Size and weight is a big decision factor when you are trying to find the ideal camera for your needs.
In this section, We are going to illustrate Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax ist DL2 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Nikon 1 J4 has external dimensions of 100 x 60 x 29 mm (3.92 x 2.36 x 1.12″) and weighs 232 g (0.51 lb / 8.18 oz) (including batteries). Pentax ist DL2 has external dimensions of 125 x 93 x 66 mm (4.92 x 3.66 x 2.6″) and weighs 565 g (1.25 lb / 19.93 oz) (including batteries).
Below you can see the front view size comparison of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax ist DL2. Nikon 1 J4 is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 25mm narrower, 33mm shorter and 37mm thinner than Pentax ist DL2.
![Nikon 1 J4 vs Pentax ist DL2 Camera Size Comparison - Front View]()
Comparison image of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax ist DL2 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View
Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day.
Nikon 1 J4 is significantly lighter (333g ) than the Pentax ist DL2 which may become a big advantage especially on long walking trips.
Also keep in mind that body weight is not the only deciding factor when comparing two interchangeable camera bodies, you have to also take into account the lenses that you will be using with these bodies. Since Pentax ist DL2 has an APS-C sized sensor and Nikon 1 J4 has a smaller 1" sensor, Nikon 1 J4's lenses for a similar focal length and aperture will generally be lighter and smaller than the Pentax ist DL2 lenses.
Weight Comparison
DSLR Cameras
Thickness Comparison
DSLR Cameras
Weather Sealing
Unfortunately neither Nikon 1 J4 nor Pentax ist DL2 provides any type of weather sealing in their body, so you have to give extra care especially when you are shooting outdoors. If weather sealing is a must-have feature for you, check these sections: Top Mirrorless Cameras with Weather Sealing Top DSLR Cameras with Weather Sealing
LCD Screen Size and Features
Nikon 1 J4's 3" LCD screen is slightly larger than Pentax ist DL2's 2.5" screen.
Unfortunately, both cameras has fixed screens so they don't tilt or flip in directions.
Nikon 1 J4 has a 18.0MP 1" (13.2 x 8.8 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Expeed 4 processor. On the other hand, Pentax ist DL2 has a 6.0MP APS-C (23.5 x 15.7 mm ) sized CCD sensor .
Nikon 1 J4's sensor provides 12MP more than Pentax ist DL2's sensor, which gives a significant advantage in real life. You can print your images larger or crop more freely.
On the other hand, please keep in mind that Max sensor resolution is not the only determinant of resolving power. Factors such as the optical elements, low pass filter, pixel size and sensor technology also affects the final resolution of the captured image.
Below you can see the 1 J4 and ist DL2 sensor size comparison.
![Nikon 1 J4 vs Pentax ist DL2 Sensor Size Comparison]()
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax ist DL2 Cameras
As seen above, Pentax ist DL2 has a 3.2x Larger sensor area than Nikon 1 J4. Larger sensors give photographer more control on the depth of field and blurry background compared to smaller sensor when shot in same focal length and aperture.
Number of available lenses is a big decision factor while choosing your interchangeable lens camera. When we look at the available lenses for these two cameras, we see that Pentax ist DL2 has an advantage over Nikon 1 J4 There are 151 lenses for Pentax ist DL2's Pentax KAF mount, on the other hand there are only 13 lenses for Nikon 1 J4's Nikon 1 lens mount.
Another important factor is the availability of image stabilization. None of these bodies have sensor based image stabilization so you have to buy lenses with Optical stabilization feature. Currently there are 7 lenses for Nikon 1 mount and 13 lenses for Pentax KAF mount with IS.
| Lens Type |
# of Nikon 1 J4 Lenses |
# of Pentax ist DL2 Lenses |
| Standard Zoom |
4 |
22 |
| Standard Prime |
2 |
20 |
| Wideangle Zoom |
1 |
12 |
| Wideangle Prime |
2 |
24 |
| Telephoto Zoom |
2 |
21 |
| Telephoto Prime |
n/a |
12 |
| SuperZoom |
2 |
15 |
| Wideangle Fisheye Prime |
n/a |
3 |
| Macro Prime |
n/a |
14 |
| Perspective Control Prime |
n/a |
8 |
| Telephoto Mirror Prime |
n/a |
n/a |
| TOTAL |
13 |
151 |
In this section, we rank and compare Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax ist DL2 for five different photography types in order to make your decision process easier in case you are specifically interested in one or more of these areas.
