S/H 40D or Brand New 500D?

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Hi all,
I'm looking to upgrade from my Canon 1000D body which i seem to have outgrown a little bit and have two options, either purchase a brand new 500D or a second hand 40D. Would anybody like to share their opinions?

Thanks,
Bail.
 
Outgrown the 1000D how?

500D if you want the video and all the bells & whistles
40D if you feel like having a real camera :)
 
500D, the 40D hasn't got a brilliant track record on shutters breaking down, on a secondhand body you wont have the warranty to cover such eventualities.

The 500D is very much a real camera and video isnt intrusive, in fact I forget its even there most of the time.

With the way prices are now on the 500D bodies you cant go wrong, £439 is the cheapest I've seen to date for a brand new body..
 
iancandler said:
500D, the 40D hasn't got a brilliant track record on shutters breaking down, on a secondhand body you wont have the warranty to cover such eventualities.

The 500D is very much a real camera and video isnt intrusive, in fact I forget its even there most of the time.

With the way prices are now on the 500D bodies you cant go wrong, £439 is the cheapest I've seen to date for a brand new body..
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Yes this is my worry that the 40D is pretty old now and i'm sure the risk of problems with the camera is going up not sure what you guys think on this? I could get a 500D body for £375 brand new compared to paying around £400 for a used 40D.
 
Have you had a go / hold of the 40D - it's a heavier and larger body compared to your 1000d - you may not like it, but then again, it may feel just perfect and sway you towards the xxD series.
 
I asked the same question on another forum, and basically it's what you want to use the camera for, I want it for motorsport, so went with the 40D.
 
iancandler said:
500D, the 40D hasn't got a brilliant track record on shutters breaking down, on a secondhand body you wont have the warranty to cover such eventualities.
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Never heard of the 40D's shutter "breaking down." It's not even that much of a old camera.
 
I have a 40D and I HIGHLY recomend it, it feels like so much more camera with the Mg body and heavy enough to offset the weight of a 70-200mm L and feel stable :)

I'll be going 7D or 5D next as the new 60D won't have the same xxD feel, get it while you can

MB
 
IMO the 2 options you state are in different categories - 1 is a consumer model and was is a prosumer model (or a proper camera as someone else has stated above)
I went from a 400d to a 40d and the difference was incredible, yes it bigger in size but the picture quality was a lot better and feature set better and by that I mean useful features for taking photos not ones that sound good in the marketing hype!

I don't think you'll find the 1000 to the 500 much of a difference as really they are iterations of the same thing.

Buy a 2nd hand 40d and a new (or 2nd hand) 50mm 1.8 lens and you will have spent no more than £500 and be taking infinitely better pics :-)

FWIW I have never heard about the shutter problem either, the camera has been out since Nov 07 but many around 2nd hand will be younger. Mine for example was bought brand new in July 09.
 
While you still can, plan to get Nikon D7000 instead, unless you fancy a jump to 5D mkII.

40D is capable of delivering nice A3+ size prints, 500D won't give much more real life resolution. 40D feels like a proper camera, 500D doesn't (sorry!). However they both have pretty bad AF, hence the suggestion to go Nikon, or pro Canon series.
 
daugirdas said:
While you still can, plan to get Nikon D7000 instead, unless you fancy a jump to 5D mkII.

40D is capable of delivering nice A3+ size prints, 500D won't give much more real life resolution. 40D feels like a proper camera, 500D doesn't (sorry!). However they both have pretty bad AF, hence the suggestion to go Nikon, or pro Canon series.
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Compared to a 1ds yes, but they're fine, there is no real issue with AF.

it's your choice at the end of the day. I know which way I went and dont regret it.
 
I'd go 40d, much more focused as a picture taking machine
 
daugirdas said:
While you still can, plan to get Nikon D7000 instead, unless you fancy a jump to 5D mkII.

40D is capable of delivering nice A3+ size prints, 500D won't give much more real life resolution. 40D feels like a proper camera, 500D doesn't (sorry!). However they both have pretty bad AF, hence the suggestion to go Nikon, or pro Canon series.
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The D7000 is a fair bit more expensive, i have £400 plus if sell my lens around £500 and moving to Nikon would mean i need a lens aswell:cuckoo:
 
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I loved my 40D. They are still a great camera. For me the issue here is wether or not to buy used or new.
If you can find a genuine Minty, low mileage 40D at a bargain price. Go for it.
However, there is peace of mind in having something new with full warranty.
Having had a great relationship with 40D it's the one I'd reccomend.
 
Get the 40D - you won't regret it.

funnily enough I have one (with a genuine grip) in the for sale section ..... never let me down.
Selling? I've got 2 of them, and funnily enough can't use them at the same time.
 
i have just picked up a 40d... and checked the click count... 3000 and obvisouly just used for a collage course and walk about so was happy with that. no sign of motorcross or motorsport use so quite happy it hasnt been battered... i will soon sort that ! :0

i would say go hold them both, i did and dont like the feel of the smaller body camera and wanted something i could 'trhow around a bit' so the mag body

if you check ebay there are a few ex-display 40d's with 1yr canon warranty. on at £499 but i chatted they will drop to £470. considered it but paid less for 2nd hand body and 17-85 IS USM..

so far so good... :)

bob
 
If you're worried about the warranty with a used 40D, you could spend a little more and buy from an established used dealer, MPB have a 40D in at the moment for £429 with 6 month warranty.
 
Think any camera can fail at any time, my 40D is just aproaching 70,000 clicks so can't complain

So impressed I recently bought a spare that has just on 400 clicks, so think you can guess which camera I am recommending you buy
 
What is so special about the 40D? Just curious. What makes it 'The' camera to buy in the above posts?
 
Gigabyte said:
What is so special about the 40D? Just curious. What makes it 'The' camera to buy in the above posts?
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for me the feel in your hand, the way it just works, functions are easy to use and to hand whilst shooting so can react to the situation.

Oh and the image quality is good! only had mine for 2 weeks and im mighty impressed! :) handles noise quite well [some say better then the 50d] and 10meg is more than enought for me.... my computer wont work with much larger files! :0

bob
 
Gigabyte said:
What is so special about the 40D? Just curious. What makes it 'The' camera to buy in the above posts?
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Because for a while it's been a favourite camera for many, and now they're going for sub £400 (I got mine for 370), it represents incredible value for money.


I know several people who recently upgraded to 7D's, but not one of them have sold their 40D.

The D7000 looks good, but surely not worth stumping up a budget from £500 to over £1000 to replace lenses etc. The AF might have a lot of points, but only 9 are cross type, same as the 40D.

Even if the OP could put together that money, surely it's much better spent on lenses.
 
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Gigabyte said:
What is so special about the 40D? Just curious. What makes it 'The' camera to buy in the above posts?
Click to expand...

2 reasons I would say -

- progression in the hobby/business
- product lifecycle

I think many start with a xxxD and keep it for a year or 2 and then look to upgrade.
When the 40D came out it was such a great camera spec wise and the reviews it got that many bought it in 08 or 09 as an upgrade.
Now that a lot of those people have had the camera for a year or 2 again they have upgraded to in many cases the 7D as it represents a great step up and for those that don't want the full frame option they see this as reaching the best camera for their needs with the best technology inside.

I have done exactly that but I have also changed lenses on the way too. I actually bought the 7d for my GF as her Birthday present (she is as keen on photography as me and we always used to want the camera!)
If I am absolutely honest the 7D is better in areas like AF and resolution (I like to crop pics a lot) but the difference on a good day with a good lens is difficult to distinguish.

I think that's why most people have nothing but praise for the 40D and for many it was their first "proper" DSLR.
 
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