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Nikon D3400 vs Canon ELPH 180 Comparison

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Nikon D3400

24 MP | APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) CMOS Sensor

Nikon D3400
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Canon ELPH 180

20 MP | 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) CCD Sensor

Canon ELPH 180
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Nikon D3400 vs Canon ELPH 180 Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two cameras with different body types: Nikon D3400, which was introduced in August 2016 is a Entry-Level DSLR camera with a 24.0MP APS-C sensor whereas Canon ELPH 180, which was introduced in January 2016 is a Ultracompact camera with a 20.0MP 1/2.3" sensor. There is only 7 months difference between D3400 and ELPH 180 so we are expecting this to be a fair comparison regarding age and technology level.

Comparing a DSLR camera to a Fixed Lens camera is not an easy task but we will do our best to make this a fair comparison.

Here is a brief look at the main features of Nikon D3400 and Canon ELPH 180 before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Nikon D3400 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2016-08-17
  • 24MP - APS-C CMOS Sensor
  • No Anti-aliasing (AA) filter
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • Nikon F Mount
  • 3.00" Fixed Type Screen
  • Optical (pentamirror) viewfinder
  • 5.0fps continuous shooting
  • Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution
  • 395g. 124 x 98 x 76 mm
  • Replaced Nikon D3300 Compare

Canon ELPH 180 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2016-01-05
  • 20MP - 1/2.3" CCD Sensor
  • ISO 100 - 1600
  • 28-224 mm F3.2-6.9 Zoom Lens
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 2.70" Fixed Type Screen
  • 0.8fps continuous shooting
  • HD - 1280 x 720 video resolution
  • 126g. 95 x 54 x 22 mm

Nikon D3400 was replaced by Nikon D3500. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Nikon D3500 vs Nikon D3400
Nikon D3500 vs Canon PowerShot ELPH 180

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Nikon D3400 and Canon ELPH 180 compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.


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**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking through my links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Reasons to choose Nikon D3400 over Canon PowerShot ELPH 180
External Flash Shoe
Yes vs No Better for flash photography
Viewfinder
Optical vs None Better framing and control
RAW Support
Yes vs No Better image quality
Sensor Resolution
24 MP vs 20 MP 19% more pixels
Max ISO
25.600 vs 1.600 1500% higher Max ISO
LCD Screen Size
3 vs 2.7" 0.3 inches larger display
LCD Resolution
921k dots vs 230k dots 300% higher resolution screen
Max Mech. Shutter
1/4000s vs 1/2000s faster mechanical shutter
Continuous Shooting
5.0fps vs 0.8fps 4.2 fps faster
Battery Life
1200 shots vs 220 shots 980 more frames with a single charge
Manual Exposure
Yes vs No better exposure control
Flash Coverage
7.0m vs 3.0m 4m longer range
Sensor Pixel Area
15.28µm2 vs 1.41µm2 983% larger pixel area
Max Video Resolution
1920 x 1080 vs 1280 x 720 Higher Resolution Video
Bluetooth
Yes vs No Connect your camera to other devices via Blueetooth
Smartphone Remote
Yes vs No Remote control your camera with a smartphone
UHS Card Support
UHS-I vs none Read/Write in High Speeds
CHECK D3400 PRICE


Reasons to choose Canon PowerShot ELPH 180 over Nikon D3400
In-built Image Stabilization
Optical vs None Sharper images at longer focal lengths and slow shutter speeds
Weight
126 g vs 395 g 269 g lighter
CHECK ELPH 180 PRICE

Common Strengths of Nikon D3400 and Canon PowerShot ELPH 180
Built-in Flash
Yes vs Yes Useful in low-light
Face Detection Focus
Yes vs Yes very handy for portraits
Max Resolution
24 MP vs 20 MP Bigger prints and more details
Common Weaknesses of Nikon D3400 and Canon PowerShot ELPH 180
Fixed Screen
Fixed Type vs No Screen tilts or Flips out independently, perfect for both stills and video
LCD Screen Size
2.70" vs 2.70" Small display
Environmental Sealing
No vs No not suitable for tough conditions
AE Bracketing
No vs No Not good for multi-exposure HDR
Nikon D3400 vs Canon ELPH 180: Physical Specs and Body features Comparison

