Nikon D3100 vs Nikon D6
Better figure, where one is clearly better
| NikonD3100 | NikonD6 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Released | September 2010 | June 2020 |
| Image and sensor | ||
| Camera type | DSLR | DSLR |
| Sensor format | APS-C | Full frame |
| Sensor type | CMOS | CMOS |
| Sensor dimensions | 23.1 × 15.4 mm | 35.9 × 23.9 mm |
| Effective resolution | 14.2 MP | 20.8 MP |
| Largest image | 4608 × 3072 | 5568 × 3712 |
| RAW recording | Yes | Yes |
| Standard ISO range | 100–3200 | 100–102400 |
| Sensor detail | 14.2 million effective and 14.8 million total pixels; Nikon DX format with approximately 1.5× lens focal-length equivalent; sensor-cleaning system and Image Dust Off reference data | Japan specifies 20.82 million effective and 21.33 million total pixels, rounded to 20.8 million effective globally; sensor-cleaning system. FX, 1.2×, DX, 5:4, 1:1 and 16:9 image areas |
| Image formats | NEF RAW, JPEG and simultaneous RAW plus JPEG; Standard, Neutral, Vivid, Monochrome, Portrait and Landscape Picture Controls; in-camera RAW processing and retouching | Large NEF RAW at 12 or 14 bits with lossless compression, compression or no compression; medium and small RAW fixed to 12-bit lossless compression. JPEG and RAW plus JPEG; separate JPEG plus JPEG recording with different size/quality settings; Flat and Creative Picture Controls |
| ISO detail | ISO 100–3200 in one-stop steps; expanded ISO 6400 and 12800 equivalents; Auto ISO | Expanded equivalents ISO 50–3280000; Auto ISO |
| Image processor | EXPEED 2 | EXPEED 6; Advanced Scene Recognition System |
| Lens and shooting | ||
| Lens mount | Nikon F mount | Nikon F mount |
| Stabilisation | Optical lens stabilisation | Optical lens stabilisation |
| Maximum continuous burst | 3 fps | 14 fps |
| Lens detail | Autofocus with AF-S and AF-I NIKKOR lenses; no body autofocus motor for screw-drive lenses. Other compatible AF lenses require manual focus. Non-CPU lenses work in manual exposure without metering; IX and F3AF lenses unsupported; electronic rangefinder requires maximum aperture f/5.6 or faster | Compatible G/E/D AF NIKKOR lenses, subject to PC lens restrictions; body autofocus motor for compatible screw-drive lenses. Non-CPU AI lenses support aperture-priority/manual; non-AI, IX and F3AF lenses unsupported; DX lenses use the DX image area |
| Autofocus | Multi-CAM 1000; 11 phase-detection points including one cross-type; -1 to +19 EV at ISO 100, 20°C; AF-S/AF-C/AF-A, single-point, dynamic, auto-area and 11-point 3D tracking; AF-assist lamp. Live view uses contrast-detection AF-S/AF-F with face-priority, wide, normal and subject-tracking areas | Multi-CAM 37K; 105 selectable cross-type points, including 15 f/8-compatible points. Centre sensitivity -4.5 EV and other points -4 EV at ISO 100, 20°C. Single-point, dynamic 9/25/49/105, 3D tracking, Group-area and auto-area; 17 custom Group-area patterns; eye-priority focusing in auto-area and 3D tracking. Live view uses contrast detection with AF-S/AF-F |
| Shutter | 1/4000 to 30 seconds in one-third stops and Bulb; flash sync 1/200 second | 1/8000 to 30 seconds, Bulb and Time; manual exposures extend to 900 seconds; flash sync 1/250 second; electronic front-curtain and electronic shutter options |
| Burst detail | Approximately 3 fps under Nikon's manual-focus, S/M, 1/250-second-or-faster test conditions; Japanese specification lists up to 13 RAW, nine RAW plus Fine JPEG or 100 Fine JPEG frames with its specified 4 GB SanDisk Extreme SDHC card | Approximately 14 fps mechanical with full AF/AE tracking under Nikon's AF-C, S/M, 1/250-second-or-faster test conditions. Silent full-resolution live-view shooting up to 10.5 fps; separate reduced-resolution live-view modes approximately 30 fps at 8 megapixels or 60 fps at 2 megapixels |
| Stabilisation detail | Optical VR depends on the lens; no sensor-shift stabilisation | Optical VR depends on the lens; no sensor-shift stabilisation; electronic movie vibration reduction available |
| Flash | Built-in pop-up flash; guide number approximately 12 m at ISO 100, 20°C, or 13 at manual full output; hot shoe; optional AS-15 adapter for PC sync | No built-in flash; hot shoe and threaded PC sync terminal; optical/radio Nikon CLS with compatible external Speedlights and required accessories |
| Exposure controls | P/S/A/M, Auto, flash-off Auto and scene modes; beginner Guide mode with illustrative assist images. 420-pixel RGB metering with Colour Matrix Metering II, centre-weighted and spot modes; ±5 EV compensation; Active D-Lighting on/off | P/S/A/M; 180000-pixel RGB viewfinder metering with Colour Matrix Metering III, centre-weighted, spot and highlight-weighted modes; ±5 EV stills or ±3 EV video compensation; Active D-Lighting |
| Video | ||
