Nikon D3300 Comparison Review

The Nikon D3300 is a DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera that was revealed to the public in January 2014 and is equipped with an APS-C sensor. It offers a resolution of 24 megapixel.

Is the Nikon D3300 a good camera? The D3300 has a Camera Elo of 1798. This rating puts the D3300 among the top 50 percent of all digital single lens reflex cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (APS cameras), the D3300 ranks below average. Based on its within category standings, the camera earns a 3-star performance rating.

Read on to find out more about the camera's size, sensor, features, reception by expert reviewers, and how it compares to other digital cameras.

Body comparison with a credit card

An illustration of the physical dimensions of the Nikon D3300 vis-à-vis a credit card is provided in the side-by-side display below. Three consecutive views from the front, the top, and the rear side are shown. All size dimensions are rounded to the nearest millimeter.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the Nikon D3300 alongside a set of similar cameras. If you want to review a particular camera pair side-by-side, just move across to the CAM-parator tool and choose from the broad selection of possible comparisons there.

Body Specifications

		Camera Model	Camera Width	Camera Height	Camera Depth	Camera Weight	Battery Life	Weather Sealing	Camera Launch	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price
1.		Nikon D3300	124 mm	98 mm	76 mm	430 g	700	n	Jan 2014	499	ebay.com
2.		Nikon D3500	124 mm	97 mm	70 mm	415 g	1550	n	Aug 2018	429	amazon.com
3.		Nikon D5600	124 mm	97 mm	70 mm	465 g	970	n	Nov 2016	699	amazon.com
4.		Nikon D3400	124 mm	98 mm	76 mm	445 g	1200	n	Aug 2016	499	ebay.com
5.		Nikon D5500	124 mm	97 mm	70 mm	470 g	820	n	Jan 2015	899	ebay.com
6.		Nikon D7100	136 mm	107 mm	76 mm	765 g	950	Y	Feb 2013	1,199	ebay.com
7.		Nikon D5300	125 mm	98 mm	76 mm	480 g	600	n	Oct 2013	799	ebay.com
8.		Nikon D3200	125 mm	96 mm	77 mm	505 g	540	n	Apr 2012	599	ebay.com
9.		Sony A5000	110 mm	63 mm	36 mm	269 g	420	n	Jan 2014	449	ebay.com
10.		Sony A5100	110 mm	63 mm	36 mm	283 g	400	n	Aug 2014	549	ebay.com
11.		Sony A6000	120 mm	67 mm	45 mm	344 g	360	n	Feb 2014	599	ebay.com
Note: Measurements and pricing do not include easily detachable parts, such as add-on or interchangeable lenses or optional viewfinders.
Convert to Imperial

The listed prices provide an indication of the market segment that the manufacturer of the cameras have been targeting. The Nikon D3300 was launched in the US market at a price of $499. Usually, retail prices stay at first close to the launch price, but after several months, discounts become available. Later in the product cycle and, in particular, when the replacement model is about to appear, further discounting and stock clearance sales often push the camera price considerably down. Then, after the new model is out, very good deals can frequently be found on the pre-owned market.

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Sensor comparison with a 35mm slide

The size of the sensor inside a digital camera is one of the key determinants of image quality. A large sensor will tend to have larger individual pixels that provide better low-light sensitivity, wider dynamic range, and richer color-depth than smaller pixel-units in a sensor of the same technological generation. Moreover, a large sensor camera will give the photographer more control over depth-of-field in the image and, thus, the ability to better isolate a subject from the background. On the downside, larger sensors are more costly to manufacture and tent to lead to bigger and heavier cameras and lenses.

The Nikon D3300 features an APS-C sensor and has a format factor (sometimes also referred to as "crop factor") of 1.5. Within the spectrum of camera sensors, this places the Nikon D3300 among the medium-sized sensor cameras that aim to strike a balance between image quality and portability.

Since 2007, DXO Mark has published sensor performance measurements that have been derived using a consistent methodology. This service is based on lab testing and assigns an overall score to each camera sensor, as well as ratings for dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), color depth ("DXO Portrait"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports"). The table below summarizes the physical sensor characteristics and sensor quality findings and compares them across a set of similar cameras.

Sensor Characteristics

		Camera Model	Sensor Class	Resolution (MP)	Horiz. Pixels	Vert. Pixels	Video Format	DXO Portrait	DXO Landscape	DXO Sports	DXO Overall
1.		Nikon D3300	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.3	12.8	1385	82
2.		Nikon D3500	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.0	13.4	1851	83
3.		Nikon D5600	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.1	14.0	1306	84
4.		Nikon D3400	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.8	13.9	1192	86
5.		Nikon D5500	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.1	14.0	1438	84
6.		Nikon D7100	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.2	13.7	1256	83
7.		Nikon D5300	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.0	13.9	1338	83
8.		Nikon D3200	APS-C	24.1	6016	4000	1080/30p	24.1	13.2	1131	81
9.		Sony A5000	APS-C	19.8	5456	3632	1080/60i	23.8	13.0	1089	79
10.		Sony A5100	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	23.8	12.7	1347	80
11.		Sony A6000	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.1	13.1	1347	82
Note: DXO values in italics represent estimates based on sensor size and age.

Many modern cameras are not only capable of taking still images, but also of capturing video footage. The D3300 indeed provides movie recording capabilities. The highest resolution format that the D3300 can use is 1080/60p.

Feature comparison

Beyond body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a range of features. For example, the D3300 has an optical viewfinder that provides a field of view of 95% and a magnification of 0.57x. The following tables report on some other key feature differences and similarities of the Nikon D3300 and comparable cameras.

