Ya D40x is the cheapest one and it is a very good performer. But there is one thing about D40x I will tell you. It doesnt have a focusing motor drive. That means it can only autofocus the lenses that have their own motors. Those kind of lens are denoted by AF-S in Nikons case. Although all the new Nikon lenses are AF-S, it can be a bit of limiting factor if you want to use third party lens or nikon's old lenses. It is kinda nagging limitation (espcially for me cause I have only one AF-S lens). But Canons dont have problems like that. If you want to stick to nikons without these limitations, D70s is the way to go. I trhink they are pretty cheap these days. If you find canon cheaper, go for it. Dont waste too much time in thinking because you should be using your time to shoot instead. Good luck, and share your pics with us.