It seems like very few purchases these days are simple. There is so much choice. Discerning between what will actually provide value and what is just a marketing exercise to create perceived value is not for the faint of heart.

Take for example my recent camera purchase. If you look at this web page and compare products, they begin to all look the same. Do I really need 6.5 fps versus 3 fps? Will the E-TTL flash system result in a better picture?

How do you find the right web site that can be trusted for a recommendation? Is it sponsored by a vendor which impacts their review?

In the end, I ended up getting my best advice by putting together an opinion based on comments on web forums; people’s candid opinions and experiences, highly influenced by their statements of what they were upgrading from (i.e. upgrading from a point and shoot to their first DSLR or from an old DSLR to a new one). In the end, this was a laborious process where I spent many hours trolling the web. But it did allow me to get a balanced view (lovers and haters) and make an informed decision that in the past, would have been heavily reliant on the 16 year old ‘expert’ salesperson (NOT a winning proposition).

And in the end I changed my mind. I moved up the food chain to the Canon 40D due to the magnesium alloy, water/dirt resistant chassis (after all, I know that I broke the other one by banging it around). Right choice choosing resilience over size? (The other is a lot smaller). We will see. Review to be posted after we get back from Egypt.

But it was painful. Maybe I need a personal shopper (smile).