Why not a D80 or D300?
Reason 1: Because the D80 is presently ~$750 and the D300 is presently ~$1799. I can, and did, get a D70 (with lens!) for under $400.
Reason 2: Metering. According to Ken Rockwell, the D70’s meter is better than the D40 and D80’s. Wonderful.
What I really want is D300 but I believe this D70 is an affordable step in the right direction. And I already wanted this particular lens (18-70) for times I’m walking a lot and my 18-200 VR is just too long to be hanging there, tipping my D40’s nose down all day. For those times, when I also don’t need the 200mm zoom, the 18-70 will be okay. I would also haven been happy with the 18-55 kit lens, but I sold that after I got the 18-200, desafortunadamente.