Nikon 1 J4 for Portrait Photography
Pentax ist DL2 for Portrait Photography
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 18.0MP
Average Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.7 mm) sensor
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Very Low Resolution Sensor: 6.0MP
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Nikon 1 J4 for Street Photography
Pentax ist DL2 for Street Photography
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
Medium sized Body
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.7 mm) sensor
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
No Image Stabilization
No Live-view
Large Body
Read the details
Nikon 1 J4 for Sports Photography
Pentax ist DL2 for Sports Photography
Fast Continuous Shooting: 60.0fps
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
105 Cross Type Focus sensors
171 Focus Points
Wireless Connection
Average Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Environmental Sealings
Read the details
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
No Image Stabilization
Slow Continuous Shooting: 3.0fps
Environmental Sealings
5 Focus Points
Read the details
Nikon 1 J4 for Daily Photography
Pentax ist DL2 for Daily Photography
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.7 mm) sensor
Large Body
565g
Body Thickness 66mm
Read the details
Nikon 1 J4 for Landscape Photography
Pentax ist DL2 for Landscape Photography
Very High Resolution Sensor: 18.0MP
Live-view
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.7 mm) sensor
Very Low Resolution Sensor: 6.0MP
No Environmental Sealings
No Live-view
Read the details
You may have already made your decision about which camera suits better for your needs and your budget so far but in case you wonder how we rated Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax ist DL2, below you can find their scores in five different aspects.
Our Decision Algorithm dynamically scores cameras using 63 different specs, current price and DxO Mark scores (where possible) in order to make a more objective and consistent comparison.
Here is a summary of how Nikon 1 J4 and Pentax ist DL2 scores compare:
Nikon 1 J4
Ranked
#70 out of 126 in Rangefinder-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked
#326 out of 1218 in all Cameras
Pentax ist DL2
Ranked
#80 out of 94 in Mid-size SLR cameras
Ranked
#714 out of 1218 in all Cameras
Nikon 1 J4 has a higher Overall Score than the Pentax ist DL2. It also has more features, more compact body and offers higher value for the money. But there is one area that 1 J4 trails behind the ist DL2: Imaging.
If image quality is the most important aspect in a camera, choose the Pentax ist DL2. If not, we recommend the Nikon 1 J4.
| General |
Nikon 1 J4 |
Pentax ist DL2 |
| Brand |
Nikon |
Pentax |
| Announced |
2014-04-10 |
2006-01-27 |
| Body Type |
Rangefinder-style mirrorless |
Mid-size SLR |
Sensor |
|
|
| Type |
CMOS |
CCD |
| Size |
1" |
APS-C |
| Dimensions |
13.2 x 8.8 mm |
23.5 x 15.7 mm |
| Area |
116.16mm2 |
368.95mm2 |
| Megapixels |
18 megapixels |
6 megapixels |
| Max Resolution |
5232 x 3488 |
3008 x 2008 |
| Max Native Light sensitivity |
12,800 ISO |
3,200 ISO |
| Min Native Light sensitivity |
160 ISO |
200 ISO |
| RAW Support |
|
|
Autofocus |
|
|
| AF Touch |
|
|
| AF Continuous |
|
|
| AF Single |
|
|
| AF Tracking |
|
|
| AF Selective |
|
|
| AF Center |
|
|
| AF Multi Area |
|
|
| AF Live View |
|
|
| AF Face Detection |
|
|
| AF Contrast Detection |
|
|
| AF Phase Detection |
|
|
| Number of Focus Points |
171 |
5 |
Lens |
|
|
| Manual Focus |
|
|
| Lens Mount |
Nikon 1 |
Pentax KAF |
| Number of Available Lenses |
13 |
151 |
Screen |
|
|
| Type |
Fixed type |
Fixed type |
| Size |
3" |
2.5" |
| Resolution |
1,037k dots |
210k dots |
| Touch Screen |
|
|
Viewfinder |
|
|
| Viewfinder |
None |
Optical |
| Viewfinder Coverage |
n/a |
95% |
| Viewfinder Magnification |
n/a |
0.57x |
Photography Features |
|
|
| Max Mechanical Shutter |
1/4000s |
1/4000s |
| Max Electronic Shutter |
1/16000s |
n/a |
| Shutter Priority |
|
|
| Aperture Priority |
|
|
| Manual Exposure Mode |
|
|
| Custom White Balance |
|
|
| Image Stabilization |
No |
No |
| Built-in Flash |
|
|
| Flash Range |
5.00 m (ISO 100) |
n/a |
| External Flash |
|
|
| Continuous Shooting |
60.0 fps |
3.0 fps |
| Multi-Segment |
|
|
| Average |
|
|
| Spot |
|
|
| Partial |
|
|
| AF-Area |
|
|
| Center Weighted |
|
|
| AE Bracketing |
|
|
| WB Bracketing |
|
|
Video Features |
|
|
| Max Video Resolution |
1920 x 1080 |
n/a |
| Video Formats |
MPEG-4, H.264 |
n/a |
| Microphone Port |
|
|
| Headphone Port |
|
|
Connectivity |
|
|
| Wireless Connectivity |
Built-In |
No |
| HDMI |
|
|
Physical |
|
|
| Environmental Sealing |
|
|
| Weight |
232g |
565g |
| Dimensions |
100 x 60 x 29mm |
125 x 93 x 66mm |
| Battery Life |
300 shots |
n/a |
Other Features |
|
|
| Timelapse Recording |
|
|
| GPS |
None |
None |
DxO Sensor Scores |
|
|
| DxO Overall Score |
not tested |
65 |
| DxO Color Depth |
not tested |
22.9 |
| DxO Dynamic Range |
not tested |
11.1 |
| DxO Low Light ISO |
not tested |
639 |
|
Report a correction |
Report a correction |