I'm currently doing a scan of old negs and slides using an Epson V750.
I also had a Nikon Coolscan 4000
ED.
In terms of absolute quality, I think the Coolscan has a slight edge, but made the scanning process much more tedious.
With the Epson I can scan up to 24 frames on film strips or 20 (I think) mounted slides in one pass. Maximum optical res is 4800DPI (though interpolated res is up to 7200). On my system takes about 2 hours to scan a tray of 24 exposures using Digital ICE (this pretty much doubles the scan time, but saves ages in removing dust spots from the scan).
I think there's a newer version (V850) but I've read there's not much difference in final quality.
BTW I think the Canon 8800F is discontinued, but there is a Canon 9000F available in the UK.
When comparing scanners, be careful of the "headline" figures - max res is often an interpolated figure. Generally your best bet is to scan at maximum optical res (which is often more than sufficient). Also scan times are usually quoted for a straight scan with no "extras". Most of the extras you won't need (eg, sharpening - better done in post), but dust removal is, I think a must - and this adds significantly to scan times. Note that infrared dust removal systems are really effective but won't work on silver halide film (B&W) or in many cases, Kodachrome.
Cheers,
Colin