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 D3000 and Nikon D3100 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions.
Below you can see the front view size comparison of Nikon D3000 and Nikon D3100. Nikon D3100 is 2mm narrower and 1mm shorter than Nikon D3000 but it is also 11mm thicker.
Here is the back view size comparison of Nikon D3000 and Nikon D3100.
Now lets look at the top view comparison of Nikon D3000 and Nikon D3100.
Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day.
Nikon D3100 is 31g lighter than the Nikon D3000 but we don't think this will make a significant difference.
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 both Nikon D3000 and Nikon D3100 have the same APS-C sized sensor, their lenses for a similar focal length and aperture will be similar in size and weight.
Weight Comparison
DSLR Cameras
Thickness Comparison
DSLR Cameras
Weather Sealing
Unfortunately neither Nikon D3000 nor Nikon D3100 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 DSLR Cameras with Weather Sealing
LCD Screen Size and Features
Nikon D3000 and Nikon D3100's LCD screens has the same diagonal size of 3".
Unfortunately, both cameras has fixed screens so they don\'t tilt or flip in directions.
Nikon D3000 has a 10.0MP APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm ) sized CCD sensor and features Expeed processor. On the other hand, Nikon D3100 has a 14.0MP APS-C (23.1 x 15.4 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Expeed 2 processor.
Below you can see the D3000 and D3100 sensor size comparison.
Nikon D3000 and Nikon D3100 have almost the same sensor size so none of them has any significant advantage over other in providing control over depth of field when used with same focal length and aperture.
DxOMark Sensor Scores
DxOMark is a benchmark that scientifically assesses image quality of camera sensors. It scores camera sensors for color depth (DXO Portrait), dynamic range (DXO Landscape) and low-light sensitivity (DXO Sports), and also gives them an overall score. Nikon D3000 and Nikon D3100 sensors have been tested by DxO and the results show that D3100 has a better overall score of 67, 5 points higher compared to D3000's score of 62.
In this section, we rank and compare Nikon D3000 and Nikon D3100 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 D3000 for Portrait Photography
Nikon D3100 for Portrait Photography
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) sensor
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Very Low Resolution Sensor: 10.0MP
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.1 x 15.4 mm) sensor
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Average Resolution Sensor: 14.0MP
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Nikon D3000 for Street Photography
Nikon D3100 for Street Photography
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) sensor
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
No Image Stabilization
No Live-view
Large Body
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.1 x 15.4 mm) sensor
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
No Image Stabilization
Large Body
Read the details
Nikon D3000 for Sports Photography
Nikon D3100 for Sports Photography
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
11 Focus Points
No Image Stabilization
Slow Continuous Shooting: 3.0fps
Environmental Sealings
Read the details
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
1 Cross Type Focus sensors
11 Focus Points
Good Battery Life: 550 shots
No Image Stabilization
Slow Continuous Shooting: 3.0fps
Environmental Sealings
Read the details
Nikon D3000 for Daily Photography
Nikon D3100 for Daily Photography
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) sensor
Large Body
536g
Body Thickness 64mm
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.1 x 15.4 mm) sensor
Large Body
505g
Body Thickness 75mm
Read the details
Nikon D3000 for Landscape Photography
Nikon D3100 for Landscape Photography
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) sensor
Very Low Resolution Sensor: 10.0MP
No Environmental Sealings
No Live-view
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.1 x 15.4 mm) sensor
Live-view
Average Resolution Sensor: 14.0MP
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details
Number of available lenses is a big decision factor while choosing your interchangeable lens camera. Nikon D3000 and Nikon D3100 have the same Nikon F lens mount and currently there are 302 native lenses available for these cameras.
