Page 1 of Canon EOS 300D £451 Delivered

With zoom lens. £499 from Currys online, see moneysavingexpert for discount code for Currys (think people who work in schools) plus 5% off with egg card.

Bargain, only prob is I don`t have the dosh this month, please keep at this price for a month Currys.

This item was edited on Monday, 28th February 2005, 16:11

Oooh that`s tempting.

I have the original 35mm SLR version and would love the digital. A great way to improve my photography, being able to take loads of pics at different settings and see the results almost immediately.

That IS tempting... I would LOVE a digital SLR, but the finances just aren`t there at the moment.

I`m hopefully due a tax refund soon, so maybe...

The reason is probably that Canon are just about to announce their uprated 8Mp 350D:
http://www.dpreview.com/articles/canoneos350d/

From the article, it seems that it is a very real improvement on the current 300D, which although capable, was firmware-crippled to show a difference to the 10D.

That said, my 3 Mp D30 (canon`s first reasonable price DSLR - £2500 less than 4 years ago!) still takes wonderful shots. Don`t forget that digital SLRs` pictures require manipulation on a Computer via a workflow technique to be at their best. Ordinary Digicams have sharpening and other algorithms built in so that pics look good `out of the box` but have little further headroom.

Also remember that Digital SLRs have an exposed sensor that requires cleaning (unlike a 35mm) - especially if you change lenses a lot - which is sealed in a Digicam. So, unless you have a lot of expensive Glass from your 35mm SLR kit, or you love tinkering, you can see why `prosumer` Digicams like Nikon`s excellent 8700 are still ver y popular.

Regards
Dig

Have lusted after friend`s 300d since he bought it last year for about £850. He became "official" photographer to our boys ski trip this year, his photos are better than anything taken on the S5000 and the Pro-1 we had in tow (aalong with about 8 others). I want one, and I want it now.

PS, can`t the firmware on the 300 be flashed?

Yeah, I have the 300D, and I have installed the wassia firmware - not an official cannon release, but well known in the community, and it basically unlocks almost all the features of the 350D. OK, the 300D is only (!) 6 megapixel, but I have done A3 prints on my canon S9000 printer, and they are stunning! The other thing I dont like about the 350D is it is 25% smaller than the 300D, and I thought that was small. At the price of the 300D these days, I would snap it up, install the wassia firmware, and not worry about the 350D, there is always a better body around!

Tom

I think I will be lowering the price on "my" camera counter at PC World to £450 on the 4th?

This item was edited on Wednesday, 2nd March 2005, 20:43

Actually, I think you`ll find the Russian Firmware `unlocks` most of the Canon-crippled functions of the 300D to be like the 10D ;)

To quote from the pre-production sample review I posted earlier, the 350D will be a different beast - although this time it will not be a cut down version of the current 20D:

* Eight megapixel CMOS sensor (not same as EOS 20D) but bigger than 300D
* DIGIC II image processor (better image quality, faster processing, less power consumption)
* Instant power-on time, faster shutter release, shorter blackout time
* Continuous shooting speed increased (3.0 fps vs. 2.5 fps)
* Buffer increased (14 JPEG frames vs. 4 JPEG frames)
* Image processing time decreased (thanks to DIGIC II)
* Compact Flash write speed increased
* Smaller body (15 x 5 x 8 mm smaller) - I don`t think that equates to 25% :)
* Lighter weight (17% lighter including battery) - allright nearly 25% :¦

As this is the bargain forum, then the original poster was absolutely right, compared to its original price, the final price for the 300D will be a bargain.

Don`t forget though, its not the equipment you`ve got - it`s how you use it :x

Regards
Dig