Nikon D3100 vs D5100

Both these cameras are near the end of their lives and heavily discounted, but which is the best bargain?

Key differences

01 The D3100’s three-inch LCD display has 230,000 dots and looks coarse compared to the 921,000dot display on the D5100.

02 The LCD display on the D3100 is fixed, but the D5100 has a vari-angle display which can be flipped out and rotated. It’s very good for low-angle and macro shots.

03 The customisation options on the D3100 are limited. More experienced photographers will miss features like exposure bracketing, which you do get on the D5100.

04 Both cameras can shoot full HD 1920 x 1080 movies, but the D3100 only manages a frame rate of 24fps at this resolution – the D5100 can film at 30, 25 and 24fps.

05 The D3100 has a Guide mode to help novices understand the basics, but the D5100 has an Effects mode for Miniature, Night Vision, Selective Color effects and more.

06 Both cameras can shoot RAW files, but the D3100 is restricted to 12 bits of data, while the D5100 can shoot 14-bit RAW files.