D3000, Rebel XS, or Sony NEX 3?

I'm in the market for a DSLR, and I'm really on the fence of which one to buy. I like Nikon's products, but I have had Canon's and they are also reliable. I also saw the new Sony NEX 3 and it is a great looking camera. Also for only $499, it seems like a great deal. But I need more opinions.

In the sub-$500 dSLR range there just are NOT many options.

To have options, you need to up your budget to $700. At that point a whole new group of dSLR's become available

When it comes to sensor performance, the Sony NEX 3 slightly out performs the D3000 and XS, but unless you test them in a lab, you will never see the difference.

The Nikon and Canon systems are huge and when using long lenses for shooting sports, action or wildlife, provide the best platform. The tiny Sony is fine until you start using lenses longer than about 100 mm

Skip, that's not a real DSLR, just some light weird camera for those who don't want the true DSLR - best possible.

Plus, the D3000 and XS both cost around 500$ and less/more. I'd get the Canon EOS XS

Here's a post called 'Buying a DSLR, what's important, megapixels, features, brand, price and which one to buy - http://www.the-dslr-photographer.com/2009/03/which-dslr-to-buy.html

Good luck! The site has many more tutorials, tips, reviews and guides!