Originally posted by lovemehate I have no ideas what my options are, i was going to get that pantax Kx with 18-55mm pack.
thats 620usd + tax
but everyone Is saying just get a cheaper body and a better lens...I dont know what 18-55mm Is good for. I dont know what kind of lens I should even look at anyway
I will make a post here giving my sense of the used body options for Pentax in late 2010; I hope it might be a little help for the OP and anyone who looks up this topic later.
To me, given current and near-future k-x pricing, the only "cheaper" body options are used bodies, and only certain ones. Most beginning DSLR users (around where I am anyway) start with a new body which has the advantages of a warranty and a reasonably up-to-date feature set. Note for instance that none of the used options below would allow you to shoot video! And low-light or fast-action shooting will be better with the k-x than with any of the following.
However, if you do want to save money on your first body, in order to invest in lenses, here are your cheapest options in Pentax in late 2010:
1) a six-megapixel camera such as the *ist ds, *ist dl, or K100D. Of these, only the K100D has "image stabilization", which makes it easier to take pictures with slightly longer exposures (useful in low light). These cameras are 4Y old + technology, produce lower-resolution image files, and save either raw image files or jpegs, but not both at the same time (which can be useful when you are starting out). If you can find a K100D body in good working order, though, that is one of the cheapest effective options.
(Also note that these cameras shipped with the early version of the kit lens -- it doesn't really matter at 6MP, but if you are thinking of upgrading to a more advanced camera but keeping your kit lens, at some point you may see weaknesses in this early version. But a replacement kit lens later on is still cheap enough, so it isn't really a big issue . . .)
2) k-m/K2000 (same thing). This was the entry-level model right before the k-x, and used a 10MP sensor (step up from 1). The build quality of the body may or may not be as good as the earlier 6MP cameras. It does have image stabilization and raw+jpeg mode, unlike the 6MP cameras above, and shipped with the improved kit lens. However, it doesn't have an LCD on the top of the camera to tell you your settings -- neither does the k-x, but the cameras listed here as options 1) and 3) all have the top LCD. In my opinion, if you haven't shot with a DSLR before, you probably won't miss it. The k-m was not as successful on the market as a k-x -- and is frankly not as good a camera -- but it is possible to find it at a lower price on the used market.
3) K10D/K200D. These two cameras are quite different, but sell for around the same price. One thing they have in common, which is different from all the cameras in 1) and 2), is that both the K10D and K200D are weather-resistant. I dare say that they are the least expensive weather-resistant cameras available on the used market, and the K200D at the time of its introduction was the least expensive weather-resistant camera body ever made. However, if you don't have a weather-resistant lens to go with it, there is a gap in the rain- and dust-protection where you want it the most, and the cheapest weather-resistant lens is a version of the 18-55 which will set you back at least $150 -- and that lens did NOT ship as the kit lens with either of these cameras. So if you are trying to save money, you will quickly discover that whatever you saved compared to a _used_ k-x, say, is immediately consumed if you pick up a weather-resistant 18-55.
Otherwise, these cameras have a 10MP sensor like the k-m/K2000. The K200 has some slight improvements in higher-sensitivity (lower light) and jpeg processing over the K10D, but it is nowhere near as good as the k-x in those areas. The K10D is larger than the K200D and has more control wheels (=less time in menus); if you are interested in a medium-sized camera (still bigger than the cameras in 1) and 2) take the K200D, and if you don't mind a big camera to get excellent controls, take the K10D.
So as I see it, these are the current used options for Pentax bodies at the low end. These are not huge savings compared to the k-x -- none of them will save you enough money to get a new prime lens, or a top-quality zoom -- but option 1) could save you enough to pick up an 18-200 zoom or the new 35mm prime, easily, and even option 3) might let you pick up an extra used lens, compared to the full price of the k-x kit. So I am not advising you to spend less on the body, but if you do, this should be helpful.