Brand indexNikonNikon Interchangeable Lens Cameras

Nikon D5100

Announced Apr 5, 2011 •

16.2 megapixels | 3″ screen | APS-C sensor

dpreview conclusion

The D5100 sits just above the D3100 in Nikon's product lineup and as such, it combines its younger sibling's ease of use with a slightly more advanced feature set. The D5100's trump card, however, is it's advanced 16MP sensor - inherited from the D7000. Judged on its own merits the D5100 is a great camera, but we're concerned that an enthusiastic beginner might outgrow it faster than some of the competition.

Read our full review

Silver Award

76%

dpreview score

Good for

Effective and easy to use features make the D5100 ideal for everyday photography/videography

Not so good for

Shooting fast action

Scoring

Build quality

Ergonomics & handling

Features

Metering & focus accuracy

Image quality (raw)

Image quality (jpeg)

Low light / high ISO performance

Viewfinder / screen rating

Performance

Movie / video mode

Value

Other reviews

	Nikon D5100 Review By: Shawn Barnett and Mike Tomkins, Imaging Resource (Jul 15, 2011) The Nikon D5100 is a little late to the market, but it's quite welcome. While we liked the preceding D5000 model, its larger size and especially the bottom-hinged swivel screen didn't make it our favorite, among an overwhelming number of recent Nikon digital SLRs that fairly knocked our socks off. That's changed with the Nikon D5100, as it pushes most all the right buttons. It's also better... Read full review
	DCRP Review: Nikon D5100 By: Jeff Keller, Digital Camera Resource Page (Jun 1, 2011) The Nikon D5100 is a very nice "premium" entry-level D-SLR, and offers some genuinely useful new features compared to its predecessor (the D5000). Some of the highlights are very good photo quality (with low noise until the very highest sensitivities), solid build quality, a rotating LCD that now flips to the side (instead of down), plenty of manual controls, a fun new Effects mode, and Full HD... Read full review
	Nikon D5100 review By: Mike Lowe, What Digital Camera (Apr 19, 2011) The D5100 succeeds in delivering top image quality from an affordable mid-level body, married with ease of use and a series of improvements over other Nikon DSLR cameras. Nikon D7000-like quality for less cash and a more advanced live view focusing mode than seen before from the brand are big plus points, as is the high quality movie mode. Read full review
	Nikon D5100 review By: Cameralabs NEW: Nikon D5100 vs Canon T3i / 600D review Nikon's D5100 is a successful upgrade over one of the company's most popular DSLRs. It may not be as significant an upgrade as the D7000 was over the D90, but there's certainly a lot more to get excited about than many new products. As such, the D5100 becomes one of the most compelling upper-entry-level DSLRs on the market, fulfilling its brief... Read full review