Comparison between cameras - please help?

Hi. I’m interested in photography and want to buy my first “real” camera. I only have experience with simple digital cameras, but I am kinda excellent at it (kidding ;P). But, I’m really lost. Between these cameras what do you reckon is better?
Nikon D60
Olympus E510
Nikon D40X
List EOS 400D
Sony DSLR-A100W

These are the ones I found in my price range, but if you have any additional you want to suggest, please do.

Thank you =)
Thanks to all who have already answered.

In the store I am thinking of buying:
Nikon D60 + AFS DX 18-55mm – 599 EUR, 835 USD, 477 GBP
Olympus E510 + 14-42mm + 40 -150mm + 2GB – 599 EUR, 835 USD, 477 GBP
Nikon D40X + AF18-55 DX G II – 599 EUR, 835 USD, 477 GBP
List EOS 400D + EF18-55mm – 449 EUR, 626 USD, 358 GBP
Sony DSLR-A100W + 18-70mm +75-300mm – 499 EUR, 695 USD, 398 GBP

Thank you for all your help =)
Thanks for all your help. Please comment also on the prices of the kits above.

Thanks

Answer by oemgeeitsrosalee
persons are the ones i was looking at im getting the nikon d60

Answer by Daniel T218
hey first of all place out the olympuse510 and sony, if you want a real camera, especially an slr, stick to list or nikon, im not life biased, but the additional 2 are just not excellent.
also.. if you can afford the d40x and d60.. get the d60 its an upgraded version of d40x, newer electronics inside and a dust removal system, a friend of mine has got into photography and bought that and its a very excellent camera!!
so its between the eos 400d and d60.
the choice between list and nikon is really upto personal taste, they are about even head to head
i dont know where you come from, but in the uk we have a magazine called digital photo. its an incredible mag and the review and head to head tests are brilliant. most of my kit has come from their tests and i havent regretted it at all, anyway in jun ’07 they had a head to head test between list 400d and nikon d40x, and it was a honest tie!! neither was better, so you may maybe contend that the d60 is better as the d60 is better than the d40x, but you can see how close it is. like i already said.. personal taste

Answer by SportTonight
For primary pro or pro level only 2 choice (list or nikon)
400d vs d40

d40 that ok with price but 6.1 mp too low — eye to d60
400d can not vs d40 because not same price and higher spec

you should to choose base on
1.price and spec d60 vs 400d is very quicker
2.lens price
3.service
4.goto shop and test it before buy
5.picture of list and nikon has differents (like or no like upon user)

Answer by Sweetie Pie
Nikon, Olympus, and List are all fantastic brands. I wouldn’t go with the Sony… some amateurs like it, but have you ever seen a pro carrying one around? Didn’t reckon so. Plus, since Nikon, Olympus, and List have been around longer they have a more better and larger variety of lenses.

I personally would go with the List EOS 400D.

Answer by dave3006308
I am of a different opinion on the Sony. Sony has image stabilization built into the camera body not the lens like List and Nikon. Every lens you mount on the Sony will be stabilized. Price a stabilized List or Nikon lens,they are very expensive.
Yes it is right that the pro’s use List and Nikon camera’s. But you are looking at a prosumer level camera. Not a $ 5,000 camera with a $ 1200 lens. They are completly different animals. Yes the consumer camera lenses will fit the pro-rig but no one will mount a $ 150 lens on a $ 5,000 camera. Also the List and Nikon image sensors are made by Sony. Sony bought the Konica-Minolta line of camera’s. There are plenty of lenses to chose from. Google the Sony Alpha and read the reviews then choose. I have nothing against Nikon or List they make a excellent product,but I feel on the consumer level the A-100 or A-200 has more to offer for the price.

Add your own answer in the comments!

If you live in the Central Florida area, particularly Lake Buena Vista, and are looking to hold electronics do not shop at the Sony store at 14851 SR 535. The store owner is discriminative towards his customers. Some friends and I went in to the store hoping to hold a digital camera and the owner told us to “GET OUT!” when we made inquiries and comparisons about the innumerable camera, their functions, and prices.
I must say that I was raised in a community that taught its youth to respect every individual and to pass judgment based on a person's character not his or her skin color or nationality. Many public would say that I was born with two strikes against me – the first life the color of my skin; the second life my gender. It disappoints, disturbs, and agitates me that a complete weirder would pass judgment on me based on mainstream stereotypes and skin tone.

Is that is the way of things? Than I assume that it would be more jingoistic and civil of me to restore to the store with accusations that as an Islamic citizen of a Middle Eastern country the store is not an "American," but a terrorist who should restore to his desert country to work as an underpaid "doctor" and/or "engineer." Which would be the best business for me to do – the theater such a disrespectful action or calling the Better Business Bureau of Central Florida?

Answer by grand lake bum
From the looks of your avatar, you were probably in there to steal a digital camera. I’m not racist, I’m just saying………

Answer by dlk
Better Business Bureau

Answer by Dig Daddy
Jessie Jackson, Al Sharpton, ACLU, NAACP, BBB, your church… is that enough to start?
Pretty much if the owner tells you (your friends) to ‘Get Out” of their store then legally that is what you have to do.

What do you reckon? Answer below!
Seven Tech Trade-Offs Worth Making
To get the most bang for your buck, follow these guidelines about features worth paying for and options to place free.
Read more on New York Times

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX700 14.1 MP Digital Camera with 5x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and 3.0-Inch LCD (Black)

• 14.1-megapixel resolution captures enough detail for poster-size prints
• 5x image-stabilized optical zoom; 24mm, F2.2 ultra-wide-angle Leica DC Vario-Summicron lens
• 3.5-inch LCD with full touch-screen operation
• Capture 1080p HD record in AVCHD format; Intelligent Auto (iA) mode; Face Recognition feature
• Capture record and images to SD/SDHC memory cards (not built-in)

Panasonic DMC-FX700 packs a host of advanced functions in a slim, stylish body. The DMC-FX700 is now really a hybrid camera that records high quality 1920×1080 full HD movie in AVCHD. The 14.1-megapixel DMC-FX700 also features F2.2 super bright 24mm ultra wide angle LEICA DC VARIO-SUMMICRON lens with 5x optical zoom to make the camera even more versatile from shooting dynamic landscapes to the moving subject in low-lit situations such as indoors or at night.

The iA (Intelligent Auto) mod

List Price: $ 399.00

Price: Too low to show