last year....and the previous subsequent years the Canon XT and XTi seemed to be the hot commodity. this year......it seems to be the entry level Nikons.
my guess is Nikon is winning the battle this holiday season due to the "feel" of the camera body, and the bad reputation canon got with the kit lens that comes with the XT and XTi. the entry level Nikon's probably have more bang for your buck straight out of the box.
IMO.......the entry level Nikon is probably better than the XT and XTi for the person who won't ever really get into the advanced stuff and upgrade equipment.
The Nikon's noise level at low to medium ISO's is really annoying IMO (don't even bother trying a high ISO on a Nikon)....which is why I chose Canon. That, along with Canon's superior L-glass and IS lenses if you want to pony up some $$$.
Canon also *seems* to have a larger variety in selection of 3rd party lenses and equipment.
I'm trading my XTi w/ battery grip, and telephoto L-lens to my father who wants a dSLR really bad now (he has an old film SLR). he's buying me a canon 40D, which blows the socks off of the XTi and all of the Nikon's (D80 etc.) they carry in the big box stores.
(obviously the pro type canon and nikon models are better than the 40D....but most stores don't carry them for obvious reasons)
btw......the small feeling of the XT and XTi, as well as the 40D (if you have big hands like me), can easily be fixed by the addition of a battery grip. the extra battery power alone makes it totally worth it.