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Nikon D80 vs Pentax WG-3 GPS Comparison

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Nikon D80

10 MP | APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) CCD Sensor

Nikon D80
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Pentax WG-3 GPS

16 MP | 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) BSI-CMOS Sensor

Pentax WG-3 GPS
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Nikon D80 vs Pentax WG-3 GPS Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two cameras with different body types: Nikon D80, which was introduced in September 2006 is a Advanced DSLR camera with a 10.0MP APS-C sensor whereas Pentax WG-3 GPS, which was introduced in July 2013 is a Waterproof camera with a 16.0MP 1/2.3-inch sensor. As you can see, D80 is 7 years older than WG-3 GPS. Let's see if this age difference between two cameras makes a big difference.

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 D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Nikon D80 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2006-09-23
  • 10MP - APS-C CCD Sensor
  • ISO 100 - 1600 ( expands to 3200)
  • Nikon F Mount
  • 2.5" Fixed Type Screen
  • Optical (pentaprism) viewfinder
  • 3 fps continuous shooting
  • No Video Mode
  • 668g. 132 x 103 x 77 mm
  • Replaced Nikon D70 Compare

Pentax WG-3 GPS Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2013-07-19
  • 16MP - 1/2.3-inch BSI-CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • 25-100 mm F2.0-4.9 Zoom Lens
  • Sensor-shift Image Stabilization
  • 3" Fixed Type Screen
  • continuous shooting
  • Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution
  • Built-in GPS
  • 238g. 125 x 64 x 33 mm
  • Weather Sealed Body

Nikon D80 was replaced by Nikon D90. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Nikon D90 vs Nikon D80
Nikon D90 vs Pentax WG-3 GPS

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Nikon D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.

Reasons to choose Nikon D80 over Pentax WG-3 GPS
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
Manual Exposure
Yes vs No better exposure control
Flash Coverage
13.0m vs 3.4m 9.6m longer range
Sensor Pixel Area
37.14µm2 vs 1.76µm2 2010% larger pixel area
Top LCD
Yes vs No Help viewing and changing settings easily
AE Bracketing
Yes vs No Useful for tough lighting conditions and HDR


Reasons to choose Pentax WG-3 GPS over Nikon D80
Image Stabilization
Sensor-shift vs None Sharper images at longer focal lengths and long exposures
GPS
BuiltIn vs None track your location
Face Detection Focus
Yes vs No very handy for portraits
Max Sensor Resolution
16 MP vs 10 MP 60% more pixels
Max ISO
6.400 vs 1.600 300% higher Max ISO
LCD Screen Size
3" vs 2.5" 0.5 inches larger display
LCD Screen Resolution
460k dots vs 230k dots 100% higher resolution screen
Weight
238 g vs 668 g 430 g lighter
Environmental Sealing
Yes vs No shoot at tough conditions
Timelapse Recording
Yes vs No creative shooting
Max Video Resolution
1920 x 1080 vs None Higher Resolution Video

Common Strengths of Nikon D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS
Built-in Flash
Yes vs Yes Useful in low-light
Common Weaknesses of Nikon D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS
Fixed Screen
Fixed Type vs No No flexible viewing angles
LCD Screen Resolution
230k dots vs 460k dots Low resolution screens
Nikon D80 vs Pentax WG-3 GPS: 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 D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Nikon D80 has external dimensions of 132 x 103 x 77 mm (5.2 x 4.06 x 3.03″) and weighs 668 g (1.47 lb / 23.56 oz) (including batteries). Pentax WG-3 GPS has external dimensions of 125 x 64 x 33 mm (4.9 x 2.5 x 1.3″) and weighs 238 g (0.52 lb / 8.40 oz) (including batteries).

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Nikon D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS. Pentax WG-3 GPS is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 7mm narrower, 39mm shorter and 44mm thinner than Nikon D80. As you can tell, actually this is not a fair size comparison since Pentax WG-3 GPS has a built-in lens but Nikon D80 doesn't. Once you put a lens on D80, its thickness will increase significantly.

Nikon D80 vs Pentax WG-3 GPS Camera Size Comparison - Front View
Comparison image of Nikon D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Nikon D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS.
Nikon D80 vs Pentax WG-3 GPS Camera Size Comparison - Top View
Top View Comparison image of Nikon D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS Size

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Pentax WG-3 GPS is significantly lighter (430g ) than the Nikon D80 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 D80, the total kit will weigh much higher.

Weather Sealing

LCD Screen Size and Features

Pentax WG-3 GPS's 3" LCD screen is slightly larger than Nikon D80's 2.5" screen.

