Monty11, I'm not trying to get into a discussion on what makes a good company, but trust me, its a little more than profits and market share. This is merely one side of product planning. If you really want to get into that, let me make a comparison. The big 3 are on their way down(they have been for years) because they mainly consider their products value upon purchase. They try to make what will sell today and tomorrow. the Japanese auto makers design a product that will maintain appeal, function, and value for a longer time.

Camera lines(like many other products) are set up so if you buy the entry level one you will outgrow it. This is obvious. However, Nikon does its best to make their cameras easy to outgrow, IMO.

I don't think adding a few hard function buttons on an entry level camera would hurt anybody, or the camera's mass appeal. That was my point.

Think about how sweet it would be to have a few extra buttons on the d40 or d5000 to adjust WB or focus or metering. Obviously it would hurt d90 sales, so they dont do this.

moregan17 - You want customization, You either go for 3rd party cameras, where You will get as many functions as You want, or go for the top-of-the-line cameras, c-z that's business - want more from Your camera, sure You can get this, but it's gonna be pricy

moregan17, can you bring an example of a company that is not making its decisions motivated by profit or market share. Oh look, there's one ... oh shit, it just went bankrupt, sorry.

Believe me, Nikon like any other camera producer does care about the photo enthusiasts. Functions, features and products are not decided via the "eenie meenie miney a-moe" principle but based on what the MAJORITY (who knows how they determine this) wants or needs or is willing to pay money for.

thanks for the info nikodoby.

this just shows how the marketing/product placement/profit motivates nikon to make what they make. All of the cameras strategically leave out a few features to trick you into upgrading. If Nikon really cared about the photo enthusiast, I think theyd put a bunch of "function" buttons on the camera somewhere that do nothing until assigned(as to not get in the way). This would neither be expensive or intrusive to the photo newb.

so D200 still rules the CCD 10.2mp market then?!

I was expecting a bit more, but the review you gave it didn't really disappoint either. I mean, it's the D40 replacement. What type of results are you expecting anyway? :D

Pocket-lint has a very brief review up. Low noise up to ISO400. Nothing spectacular above that. 8 out of 10 final score
http://www.pocket-lint.com/reviews/review.phtml/4250/nikon-d3000-dslr-camera-review.phtml

Good Gear Guide has a quick review too. They offer one small low light photo and say that noise is good up to ISO400 but is still reasonable through 1600. According to this review the D3000 has a stop-motion and fake tilt-shift effect filters.
http://www.goodgearguide.com.au/review/digital_cameras/nikon/d3000/315279

And CNET Aussie has the better mini review. They like it but don't think you should trade in your D40 or D60. They've got some small high ISO crops too.
http://www.cnet.com.au/nikon-d3000-339297635.htm

So this is pretty much what I was expecting. The D3000 is a great little camera for someone moving up from a point & shoot compact and who's still learning photography and doesn't need video. But if you where hoping for D90 or D300 quality at a cheap price than you'll be disappointed.