Quote - So if I substitute your pixels for bricks what you are telling me is there are more bricks in a ten foot high wall than an eight foot high wall.  Yep,  suppose there is, but the number of bricks per square foot is still the same.

As I read it, the number of "bricks" is not the same because the size of the wall stays constant. That's the area of the sensor array. More pixels means you are building a wall the same size, but with smaller bricks (the individual sensor elements). And the smaller you make the bricks in a wall, the more apparent the mortar filling the gaps will become when you look at that wall. It may not be a very scientific - or even accurate - analogy, but it's the one I'll try out if someone ever asks me to explain this stuff. :-D Besides, in any comparison of image quality possible changes in noise reduction methods built into the camera would have to be taken into account, not just the MP difference. And I soooo have no idea how much that was changed from the 350D to the 400D. :-D