Canon EOS 450D

The downside to all this is price inflation. The EOS 400D was around £530 inc VAT at launch, but the 450D is £70 more. That means the 450D is no longer an entry-level option: Canon is continuing to sell the 400D, and the standard 400D kit is about £400 inc VAT.

With the number of new features and image quality that remains as good as ever, the 450D is a compelling camera. But bear in mind you can get hold of the semi-professional Canon EOS 40D body-only for about the same price as the 450D kit, and the ageing but still superb Nikon D80 can be had for much the same outlay.

For first-time users, the likes of Nikon's D40 or Canon's own 350D are a better choice, at getting on for half the price of the 450D. But for a compact, feature-laden DSLR that isn't going to see the rough and tumble of serious amateur use, the 450D has addressed our criticisms. It adds up to a very fine camera for the money.

Author: David Fearon