This year has already been filled with some compelling DSLR camera releases and announcements and the new Nikon D5500 is no exception. For the a quarter of the price of the Canon D5 Mark 3 that I purchased a couple of years ago, you can have more resolution, full HD video function with a wide-array of frame rates, comparable ISO range, and even its own built-in WIFI transmitter to send images to your favorite mobile device on set. Pretty impressive with what Nikon has been doing with its pro-sumer camera bodies these days. Check out Digital Rev's full review.
Sure it's not full frame like say a Canon 6D, but it does offer some compelling functionality and features for less than $800 retail! Also, Nikon's new built-in WIFI functionality is quite slick. The kind of technology I first saw in the Phase One product line, but in a camera that's 10's of thousands of dollars more. An affordable product loaded with high tech features like this certainly makes me excited about increasingly accessible technology while also being more affordable.
Canon offers a comparably-priced T6i with similar features, such as WIFI and 24 megapixels, but only allows half of the available ISO (12,800 vs 25,000).
I think if you're in the market for a prosumer camera the D5500 is a good deal. For video the fact that you still can't adjust aperture with auto lenses is kinda dumb and a longstanding oversight. Of course you can use a manual lens to get around the issue, but still. The price for what you get is a good deal.
There's a tough competition at that price point ($800, body only). All Sony's mirrorless APS-C cameras cost $200-$250 less (including a-6000 and NEX-7). You have OMD EM10 and Fuji X-E2. For the same price you can buy Pentax K-3, and for $150 more, you have excellent a77mk2.