Model Design / Appearance (7.0)
Nikon has pulled together the styling of its DSLR line. The contours are defined with curving ridges and rounded planes, and the Nikon logo appears on the viewfinder hump. The squat red triangle on the handgrip designates this camera as a Nikon from first glance. The D40 is small, and that detracts a bit from the imposing, no-nonsense presence of larger Nikon DSLRs. The D40 looks and feels cheaper than its stable-mates. The plastic components don't fit together as tightly as they do on higher-end Nikons, leaving small cracks in the body. That's disappointing because it suggests that dust and dirt can get inside through the gaps and shorten the camera's life. Though the D40 doesn't measure up to other Nikons, high-end Canons, or Olympus DSLRs by this measure, it has better fit and finish than the Canon EOS Rebel XTi.
Nikon dropped the monochrome LCD from the D40. Other Nikons, from the D70 up, have simple displays on the top deck that show a range of shooting parameters. The D40 uses the color LCD on the back for that information. A monochrome LCD wouldn't fit on the small D40, and Nikon surely saved money by leaving off an extra display and its related electronics.
Size / Portability (8.0)
The Nikon D40 measures 5 x 2.5 x 3.7 inches and weighs 17 ounces without a lens or battery. Ready to shoot with the kit lens, the D40 tips the scales at 26 ounces, making it very light indeed. Like all DSLRs, it is irregularly shaped and needs its own carrying case in most situations.
The D40 is relatively delicate, and that limits its portability. The kit lens is flimsy, and both the lens and the camera body are vulnerable to dust and moisture. It's not the camera for the beach or the tour boats at Niagara Falls.
Handling Ability (7.0)
Users with large hands will find the Nikon D40 inconvenient to use because the grip is relatively small, and the space between the grip and the mount is narrow. We didn't mount any of Nikon's fat, wide-aperture lenses to the D40, but we bet there isn't much of a gap between the barrel of the wide-aperture zooms and its grip.
The grip surfaces have a comfortable texture, and the contours for the right thumb are unusually good. The lens is the only place to put the left hand. The controls are conventional, and important information shows both in the viewfinder and on the display. The D40 is at a disadvantage compared to other DSLRs because it has only one control dial on the back. Most DSLRs have a second dial on the front so users can avoid pushing a button while rotating the dial, as is done on the D40.
 Control Button / Dial Positioning / Size (7.0)The Nikon D40's power switch is a ring around the shutter release. The arrangement has two great qualities. It's quick to use, and it's very hard to accidentally switch the camera on or off. The shutter release is a sturdy button with a smooth travel. It's easy to find the “halfway” point that activates the meter and auto focus. The other buttons are up to the standard on the D80 and D200 – they're solid, they don't wobble, and they're big enough to use conveniently.
It's no big shock that the D40 only has one control dial, but it is too bad. The single control dial slows down some actions, and it means that the user must press a button while turning the dial to access some functions.
Menu (7.5)
The D40's menus are simple, in keeping with the capabilities of the camera and its target market. They are divided into tabbed sections for Shooting, Playback, Setup, Custom Settings and Retouching.
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Shooting Menu
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Optimize
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Choose a setting which adjusts saturation, sharpness and contrast. The settings include “Normal,” “Softer” and “Vivid”
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Image Quality
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Set to make Fine, Normal or Basic JPEGs, uncompressed RAW files, or RAW and Basic JPEGs simultaneously
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Image Size
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Set the pixel dimensions of the file, from 3008 x 2000 to 1504 x 1000
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White Balance
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Set to a preset or take a manual measurement. It's possible to fine-tune the balance
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ISO
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Set sensitivity from ISO 200 to 1600, plus Hi 1, which is ISO 3200
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Noise Reduction
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Invoke the camera system to reduce image noise
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Setup Menu
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CSM/Setup
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Set to show full or simplified menus
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Format Memory
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Format memory card
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Info Display
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Choose between text or graphical display; set a “wallpaper” background
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Auto Shooting Info
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Turn on LCD when the shutter is pressed halfway. (Quite distracting)
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World time
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Set time zone
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LCD brightness
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Dim or Brighten LCD
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Video mode
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Choose NTSC or PAL output for slideshows
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Language
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Set language for menus and text alerts
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Image comment
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Add text information to images
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USB
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Set for data transfer or direct printing
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Folder
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Create new or choose folder for file storage on the SD card
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File Number Sequence
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Choose to reset the file number each time the card is changed, or to number images continuously
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Mirror lock-up
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Use to reduce vibration in long exposures on tripods
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Firmware
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Check or update built-in programming
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Dust Reference Photo
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Use with Nikon software to automatically remove dust spots from photos
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Auto Image Rotation
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Save vertical images upright
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Retouch Menu
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D-lighting
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Brighten mid-tones and shadows
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Red-eye correction
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Get rid of satanic glow in human eyes
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Trim
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Crop images
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Monochrome
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Choose black-and-white, sepia or cyanotype (blue)
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Filter Effects
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Skylight, Warm or manual change in colors
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Small
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Save small copies of images for email, web, et cetera
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Image Overlay
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Combine two images shot in RAW format
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A separate menu comes up in Playback mode.
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Playback Menu
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Delete
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Throw away an image, a selected group, or all images
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Playback folder
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Select which folder on SD card to review
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Rotate Tall
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Show vertical images upright
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Slide Show
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Show images in sequence, on the LCD or on a television
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DPOF
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Create a print order or print directly with compatible printers
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Ease of Use (8.5)
 About a year ago, we at DigitalCameraInfo.com had a little debate about whether a golden retriever with opposable thumbs could operate a particular point-and-shoot. The D40 doesn't aim for quite that level of simplicity, but it has a clearly marked full auto mode and excellent help screens. The graphic interface is more of a teaching tool than a simplified display – it explains what's going on with the aperture. The control layout is good and simple, and the major features that appear only in menus are near the top of their lists.
The D40's manual controls aren't on a par with other Nikons, but they are just as good as other cameras in this price range. Some features that are dear to purists are buried. But on a simple camera like the D40, we don't consider mirror lock-up (for instance) a major feature. Higher-resolution, sturdier cameras are more likely to be used on a tripod and more likely to benefit from lock-up.
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