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 88 lenses with Image stabilization for Nikon F mount.
| Lens Type |
# of Nikon D3000 Lenses |
# of Nikon D3100 Lenses |
| Standard Zoom |
33 |
33 |
| Standard Prime |
20 |
20 |
| Wideangle Zoom |
32 |
32 |
| Wideangle Prime |
46 |
46 |
| Telephoto Zoom |
51 |
51 |
| Telephoto Prime |
42 |
42 |
| SuperZoom |
30 |
30 |
| Wideangle Fisheye Prime |
8 |
8 |
| Macro Prime |
25 |
25 |
| Perspective Control Prime |
11 |
11 |
| Telephoto Mirror Prime |
1 |
1 |
| TOTAL |
302 |
302 |
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 D3000 and Nikon D3100, 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 D3000 and Nikon D3100 scores compare:
Nikon D3000
Ranked
#63 out of 77 in Compact SLR cameras
Ranked
#497 out of 1181 in all Cameras
Nikon D3100
Ranked
#49 out of 77 in Compact SLR cameras
Ranked
#321 out of 1181 in all Cameras
Nikon D3100 has a higher Overall Score than the Nikon D3000 and would be our choice if we have to decide between these two cameras.
| General |
Nikon D3000 |
Nikon D3100 |
| Brand |
Nikon |
Nikon |
| Announced |
2009-12-11 |
2010-12-21 |
| Body Type |
Compact SLR |
Compact SLR |
Sensor |
|
|
| Type |
CCD |
CMOS |
| Size |
APS-C |
APS-C |
| Dimensions |
23.6 x 15.8 mm |
23.1 x 15.4 mm |
| Area |
372.88mm2 |
355.74mm2 |
| Megapixels |
10 megapixels |
14 megapixels |
| Max Resolution |
3872 x 2592 |
4608 x 3072 |
| Max Native Light sensitivity |
1,600 ISO |
3,200 ISO |
| Max Boosted Light Sensitivity |
3200 ISO |
12800 ISO |
| Min Native Light sensitivity |
100 ISO |
100 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 |
11 |
11 |
Lens |
|
|
| Manual Focus |
|
|
| Lens Mount |
Nikon F |
Nikon F |
| Number of Available Lenses |
302 |
302 |
Screen |
|
|
| Type |
Fixed type |
Fixed type |
| Size |
3" |
3" |
| Resolution |
230k dots |
230k dots |
| Touch Screen |
|
|
Viewfinder |
|
|
| Viewfinder |
Optical (pentamirror) |
Optical (pentamirror) |
| Viewfinder Coverage |
95% |
95% |
| Viewfinder Magnification |
0.53 |
0.53 |
Photography Features |
|
|
| Max Shutter Speed |
1/4000s |
1/4000s |
| Shutter Priority |
|
|
| Aperture Priority |
|
|
| Manual Exposure Mode |
|
|
| Custom White Balance |
|
|
| Image Stabilization |
No |
No |
| Built-in Flash |
|
|
| Flash Range |
12.00 m (at ISO 100) |
12.00 m (at ISO 100) |
| Max Flash Sync |
1/200s |
1/200s |
| External Flash |
|
|
| Continuous Shooting |
3.0 fps |
3.0 fps |
| Multi-Segment |
|
|
| Average |
|
|
| Spot |
|
|
| Partial |
|
|
| AF-Area |
|
|
| Center Weighted |
|
|
| AE Bracketing |
|
|
| WB Bracketing |
|
|
Video Features |
|
|
| Max Video Resolution |
None |
1920 x 1080 |
| Video Formats |
n/a |
MPEG-4 |
| Microphone Port |
|
|
| Headphone Port |
|
|
Connectivity |
|
|
| Wireless Connectivity |
Eye-Fi Connected |
Eye-Fi Connected |
| HDMI |
|
|
Physical |
|
|
| Environmental Sealing |
|
|
| Weight |
536g |
505g |
| Dimensions |
126 x 97 x 64mm |
124 x 96 x 75mm |
| Battery Life |
500 shots |
550 shots |
Other Features |
|
|
| Timelapse Recording |
|
|
| GPS |
None |
Optional |
DxO Sensor Scores |
|
|
| DxO Overall Score |
62 |
67 |
| DxO Color Depth |
22.3 |
22.5 |
| DxO Dynamic Range |
11.1 |
11.3 |
| DxO Low Light ISO |
563 |
919 |
|
Report a correction |
Report a correction |