Nikon D3100 14MP DSLR Camera with 18-55mm VR Lens (Refurbished) $300 + Free Shipping

And for a beginner should I jump on this or wait for a t3i deal toto come arouN?A

Quote from ppt : I'm wondering if Adorama VIP extended warranty is applicable if we got this via Ebay.

It's not. I was going to buy a refurb item from them on eBay (had some ebay $) but I wanted to take advantage of the VIP warranty.

When I contacted them I was told only if it's from the web site direct. But it does work on refurbished items though.

Quote from wfumike : And for a beginner should I jump on this or wait for a t3i deal toto come arouN?A

Depends on what you plan to shoot.

If you want to take picture of actions, moving targets (kids, sports), I will go with Nikon. Their auto-focus are years ahead of Canon. You will find more picture focused on your kids' face rather than hands.

If you want to shoot landscape pictures, pictures of non-moving target. I will go with Canon.

Personally, I have Nikon. Nikon's DX camera sensor is a little bigger than Canon. That's why Nikon's lens has a 1.5 crop factor, but Canon is 1.6. Also Nikon's metering is 3D color metering. Canon is black and white.

holy hell this is a good deal...i bought a refurb d3100 in the summer for $420

CNET review [cnet.com]

Quote from wfumike : What would be a good deal on a good compliment lens for this?

As NES_Jackal said the 35mm is an excellent lens. It's the first lens I bought for my Nikon.

If you could afford it the Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED IF AF-S DX VR II Lens is awesome. I got it recently myself during the current sale. It's now sub $600 and normally is $800+.
http://www.adorama.com/NK18200DXNUV.html

If you have the 35mm and the 18-200mm you should be set for a while. I'm still kind of new to the DSLR game myself and this is the collection I have. It will be quite a while before I'm ready for more lenses.

Quote from gabe23111 : It's not. I was going to buy a refurb item from them on eBay (had some ebay $) but I wanted to take advantage of the VIP warranty. When I contacted them I was told only if it's from the web site direct. But it does work on refurbished items though.

I had a chat, but he kept saying to buy from the website directly. So may be you're correct. Will call CS to confirm.

Anyway, pulled the trigger. Tossing the kit lens will make the body ~$250-$225.

Seems like a great price for a "backup" DSLR that you can toss around as a better option than a point and shoot.

You could leave it in the car during mild months and have it ready to snap high speed photos that your smartphone would turn into a blurry mess.

For only $300...I say, what the hell! I'm going to take the plunge & buy this one.

Officially my first DSLR!

i saw something that the lens' on nikons on generally more expensive than the canons, either beginner or pro, not much intermediate. making me think i should wait for the t3i sale.

Quote from Requisite : For only $300...I say, what the hell! I'm going to take the plunge & buy this one. Officially my first DSLR!

Same here .I was waiting for D5100 refurb around 400 . Could not resist this at $300. When people talk highly of P&S such as LX7 at 280-300 , I am sure this will be much better.

Quote from santy83 : Same here .I was waiting for D5100 refurb around 400 . Could not resist this at $300. When people talk highly of P&S such as LX7 at 280-300 , I am sure this will be much better.

Haha, I was waiting for the D5100 & T3i to both go cheaper...nada to both.

I agree! So much more room with a DSLR. Even doing a quick YouTube search of "D3100 video test", there's so many good looking videos! Just what I'm looking for (of course photos too lol )

Even if I wanted to upgrade my body next year, I won't really miss the $300 on this since the price point is so low imo.

EDIT: I'm so excited that I can't contain myself, lol.

Quote from wfumike : i saw something that the lens' on nikons on generally more expensive than the canons, either beginner or pro, not much intermediate. making me think i should wait for the t3i sale.

Lens is different than body.

The money you put in body will shrink 50% every 2 years.
The money you put in lens will shrink 5% every 20 years. You are not buying a lens. You put down the refundable deposit, get to play with the lens, and sell it 5 years later and get most of your money back.
So would you put $500 down for a mid level lens and sell it $490 5 years later or would you put $100 down for an entry lens and get $95 back 5 years later? If you can afford the down payment, I would go the higher end lens, so I will get better pictures!

SOOOOO don't need this. Got it anyway. Could easily sell this for the price paid if I can't find a reason for it, and they are going fast -- between the 5 minutes I learned about this, 15 more sold -- and 10 more in the 2 minutes since!!!!