Today Canon officially announced the Canon 40D SLR camera after Amazon.com already leaked the details and started to offer the 40D for pre-order yesterday.

Building on the success of Canon's perennially popular "prosumer" EOS 20D and 30D models, the EOS 40D is for advanced amateur photographers and entry-level professionals, and an ideal second body for more established photo pros.
The Canon 40D features a 10.1MP CMOS imaging sensor (designed and manufactured by Canon) and its proprietary and super-efficient DIGIC III image processor, a completely redesigned autofocus sensor and fast 6.5 frame-per-second (fps) continuous shooting capability (for bursts of up to 75 Large/Fine JPEGs or 17 RAW images).

The most easily visible upgrade on the EOS 40D Digital SLR is the camera's larger three-inch LCD screen (compared with the EOS 30D's 2.5-inch monitor). In order to increase viewing ease in outdoor conditions such as bright sunlight, Canon raised the brightness level of the EOS 40D camera's 230,000-pixel LCD screen, broadened the color gamut and narrowed the viewing angle from 170 degrees to a still wide 140-degree perspective in all directions. An added advantage of the larger-sized display is the ability to use a larger font size for text, making it easier to read setting and menu options on the screen. The camera's menu is organized in the same tabbed format as the EOS-1D Mark III Digital SLR.

Although it is based on the image sensor used in the EOS Digital Rebel XTi, the EOS 40D Digital SLR's 10.1-megapixel CMOS APS-C size image sensor has been significantly improved thanks to the use of larger microlenses over each pixel to reduce noise and expand sensitivity up to ISO 3200.

The Canon EOS 40D Digital SLR is scheduled for early September delivery and will be sold in a body-only configuration at an estimated selling price of $1,299.00i. It will additionally be offered in a kit version with Canon's EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM zoom lens at an estimated selling price of $1,499.00i.
Pre-order the Canon 40D today on Amazon.com. Via this Canon press-release.