A Review of the Camera I Haven’t Got Yet

Maybe looking at the title of this, you’re thinking this is a bit premature, seeing as my camera only arrives on the 30th of July. Actually I do too. But I’m an excitable fellow, and you only get your first SLR once.

So here was the situation around a week ago when I was making my decision: I had 25,000 rupees (around $600) from having worked for my parents for quite a while, and I was looking into getting a cheap SLR. I immediately thought of the D40x, because my friend has one and I’ve used theirs a lot. I absolutely loved using it. Unlike most SLRs, it’s uncomplicated and easy to use, a point-and-shoot- SLR if you may. But, it also affords one much more control over one’s photography.

Now I wanted a Nikon: I knew this much. I had tried Canons, Sonys and Olympuses, and Nikons, and the Nikons were my favourite. And really, when you’re looking at this range, it doesn’t matter what the pros use, because that has no bearing on a company’s entry-level cameras.

A bit of research later, after I realised that the D40x was out of production, it was a case of D40 vs D60. These were just the right price. The reason I went for the D60 was merely because I got an excellent price in Hong Kong, which is where I’ve ordered it from, and because I wanted fancy features like an eye-sensor and dust-removal.

Now I wait for my camera in anticipation.

Cheap Electronics in Bangkok

I was in Bangkok last week on holiday, hence the brief hiatus. It was the craziest, most consumeristic holiday I’ve ever had; a whole week spent in shopping malls, in Bangkok, that crazy haven of cheap sex and electronics (I only sampled the electronics, though). And this was not my first time in the city either, so I have a pretty good idea of the place. Here’s my condensed shopping guide (of interest to nerds only):

There are two malls to visit if you’re into technology.

The first is called Mah Boon Krong (MBK for short). This is a massive edifice to the Gods of capitalism; you can buy anything here, from clothes to books to lampshades to mobile phones to laptops, graphics cards, pirated software, music, movies and everything else in between. This mall is a jungle, literally, and the food court is the best in Bangkok, too.

The second mall is, where technology is concerned, even more amazing. This one is called Pantip Plaza. While it is not as big as MBK, its focus is only on electronics and there are a hundred places to buy the same graphics card, or case, or cooling fan, or RAM module, and the variety is amazing, too. Unfortunately, this was wasted on me as all I bought was a 4 GB Kingston USB stick, for no more than 10 USD. And that wasn’t the cheapest one around, either.

If you’re going to Bangkok, don’t miss out on MBK and Pantip Plaza.