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 D3400 and Canon ELPH 180 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Nikon D3400 has external dimensions of 124 x 98 x 76 mm (4.88 x 3.86 x 2.99″) and weighs 395 g (0.87 lb / 13.93 oz) (including batteries). Canon ELPH 180 has external dimensions of 95 x 54 x 22 mm (3.74 x 2.13 x 0.87″) and weighs 126 g (0.28 lb / 4.44 oz) (including batteries).

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Nikon D3400 and Canon ELPH 180. Canon ELPH 180 is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 29mm narrower, 44mm shorter and 54mm thinner than Nikon D3400. As you can tell, actually this is not a fair size comparison since Canon ELPH 180 has a built-in lens but Nikon D3400 doesn't. Once you put a lens on D3400, its thickness will increase significantly.

Nikon D3400 vs Canon ELPH 180 Camera Size Comparison - Front View
Comparison image of Nikon D3400 and Canon ELPH 180 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View

Here is the back view size comparison of Nikon D3400 and Canon ELPH 180.

Nikon D3400 vs Canon ELPH 180 Camera Size Comparison - Back View
Comparison image of Nikon D3400 and Canon ELPH 180 Size and Weight - Back View

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Nikon D3400 and Canon ELPH 180.
Nikon D3400 vs Canon ELPH 180 Camera Size Comparison - Top View
Top View Comparison image of Nikon D3400 and Canon ELPH 180 Size

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Canon ELPH 180 is significantly lighter (269g ) than the Nikon D3400 which may become a big advantage especially on long walking trips.

Again, this comparison may not be very useful in real life as we are comparing the weight of a camera with a built-in lens to the body-only weight of an interchangeable lens camera. Once you put a lens on D3400, the total kit will weigh much higher.

Weather Sealing

Unfortunately neither Nikon D3400 nor Canon PowerShot ELPH 180 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
Top Compact Cameras with Weather Sealing

LCD Screen Size and Features

Nikon D3400's 3.00" LCD screen is slightly larger than Canon ELPH 180's 2.7" screen.

Unfortunately, both cameras has fixed screens so they don't tilt or flip in directions.


Nikon D3400 vs Canon ELPH 180: Sensor Comparison

Nikon D3400 has a 24.0MP APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Expeed 4 processor. On the other hand, Canon ELPH 180 has a 20.0MP 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) sized CCD sensor and features DIGIC 4+ processor.

Another difference between these two cameras is that Nikon D3400's sensor lacks anti-alias (Low-Pass) filter. Removing anti-alias filter increases the sharpness and level of detail but at the same time, it increases the chance of moiré occurring in certain scenes.

Below you can see the D3400 and ELPH 180 sensor size comparison.

Nikon D3400 vs Canon ELPH 180 Sensor Size Comparison
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Nikon D3400 and Canon ELPH 180 Cameras


As seen above, Nikon D3400 has a 13.1x Larger sensor area than Canon ELPH 180. 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.

What types of Photography are Nikon D3400 and Canon ELPH 180 Good for?
In this section, we rank and compare Nikon D3400 and Canon ELPH 180 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 D3400 for Portrait Photography

AVERAGE

Canon ELPH 180 for Portrait Photography

POOR
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 24.0MP
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Very High Resolution Sensor: 20.0MP
Image Stabilization
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details

Nikon D3400 for Street Photography

AVERAGE

Canon ELPH 180 for Street Photography

AVERAGE
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
No Image Stabilization
Large Body
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Small Body
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
Read the details