Core Features

		Camera Model	Viewfinder (Type or 000 dots)	Control Panel (yes/no)	LCD Specifications (inch/000 dots)	LCD Attach- ment	Touch Screen (yes/no)	Max Shutter Speed *	Max Shutter Flaps *	Built-in Flash (yes/no)	Built-in Image Stab
1.		Nikon D3300	optical	n	3.0 / 921	fixed	n	1/4000s	5.0/s	Y	n
2.		Nikon D3500	optical	n	3.0 / 921	fixed	n	1/4000s	5.0/s	Y	n
3.		Nikon D5600	optical	n	3.2 / 1037	swivel	Y	1/4000s	5.0/s	Y	n
4.		Nikon D3400	optical	n	3.0 / 921	fixed	n	1/4000s	5.0/s	Y	n
5.		Nikon D5500	optical	n	3.2 / 1037	swivel	Y	1/4000s	5.0/s	Y	n
6.		Nikon D7100	optical	Y	3.2 / 1229	fixed	n	1/8000s	6.0/s	Y	n
7.		Nikon D5300	optical	n	3.2 / 1037	swivel	n	1/4000s	5.0/s	Y	n
8.		Nikon D3200	optical	n	3.0 / 921	fixed	n	1/4000s	4.0/s	Y	n
9.		Sony A5000	none	n	3.0 / 461	tilting	n	1/4000s	3.5/s	Y	n
10.		Sony A5100	none	n	3.0 / 922	tilting	Y	1/4000s	6.0/s	Y	n
11.		Sony A6000	1440	n	3.0 / 922	tilting	n	1/4000s	11.0/s	Y	n
Notes: *) Information refers to the mechanical shutter, unless the camera only has an electronic one.

One convenient feature of the D3300 is the presence of an on-board flash. While this built-in flash is not very powerful, it can at times be useful as a fill-in light to brighten deep shadow areas.

Connection comparison

For some imaging applications, the extent to which a camera can communicate with its environment can be an important aspect in the camera decision process. The table below provides an overview of the connectivity of the Nikon D3300 and, in particular, the interfaces the cameras (and selected comparators) provide for accessory control and data transfer.

Input-Output Connections

		Camera Model	Hotshoe Port	Internal Mic / Speaker	Microphone Port	Headphone Port	HDMI Port	USB Port	WiFi Support	NFC Support	Bluetooth Support
1.		Nikon D3300	Y	mono / mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
2.		Nikon D3500	Y	mono / mono	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	Y
3.		Nikon D5600	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	Y	Y	Y
4.		Nikon D3400	Y	mono / mono	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	Y
5.		Nikon D5500	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	Y	-	-
6.		Nikon D7100	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	mini	2.0	-	-	-
7.		Nikon D5300	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	Y	-	-
8.		Nikon D3200	Y	mono / mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
9.		Sony A5000	-	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
10.		Sony A5100	-	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
11.		Sony A6000	Y	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-

It is notable that the D3300 has a microphone port. Such an external microphone input can help to substantially improve the quality of audio recordings when a good external microphone is used.

Further information on the features and operation of the D3300 can be found in the free online Nikon D3300 Manual or on the Nikon support site.

Expert reviews

While the comparison of technical specifications can provide a useful overview of the capabilities of different cameras, it remains incomplete and does no justice, for example, to the way the D3300 handle or perform in practice. At times, user reviews, such as those published at amazon, address these issues in a useful manner, but such feedback is on many occasions incomplete, inconsistent, and unreliable. This is why expert reviews are important. The following table reports the overall rankings of the cameras as published by some of the major camera review sites (amateurphotographer [AP], cameralabs [CL], digitalcameraworld [DCW], dpreview [DPR], ephotozine [EPZ], photographyblog [PB]).

Review Scores

		Camera   Model	AP   score	CL   score	DCW   score	DPR   score	EPZ   score	PB   score	Camera Launch	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price
1.		Nikon D3300	3/5	+	..	77/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Jan 2014	499	ebay.com
2.		Nikon D3500	4/5	..	4/5	75/100	4/5	4.5/5	Aug 2018	429	amazon.com
3.		Nikon D5600	4/5	..	4/5	79/100	4.5/5	4/5	Nov 2016	699	amazon.com
4.		Nikon D3400	4/5	+	4/5	76/100	4/5	4.5/5	Aug 2016	499	ebay.com
5.		Nikon D5500	5/5	+	..	79/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Jan 2015	899	ebay.com
6.		Nikon D7100	5/5	+ +	..	85/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Feb 2013	1,199	ebay.com
7.		Nikon D5300	4/5	+ +	..	79/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Oct 2013	799	ebay.com
8.		Nikon D3200	5/5	+ +	..	73/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Apr 2012	599	ebay.com
9.		Sony A5000	3/5	+	..	..	4.5/5	4.5/5	Jan 2014	449	ebay.com
10.		Sony A5100	4.5/5	+	..	..	4.5/5	5/5	Aug 2014	549	ebay.com
11.		Sony A6000	5/5	+	4.5/5	80/100	4.5/5	5/5	Feb 2014	599	ebay.com
Notes: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (..) not available.

Care should be taken when interpreting the review scores above, though. The ratings were established in reference to similarly priced cameras that were available in the market at the time of the review. Thus, a score needs to be put into the context of the launch date and the launch price of the camera, and comparing ratings of very distinct cameras or ones that are far apart in terms of their release date have little meaning. Also, kindly note that some of the listed sites have over time developped their review approaches and their reporting style.

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Camera to camera comparisons

In case you are interested in seeing how this camera compares to another one, just use the search menu below. An an alternative, you can also directly jump to any one of the listed comparisons that were previously generated by the CAM-parator tool.

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