The D40 is an exceedingly compact, yet superbly well-built camera. It’s just a little larger and a fair bit heavier than Olympus’s tiny E-400, but much smaller than any SLR from Nikon to-date.

By comparison with the D50 model it replaces, it’s smaller in every dimension and around 70g lighter.

Despite its size, the D40 finds room for a large 2.5in LCD panel that is put to good use by a new menu and control system. Quite unlike anything we’ve seen before on a digital SLR, the D40’s user interface is a graphically rich, yet un-cluttered affair more like those on Nikon's Coolpix range of compact cameras.

There’s no top-mounted status LCD on the D40, but all the information you need is displayed clearly at the rear. As with the Olympus control system, the status readout on the D40 becomes interactive, allowing you to navigate through it with the cursor keys and change settings such as ISO, white balance and quality options quickly without having to delve into the full menu system.

Plain English descriptions accompany all the settings, with hints and tips provided on pressing the question-mark button. The D40 doesn’t patronise you - if you know what you’re doing it will just let you get on with it, but if it wants to make a helpful suggestion, a small question mark will flash.

If you’re interested in what the camera has to say, pressing the question-mark button will reveal a hint on how to improve the photograph you’re about to take - “Subject is too dark; cannot adjust exposure. Use the flash” is one example. This system works very well; helpful but never obtrusive.

The D40 also features built-in image retouching functions, including red-eye correction, cropping and D-Lighting, which helps correct poorly-exposed images without the need for advanced Photoshop skills.

The most significant difference between the D40 and the rest of Nikon’s SLR range is the lack of an auto-focus motor in the camera body. This means unless you use lenses with integral motors (Nikon calls these AF-S or AF-I lenses) you’ll have to use manual focus.

We wouldn’t expect new D40 users to have large existing collection of lenses, and the selection of AF-S lenses available covers a reasonably wide range from 18 to 55mm. Included in this range is the excellent 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G VR Zoom, which incorporates vibration reduction.

The field of view of the D40 is such that these focal lengths must be multiplied by 1.5 to reveal their 35mm equivalents. The supplied kit lens is an 18-55mm (27-82.5mm 35mm equivalent) f/3.5-5.6 unit that produces very good results. The D40 is currently not available to buy without this lens, which is a shame as three of the available AF-S lenses cover the same range as the kit lens.

Unlike even some more expensive cameras, the D40 has a separate, and bright, focus assist lamp. When you’re using auto-focus in darker situations this lamp is illuminated instead of the built-in flash, allowing you to shoot faster.

Rather than packing as many megapixels as possible into the D40, Nikon has opted to stick with a high-quality six-megapixel sensor. With many cameras, especially compacts, attempting to take a shot in a high ISO mode feels a bit like falling for some sort of rubbish practical joke; the resulting noisy mess being good for nothing but immediate erasure.

The D40, however, takes usable shots right up to ISO 1600 and beyond. Its six megapixels of noise-free data, especially when used in 12-bit Raw mode, will give you excellent-quality photos.
It may be an entry-level camera, but it’s very quick and responsive. It’s ready to shoot almost as quickly as you can switch it on, and in continuous mode it’ll snap away at around two-and-a-half shorts per second until you memory card is full.

As always with Nikon, regular firmware releases are made freely available which can enhance your camera’s performance and even add new features. The latest version for the D40 includes a few minor bug fixes and feature tweaks and brings with it Windows Vista certification.

Also consider:
Olympus E-400
Billed as the world’s smallest digital SLR, the E-400 doesn't compromise on power or usability

Nikon D80
Mid-priced 10-megapixel digital SLR for professional-looking pictures

Canon EOS 400D
The Canon EOS 400D builds on the success of the 350D and is an excellent entry-level digital SLR

All digital camera reviews