How many shutter actuations is a DSRL good for?

[fkshiu]

Originally Posted by jus68

I had the same debate and what I did was I went to Costco and did the 90 day trial for the Xsi. Don't get me wrong I don't do this often but I figure I had to justify the costco membership fee somehow.... Anyways, my friend and I had a shootoff against his d60 and the results were very compable so we concluded it would just come down to individual preferences. But are you sure you want to get used? There's so much packed into those cameras that even a slight mishandle could cause damages. Within the $300-$400 range there are other brands that offer new dslrs.

Pentax and Sony both offer entry level dSLRs but I'd stick with Canon or Nikon. The big C and the big N dominate the SLR market in part because of the massive array of lenses available - and lenses are the reason you get an SLR. Sony has never made a big splash in the SLR market (unlike point & shoot) and with the company losing billions for the first time since anyone can remember there are questions as to whether Sony will continue to support dSLRs in the long term. SLRs are core businesses for Canon and Nikon, it is not a core business for Sony. I don't know much about Pentax except for the one that my dad had when he immigrated to Canada 40 years ago. I hear they're good cameras, but again the support for their dSLRs just isn't like it is for Canon and Nikon.