first, buy your camera at Meyer in Hidalgo. the man has the lowest prices.
being a hobbyist without my own camera, here are my suggestions to you.
canon 550d
nikon d3100
nikon d5100
in my experience,
-nikon produces greater, more neutral picture which is great for me because i always shoot in raw. canon tends to be more colorful even in neutral.
-nikon images always have less noise, especially in low light situations.
-nikon images are sharper. taking this from the d3100, d5100 and 550d with their respective 50mm 1.8.
-the 550D has slightly faster continuous shutter burst as far as i remember. check reviews.
-in essence, Nikon lenses are cheaper. good canon lenses are labeled as 'L' whereas good Nikkor lenses are just Nikkor. and comparing the 50mm 1.8G of Nikon to the 50mm 1.8L of Canon, its on the same ground.
-the canon has better video capabilities. 720p 60fps, 1080p in 24, 25 and 30fps. the nikons only have 30fps 1080p. the 550D has manual shutter control.
-one thing i like about canon is the viewfinder. their AF points work even in manual, which helps me for i cannot set the diopter because it's not my camera.
-one thing i hate about canon is the viewfinder. if you're using prime lenses or lenses with big apertures, there's always a tendency that what you focus on according to the AF points is not what will be sharp on the image. happens to me all the time but i came to get familiar with it and the capacity of the lens so it didn't become a problem after some time. unlike Nikon's viewfinder, yes it does not assist you even in manual but what you see focused in the viewfinder is what you get.
but if you can still save up and want to really go for photography (not minding video), go for a Nikon d90 with 18-105 and 50mm 1.8.