Unfortunately, both cameras has fixed screens so they don't tilt or flip in directions.
Nikon D80 vs Pentax WG-3 GPS: Sensor Comparison

Nikon D80 has a 10.0MP APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm ) sized CCD sensor . On the other hand, Pentax WG-3 GPS has a 16.0MP 1/2.3-inch (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) sized BSI-CMOS sensor .

Pentax WG-3 GPS's sensor provides 6MP more than Nikon D80'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 D80 and WG-3 GPS sensor size comparison.

Nikon D80 vs Pentax WG-3 GPS Sensor Size Comparison
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Nikon D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS Cameras


As seen above, Nikon D80 has a 13.3x Larger sensor area than Pentax WG-3 GPS. 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 D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS Good for?
In this section, we rank and compare Nikon D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS 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 D80 for Portrait Photography

AVERAGE

Pentax WG-3 GPS for Portrait Photography

POOR
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
Image Stabilization
Average Resolution Sensor: 16.0MP
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 Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details

Nikon D80 for Street Photography

AVERAGE

Pentax WG-3 GPS for Street Photography

GOOD
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
Image Stabilization
Small Body
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Fast Lens at Wide: f2.00
25 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details

Nikon D80 for Sports Photography

GOOD

Pentax WG-3 GPS for Sports Photography

POOR
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
No Image Stabilization
Slow Continuous Shooting: 3.0fps
Environmental Sealings
Focus Points
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
9 Focus Points
Poor Battery Life: 240 shots
100 mm Tele Lens
Read the details

Nikon D80 for Daily Photography

AVERAGE

Pentax WG-3 GPS for Daily Photography

GOOD
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm) sensor
Large Body
668g
Body Thickness 77mm
Read the details
Compact Body
238g
Environmental Sealings
4.0X Optical Zoom
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
Read the details

Nikon D80 for Landscape Photography

POOR

Pentax WG-3 GPS for Landscape Photography

POOR
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
Environmental Sealings
Built-in GPS
25 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Average Resolution Sensor: 16.0MP
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Manual Exposure Mode
Read the details

Nikon D80 vs Pentax WG-3 GPS: 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 D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS, 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 D80 and Pentax WG-3 GPS scores compare:

Nikon D80
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #71 out of 95 in Mid-size SLR cameras
Ranked #612 out of 1226 in all Cameras
Pentax WG-3 GPS
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #55 out of 475 in Compact cameras
Ranked #479 out of 1226 in all Cameras

Pentax WG-3 GPS has a higher Overall Score than the Nikon D80. It also has more features, more compact body and offers higher value for the money. But there is one area that WG-3 GPS trails behind the D80: Imaging
If image quality is the most important aspect in a camera, choose the Nikon D80. If not, we recommend the Pentax WG-3 GPS.

Nikon D80
Nikon D80
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Pentax WG-3 GPS
Pentax WG-3 GPS
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Pentax WG-3 GPS vs Nikon D80 Specs Table
Detailed comparison of specifications
General Nikon D80 Pentax WG-3 GPS
Brand Nikon Pentax
Announced 2006-09-23 2013-07-19
Body Type Mid-size SLR Compact
Sensor
Type CCD BSI-CMOS
Size APS-C 1/2.3-inch
Dimensions 23.6 x 15.8 mm 6.17 x 4.55 mm
Area 372.88mm2 28.07mm2
Megapixels 10 megapixels 16 megapixels
Max Resolution 3872 x 2592 4608 x 3456
Max Native Light sensitivity 1,600 ISO 6,400 ISO
Max Boosted Light Sensitivity 3200 ISO -
Min Native Light sensitivity 100 ISO 125 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 n/a 9
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount Nikon F fixed lens
Lens Focal Range no lens 25-100 mm (4×)
Max Aperture no lens F2.0-4.9
Macro Focus Range no lens 1cm
Screen
Type Fixed type Fixed type
Size 2.5" 3"
Resolution 230k dots 460k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder Optical (pentaprism) None
Viewfinder Coverage 95% n/a
Viewfinder Magnification 0.64x n/a
Photography Features
Max Mechanical Shutter 1/4000s 1/4000s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization No Sensor-shift
Built-in Flash
Flash Range 13.00 m 3.40 m
Max Flash Sync 1/200s n/a
External Flash
Continuous Shooting 3.0 fps n/a
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, H.264
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity None Eye-Fi Connected
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight 668g 238g
Dimensions 132 x 103 x 77mm 125 x 64 x 33mm
Battery Life n/a 240 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS None Built-in
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score 61 not tested
DxO Color Depth 22.1 not tested
DxO Dynamic Range 11.2 not tested
DxO Low Light ISO 524 not tested
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