I bought Reponses Photo today, there's a comparison of the XTi with other cameras and I've found another plus point -

- it has an optional grip/battery pack. Wow.

But then the 30D does too, it's not really an advantage for the XTi. And Reponses Photo is really critical of the 18-55 that comes in kit with the camera. They suggest that Canon deliberately propose a poor lens to encourage people to upgrade to something better. But then that's slagging off Canon...