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Ricoh WG-6 vs Nikon D5100 Comparison

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Ricoh WG-6

20 MP | 1/2.3 BSI-CMOS Sensor

Ricoh WG-6
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Nikon D5100

16 MP | APS-C (23.6 x 15.7 mm) CMOS Sensor

Nikon D5100
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Ricoh WG-6 vs Nikon D5100 Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two cameras with different body types: Ricoh WG-6, which was introduced in February 2018 is a Waterproof camera with a 20.0MP 1/2.3 sensor whereas Nikon D5100, which was introduced in April 2011 is a Entry-Level DSLR camera with a 16.0MP APS-C sensor. As you can see, D5100 is 7 years older than WG-6. 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 Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100 before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Ricoh WG-6 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2018-02-21
  • 20MP - 1/2.3 BSI-CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 125 - 6400
  • 28-140 mm F3.5-5.5 Zoom Lens
  • 3.00" Fixed Type Screen
  • fps continuous shooting
  • 4K (UHD) - 3840 x 2160 video resolution
  • 246g. 118 x 66 x 33 mm
  • Weather Sealed Body
  • Replaced Ricoh WG-5 GPS Compare

Nikon D5100 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2011-04-26
  • 16MP - APS-C CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 100 - 6400 ( expands to 25600)
  • Nikon F Mount
  • 3.00" Fully Articulated Screen
  • Optical (pentamirror) viewfinder
  • 4.0fps continuous shooting
  • Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution
  • 560g. 128 x 97 x 79 mm
  • Replaced Nikon D5000 Compare

Nikon D5100 was replaced by Nikon D5200. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Nikon D5200 vs Nikon D5100
Nikon D5200 vs Ricoh WG-6

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100 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 Ricoh WG-6 over Nikon D5100
Internal Storage
27MB vs None Extra built-in storage
Sensor Resolution
20 MP vs 16 MP 25% more pixels
LCD Resolution
1.040k dots vs 921k dots 12% higher resolution screen
Weight
246 g vs 560 g 314 g lighter
Environmental Sealing
Yes vs No shoot at tough conditions
Max Video Resolution
3840 x 2160 vs 1920 x 1080 Higher Resolution Video
Digital video stabilization
Yes vs No Stabilizes your videos in-camera
USB Version
USB 3.0 (5 GBit/sec) vs USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) Faster Data transfer from the camera
CHECK WG-6 PRICE


Reasons to choose Nikon D5100 over Ricoh WG-6
LCD Screen
Fully Articulated vs Fixed Type Flexible shooting positions
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
Number of Focus Points
11 vs 9 2 more focus points
Battery Life
660 shots vs 340 shots 320 more frames with a single charge
Manual Exposure
Yes vs No better exposure control
Microphone Port
Yes vs No High quality audio recording option
Flash Coverage
12.0m vs 5.5m 6.5m longer range
Sensor Pixel Area
23.04µm2 vs 1.39µm2 1557% larger pixel area
Selfie & Vlogger LCD
Yes vs No Rotate LCD for taking Selfies
CHECK D5100 PRICE

Common Strengths of Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100
Built-in Flash
Yes vs Yes Useful in low-light
Face Detection Focus
Yes vs Yes very handy for portraits
Timelapse Recording
Yes vs Yes creative shooting
AE Bracketing
Yes vs Yes Useful for tough lighting conditions and HDR
Common Weaknesses of Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100
In-body Image Stabilization
Digital only vs No No Built-in stabilization
Ricoh WG-6 vs Nikon D5100: 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 Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Ricoh WG-6 has external dimensions of 118 x 66 x 33 mm (4.65 x 2.6 x 1.3″) and weighs 246 g (0.54 lb / 8.68 oz) (including batteries). Nikon D5100 has external dimensions of 128 x 97 x 79 mm (5.04 x 3.82 x 3.11″) and weighs 560 g (1.23 lb / 19.75 oz) (including batteries).

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100. Ricoh WG-6 is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 10mm narrower, 31mm shorter and 46mm thinner than Nikon D5100. As you can tell, actually this is not a fair size comparison since Ricoh WG-6 has a built-in lens but Nikon D5100 doesn't. Once you put a lens on D5100, its thickness will increase significantly.

Ricoh WG-6 vs Nikon D5100 Camera Size Comparison - Front View
Comparison image of Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View

Here is the back view size comparison of Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100.

Ricoh WG-6 vs Nikon D5100 Camera Size Comparison - Back View
Comparison image of Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100 Size and Weight - Back View

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100.
Ricoh WG-6 vs Nikon D5100 Camera Size Comparison - Top View
Top View Comparison image of Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100 Size

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Ricoh WG-6 is significantly lighter (314g ) than the Nikon D5100 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 D5100, the total kit will weigh much higher.

Weather Sealing

Thanks to the weather sealed body of WG-6, you can use this camera with more confidence under conditions where there is risk of exposure to water and dust compared to D5100.

LCD Screen Size and Features

Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100's LCD screens has the same diagonal size of 3.00".