Nikon D3400 for Sports Photography

GOOD

Canon ELPH 180 for Sports Photography

POOR
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
1 Cross Type Focus sensors
11 Focus Points
Good Battery Life: 1200 shots
Good Low Light ISO
Average Continuous Shooting: 5.0fps
No Image Stabilization
Environmental Sealings
Read the details
Image Stabilization
224 mm Tele Lens
Average Max shutter speed: 1/2000s
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Slow Continuous Shooting: 0.8fps
Environmental Sealings
Focus Points
Poor Battery Life: 220 shots
Slow Lens at Tele: f6.90
Read the details

Nikon D3400 for Daily Photography

GOOD

Canon ELPH 180 for Daily Photography

AVERAGE
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Large Body
395g
Body Thickness 76mm
Read the details
Compact Body
126g
Body Thickness 22mm
8.0X Optical Zoom
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
Read the details

Nikon D3400 for Landscape Photography

AVERAGE

Canon ELPH 180 for Landscape Photography

POOR
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 24.0MP
Live-view
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details
Very High Resolution Sensor: 20.0MP
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Nikon D3400 vs Canon ELPH 180: OUR DECISION

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 D3400 and Canon ELPH 180, below you can find their scores in five different aspects. Our Decision Algorithm dynamically scores cameras using 69 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 D3400 and Canon ELPH 180 scores compare:

Nikon D3400
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #31 out of 80 in Compact SLR cameras
Ranked #267 out of 1259 in all Cameras
Canon ELPH 180
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #58 out of 155 in Ultracompact cameras
Ranked #1003 out of 1259 in all Cameras

Nikon D3400 is the overall winner of this comparison. It has a higher Overall Score and beats Canon ELPH 180 in all criteria except one: Portability. Canon ELPH 180 is significantly smaller than Nikon D3400. If small size and light body is a big priority for you, choose Canon ELPH 180. Otherwise, Nikon D3400 is the better camera overall.

Nikon D3400
Nikon D3400
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Canon ELPH 180
Canon ELPH 180
CHECK PRICE

CHECK PRICE

Canon ELPH 180 vs Nikon D3400 Specs Table
Detailed comparison of specifications
General Nikon D3400 Canon PowerShot ELPH 180
Brand Nikon Canon
Announced 2016-08-17 2016-01-05
Body Type Compact SLR Ultracompact
Sensor
Type CMOS CCD
Size APS-C 1/2.3"
Dimensions 23.5 x 15.6 mm 6.17 x 4.55 mm
Area 366.60mm2 28.07mm2
Megapixels 24 megapixels 20 megapixels
Max Resolution 6000 x 4000 5152 x 3864
Max Native Light sensitivity 25,600 ISO 1,600 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 n/a
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount Nikon F fixed lens
Lens Focal Range no lens 28-224 mm (8x)
Max Aperture no lens F3.2-6.9
Macro Focus Range no lens 1cm
Screen
Type Fixed type Fixed type
Size 3.00" 2.70"
Resolution 921k dots 230k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) None
Viewfinder Coverage 95% n/a
Viewfinder Magnification 0.56x n/a
Photography Features
Max Mechanical Shutter 1/4000s 1/2000s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Built-in Image Stabilization No Optical
Built-in Flash
Flash Range 7.00 m (at ISO 100) 3.00 m (at Auto ISO)
Max Flash Sync 1/200s n/a
External Flash
Continuous Shooting 5.0 fps 0.8 fps
Multi-Segment Metering
Average Metering
Spot Metering
Partial Metering
AF-Area Metering
Center Weighted Metering
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Video Features
Max Video Resolution 1920 x 1080 1280 x 720
Video Formats MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4, H.264
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity Optional None
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight 395g 126g
Dimensions 124 x 98 x 76mm 95 x 54 x 22mm
Battery Life 1200 shots 220 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS Optional None
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score 86 not tested
DxO Color Depth 24.8 not tested
DxO Dynamic Range 13.9 not tested
DxO Low Light ISO 1192 not tested
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