| Highest video resolution | 1920 × 1080 at 24 fps | 3840 × 2160 at 30 fps |
| Video detail | H.264 MOV at Full HD 24p, 720p 30p/25p/24p or 640 × 424 at 24p; actual NTSC rates 29.97/23.976. Maximum clip ten minutes. Nikon USA's short movie feature list incorrectly describes 640 × 424 as 30 fps; its detailed table and Japan specify 24p. Continuous contrast-detection autofocus available | H.264 MOV/MP4 at 4K 30p/25p/24p, Full HD 60p/50p/30p/25p/24p and 720p 60p/50p; actual NTSC rates 59.94/29.97/23.976. Nikon identifies 4K as 1.5× crop and native 1920 × 1080 crop as 3.0×; the latter supports 60p/50p/30p/25p/24p. Maximum recording 29 minutes 59 seconds; 4K up to 144 Mbps; timecode and in-camera time-lapse movies. Cards over 32 GB formatted in-camera allow files over 4 GB without splitting |
| Audio | Built-in mono microphone with linear PCM recording; no external microphone input | Built-in stereo microphone; 3.5 mm stereo microphone input and headphone output; adjustable sensitivity and attenuator; linear PCM for MOV or AAC for MP4; photograph voice memos |
| Screen and viewfinder | ||
| Viewfinder | Optical | Optical |
| Screen size | 3″ | 3.2″ |
| Screen dots | 230,000 | 2,359,000 |
| Touchscreen | – | Yes |
| Display detail | Fixed 3-inch TFT, approximately 230000 dots, adjustable brightness; dots count subpixels | Fixed touch TFT with 170° viewing angle, approximately 100% coverage, 11-level manual brightness and colour adjustment; touch priority image transfer with Ethernet or optional WT-6 connection. Global specifies 2359000 dots, Japan rounds to 2360000; dots count subpixels |
| Viewfinder detail | Pentamirror; approximately 95% frame coverage, 0.8× magnification with 50mm f/1.4 at infinity and 18 mm eyepoint | Pentaprism; approximately 100% FX coverage; 0.72× magnification with 50mm f/1.4 at infinity; 17 mm eyepoint; grid overlay |
| Connections and design | ||
| Wi-Fi | – | Yes |
| Bluetooth | – | Yes |
| Battery life (maker's claim) | 550 photographs | 3580 photographs |
| Body weight | 455 g (better) | 1270 g |
| Release detail | Nikon Japan records sale on 16 September 2010 for the body, single-lens and double-zoom kits | Nikon Japan records sale on 5 June 2020 after postponements from March to May and then June; the original US announcement's April plan is not an actual retail date. Nikon's Japanese announcement explicitly identifies D5 as the previous model |
| Recording media | One SD/SDHC/SDXC card slot; compatible Eye-Fi cards supported | Two slots each accepting CFexpress Type B or XQD; overflow, backup, separate RAW/JPEG, separate JPEG/JPEG and card copying |
| Ports | Hi-Speed USB, mini-HDMI Type C, NTSC/PAL analogue video output and accessory terminal for optional MC-DC2 remote or GP-1 GPS | USB Type-C with SuperSpeed USB, mini-HDMI Type C, 3.5 mm microphone/headphone sockets, RJ-45 Ethernet with 10/100/1000BASE-T support, ten-pin accessory terminal, PC sync and WT-6 expansion connector; Kensington security lock compatibility |
| Wireless connections | No integrated Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or GPS; optional GP-1 GPS and compatible Eye-Fi card accessories | Integrated 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.2 and SnapBridge; 5 GHz availability depends on region and station mode. Integrated GPS/GLONASS/QZSS positioning, unavailable in some regions; optional WT-6 transmitter for network transfer |
| Battery life detail | EN-EL14; approximately 550 CIPA photographs. Nikon USA's later page also lists EN-EL14a compatibility | EN-EL18c; approximately 3580 CIPA single-frame photographs, 8670 continuous photographs under Nikon's separate test and 105 minutes of CIPA movie battery life. EN-EL18b/18a/18 also supported, with lower endurance using original EN-EL18 |
| Charging | External MH-24 charger; optional EH-5a adapter with EP-5A power connector | External MH-26a charger; optional EH-6c adapter with EP-6 power connector |
| Dimensions | Approximately 124 × 96 × 74.5 mm from Nikon Japan; Nikon USA's converted inch figures differ slightly | Approximately 160 × 163 × 92 mm |
| Weight detail | Approximately 455 g body only or 505 g with battery and SD card, excluding body cap | Approximately 1270 g body only; 1450 g with battery and two CFexpress cards, excluding body cap and shoe cover |
| Materials | – | Magnesium-alloy body; dust/drip-resistant construction; illuminated controls |
| In the box | EN-EL14 battery, MH-24 charger, DK-5 eyepiece cap, DK-20 eyecup, AN-DC3 strap, BF-1B body cap, BS-1 shoe cover, ViewNX 2 CD-ROM and two ferrite cores for separately supplied USB/audio-video cables | EN-EL18c battery, MH-26a charger, UC-E24 USB cable, AN-DC22 strap, DK-27 eyepiece adapter, DK-17F eyepiece, BF-1B body cap, BS-3 shoe cover, BL-6 battery cover and HDMI/USB cable clip |
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