Product Reviews

Nikon's D50 was a groundbreaking camera. At around £600 including VAT at its launch in late 2005, it was the most affordable digital SLR to date, but it still managed to provide excellent performance, handling and image quality. Now, 18 months on, its successor is here, but its name - and price - suggest that the D40 is a cut-down version of the D50. The resolution is still six megapixels, and a few features have regressed or disappeared. Still, other features have improved, so it's not accurate to think of the D40 as inferior to the D50.

This camera is more compact and lighter than its predecessor at 522g including its li-ion battery. Unfortunately, the D50fs passive LCD for displaying camera settings is gone; instead, the settings appear on the main LCD screen, although they're also visible through the optical viewfinder.

The screen is bigger and more detailed than before at 2in and 230,000 pixels, and brims with information and fun graphics. It offers advice such as 'Subject too dark', while a dedicated Help button provides suggestions as to what to do about it, as well as various other tips.

Another two buttons activate and switch views on the screen, but gone are the D50fs dedicated buttons for ISO speed, white balance preset and resolution. A drive mode button can be reconfigured to several other uses, but regular menu delving is inevitable. This is disappointing on a digital SLR camera, regardless of its target audience.

Nikon has dispensed with the internal focus drive motor, which means autofocus isn't available when using Type G or Type D AF lenses.

ADVERTISEMENT

AF-I and AF-S lenses (such as the 18-55mm kit lens) have their own focus drive motors, so this shouldn't present a problem unless you already have a Nikon lens you want to continue using. Auto-bracketing is also missing, which will bother some, and its absence seems harsh considering that it wouldn't cost anything to include. The D50fs five-point auto-focus sensor has been replaced by a three-point sensor, but it's still quick to lock on to its subject. However, as with the D50, it sometimes fails to focus at all.

Our favourite new feature is the configurable automatic ISO setting, taken from the more upmarket D80. The user sets a maximum shutter speed and ISO speed and the camera adjusts exposure settings accordingly, depending on the available light. It's an excellent system that closely mimics the decisions photographers make when manually adjusting settings, so being able to program these preferences into the camera is a superb timesaver.

Other differences between the two cameras are subtle but favourable. SDHC cards are now supported for capacities over 2GB. The 2fps continuous mode remains, but now continues until the card is full. The D50fs image quality didn't come in for much criticism, but the D40fs is marginally better, with more detail than wefve ever seen from a 6-megapixel camera and more than most 8- and 10-megapixel compacts manage. Noise is barely perceptible at ISO 800, while a new ISO 3,200 setting gives remarkably decent results. Colour accuracy was consistently excellent across our tests, demonstrating clear superiority to Pentax''s K100D, reviewed opposite.

Despite some beginner-friendly flourishes, the D40 isn't quite as easy to use as the D50. However, it's not seriously compromised in this respect, and improvements to image quality and performance are just as significant. Ultimately, it's an excellent camera and, at £378, great value. As we go to press, Canon's ageing but marginally superior EOS 350D is available for £400, so we recommend this over the D40 while stocks last. However, temporary bargains aside, the D40 is an excellent choice for budding photography enthusiasts who can't quite stretch to Canon's EOS 400D.