, I went with the Optio 5sn.

I was now entering the world of digital photography, and my love for photography albeit a novice one was rekindled.In time my wife's Canon had packed in and I know she had always had one eye on the Pentax Optio 5sn so I gave in to her and she now owns the Optio which is easy for her to carry.

So what now I thought. What about me? What camera shall I get?

Well the first thing I did (as always when I need help on deciding) was to go on Amazon to see what are the best sellers and to see all the reviews by you guys. The camera that stood out for me was the Fuji FiniPix S5700.It was a digital P+S had a traditional look and had great reviews.

Something told me though that if I went with that choice albeit a good one it's unlikely I would get another one for another few years at least. I had secretly been 'coveting' the Nikon D40, one because it was a SLR and secondly because it was a Nikon, a camera I had always wanted to own. I thought what the heck, bite the bullet.

I can't really say anymore than the positive reviews have already said, except it's phenomenal. I'm so pleased that I made this purchase and encourage anyone else venturing into photography to do the same.

As a side issue, it has not only satisfied my craving for SLR photography but I've also brought my old MV out as well, had it checked out, bought new batteries and a roll of 35mm and I'm using two cameras now.

Why I even feel like a pro with my Billingham bag, 2 SLR's, one digital, one non-digital.

Yes I'm falling in love with the art of photography all over again.

Poor Reliabilty
Becareful of this item. The battery charger failed after just one use leaving me stranded on the trip of a lifetime in Iran with just one charge. The support process is inflexible and they expected me to send the recharger to Europe for repairs. This is not feasible while on holiday. In short if you have a failure as I did, even if after a single use, then it is your problem.

Picture quality is ok and I found it performs poorly indoors with no flash.

At least buy a spare battery so you are covered if the recharger fails as it did for me.

A review from a total novice!
I am completely new to photography (well apart from the normal holiday/bithday snaps!) and bought this camera after a recommendation from a friend and reading the reviews on here. It is a lovely camera and pefect for someone starting out. I've been using the auto mode mostly but the photos are brilliant! I am really in impressed this the quality of my photos and have has lots of compliments too. I am more than happy and have found it really easy to use and the digital display doesn't take long to master either. I am enjoying teaching myself photography and practicing lots!