Well, I spent $900 on a Sony digital a few months ago.
After a few weeks I kept getting an error reading on firing up the camera with the autofocus not working. I telephoned a Sony technician somewhere in a potato field in Ohio and explained the problem. He said, 'Yes, this is a common problem with that particular model, bang the lens portion firmly on a table and that will clear the problem'. I replied, 'Can you send over a technician so that I can bang it on his head as I do not want to dent my table, and after all he probably does not need his head, but I need my table'. The amazing thing is that rapping the camera on a table did actually clear up the problem.
The moral of the story? Stick to Canon, or better still Nikon. I have a Nikon digital SLR that is nothing short of superb. Expensive, but worth stretching the dollar for.
HS