40D reliability?

andrewcollier

I was eagerly waiting reviews of the 450D when browsing through the Canon UK outlet on ebay for refurbished SLRs I did a search for the 40D. There was not a single one listed current nor completed sales in last 10 days. When I did a search for the 400D there are 17 currently listed and 51 completed in last 10 days.

This suggests that the 40D is VERY reliable against the 400D somewhat UNRELIABLE! What do owners think of either model? I wonder if the extra premium on the 40D would be a good buy against the 450D?

Any comments appreciated

Blurmore

I think your results may be skewed by the number of 40D's sold VS the number of 400D's sold AND the level of skill of their average buyer. You can send a camera back for anything under warranty, including stupidity and not knowing how to use the camera. Most people shelling out the almost 1200 dollars already know their way around a DSLR, and almost any idiot can afford a 400D. I just bought a 40D and I owned a 30D and 20D before it. The 20D had 125k accuations on it before I had the shutter replaced by MCVR. The 30D has over 100k accuations and is still going strong, no err99s no hangups. I expect the service life of the 40D to be similar even with the new live view trickery. I only bought the 40D because I dropped the 20D at the zoo the other day (smugmug strap failure) it survived, but it made me realize that I really don't want it as a backup to the 30D. If the 30D went down, I don't have COMPLETE confidence in the 20D's ability to finish a wedding and possibly have to shoot 2 as an only body for 2 weeks of repair. The 20D is happily retired to a "family" camera and a backup-backup and I do have complete confidence in it in this role.

evoryware

The XTi is near end of life (released Sept '06) while the 40D is fairly new (released Nov '07).
Apples : Bananas.
I have both and use both and the XTi has been reliable. No errors. No memory problems. No lockups. No dust issues.
That said if I could sell my XTi to help pay for another 40D, I would.
On the flipside, a brand new XTi for $520 is a steal, IMO!!

Photoskipper

It depends on the user profile and behavior.

the 400D is entry level and many beginner or film user just try to get their hands on the digital camera. After awhile, they want to have something more serious. That is the reason they trade-in or selling it on ebay.

400D is a good camera but just a bit smaller and does not have the feel of "real" SLR in terms of the size and weight.

Moving from 400D to 40D is very logical. As they can keep the lens and some accessories. The price gap between 2 are not very big, it is much easier for the 400D owner to move up.

The 40D is for more serious users and more pricy. The owner usually not the first timer. They know what they want.

Furthermore, there no replacement or close upgrade model for 40D. the next level is 1D MarkIII or 1DsMarkII or III which has huge price gap. It makes many 40D users to stay for some time.