Verdict

The Canon EOS 450D is an excellent all-round DSLR and much more than a toy as suggested by some Canon ads. It is great DSLR for beginner but also for enthusiasts who are looking for a light-weight DSLR at a very fair price level.
The 12.2 MP CMOS sensor and the EOS Integrated Cleaning System are a great basis for large, dust-spot-free prints of all "playgrounds". The compact and light-weight body is always ready to go and the good ergonomic design gives you a total image control without any obstacles and delays. The 9-point wide-area AF offers a convincing performance and delivers fast and accurate results. The high quality, big 3.0” LCD is very useful in order to judge the exposure accuracy of the images.
The Live-View mode works fine although a little on the slow side and the usage is slightly more awkward than necessary because the button for focusing is different from the shutter release button. The "large and bright viewfinder" (citing Canon) is still not quite as a large and bright as in DSLRs residing up the food chain but it's definitely an improvement over previous models and now among the best in this price range. It's a personal thing whether you like SD cards instead of CF cards but for most applications this should be a non-issue.