On the other hand, Nikon D5100 sports a Fully Articulated screen which you can change the angle and position of the screen almost freely, making it possible to shoot from waist or over the head levels, and especially very useful for shooting selfies and video. Ricoh WG-6's LCD screen is a fixed type which provides almost no flexibility in shooting positions compared to D5100.
Ricoh WG-6 vs Nikon D5100: Sensor Comparison

Ricoh WG-6 has a 20.0MP 1/2.3 (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) sized BSI-CMOS sensor . On the other hand, Nikon D5100 has a 16.0MP APS-C (23.6 x 15.7 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Expeed 2 processor.

Below you can see the WG-6 and D5100 sensor size comparison.

Ricoh WG-6 vs Nikon D5100 Sensor Size Comparison
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100 Cameras


As seen above, Nikon D5100 has a 13.2x Larger sensor area than Ricoh WG-6. 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 Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100 Good for?
In this section, we rank and compare Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100 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.

Ricoh WG-6 for Portrait Photography

POOR

Nikon D5100 for Portrait Photography

AVERAGE
Very High Resolution Sensor: 20.0MP
Small 1/2.3 sensor
No Image Stabilization
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.7 mm) sensor
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Average Resolution Sensor: 16.0MP
No Image Stabilization
Read the details

Ricoh WG-6 for Street Photography

AVERAGE

Nikon D5100 for Street Photography

GOOD
Small Body
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/2.3 sensor
No Image Stabilization
No RAW shooting capability
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.7 mm) sensor
Optical Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Fully Articulated LCD Screen
No Image Stabilization
Large Body
Read the details

Ricoh WG-6 for Sports Photography

POOR

Nikon D5100 for Sports Photography

GOOD
Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
140 mm Tele Lens
No Image Stabilization
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Exposure Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
9 Focus Points
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: 660 shots
Good Low Light ISO
Average Continuous Shooting: 4.0fps
No Image Stabilization
Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Ricoh WG-6 for Daily Photography

AVERAGE

Nikon D5100 for Daily Photography

AVERAGE
Compact Body
Environmental Sealings
246g
5.0X Optical Zoom
Small 1/2.3 sensor
No RAW shooting capability
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.7 mm) sensor
Large Body
560g
Body Thickness 79mm
Read the details

Ricoh WG-6 for Landscape Photography

POOR

Nikon D5100 for Landscape Photography

POOR
Very High Resolution Sensor: 20.0MP
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Environmental Sealings
Small 1/2.3 sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Manual Exposure Mode
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.6 x 15.7 mm) sensor
Live-view
Average Resolution Sensor: 16.0MP
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Ricoh WG-6 vs Nikon D5100: 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 Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100, 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 Ricoh WG-6 and Nikon D5100 scores compare:

Ricoh WG-6
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #67 out of 477 in Compact cameras
Ranked #539 out of 1257 in all Cameras
Nikon D5100
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #24 out of 80 in Compact SLR cameras
Ranked #241 out of 1257 in all Cameras

Nikon D5100 is the overall winner of this comparison. It has a higher Overall Score and beats Ricoh WG-6 in all criteria except one: Portability.
If small size and light body is a big priority for you, choose Ricoh WG-6. Otherwise, Nikon D5100 is the better camera overall.

Ricoh WG-6
Ricoh WG-6
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Nikon D5100
Nikon D5100
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Nikon D5100 vs Ricoh WG-6 Specs Table
Detailed comparison of specifications
General Ricoh WG-6 Nikon D5100
Brand Ricoh Nikon
Announced 2018-02-21 2011-04-26
Body Type Compact Compact SLR
Sensor
Type BSI-CMOS CMOS
Size 1/2.3 APS-C
Dimensions 6.17 x 4.55 mm 23.6 x 15.7 mm
Area 28.07mm2 370.52mm2
Megapixels 20 megapixels 16 megapixels
Max Resolution 5184 x 3888 4928 x 3264
Max Native Light sensitivity 6,400 ISO 6,400 ISO
Max Boosted Light Sensitivity - 25600 ISO
Min Native Light sensitivity 125 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 9 11
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount fixed lens Nikon F
Lens Focal Range 28-140 mm (5x) no lens
Max Aperture F3.5-5.5 no lens
Macro Focus Range 1cm no lens
Screen
Type Fixed type Fully Articulated
Size 3.00" 3.00"
Resolution 1,040k dots 921k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder None Optical (pentamirror)
Viewfinder Coverage n/a 95%
Viewfinder Magnification n/a 0.52x
Photography Features
Max Mechanical Shutter 1/4000s 1/4000s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Built-in Image Stabilization Digital only No
Built-in Flash
Flash Range 5.50 m (with Auto ISO) 12.00 m (at ISO 100)
Max Flash Sync n/a 1/200s
External Flash
Continuous Shooting n/a 4.0 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 3840 x 2160 1920 x 1080
Video Formats MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity Supports FlashAir SD cards Eye-Fi Connected
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight 246g 560g
Dimensions 118 x 66 x 33mm 128 x 97 x 79mm
Battery Life 340 shots 660 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS Built-in Optional
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score not tested 80
DxO Color Depth not tested 23.5
DxO Dynamic Range not tested 13.6
DxO Low Light ISO not tested 1183
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