Nikon D90 Review: Digital Photography Review

Compared to...

The D90 has some large shoes to fill - ones that have been worn very comfortably by the D80 for the past few years. Nikon's attempt to compete with Canon's then market dominance with its Rebel models by pitching models above and below the once all-conquering XT appears to have paid off, with the D40 and D60 offering value for money for the first time DSLR user and the D80 offering a stronger specification for a bit more money.

The D90 may not be able to rival its predecessor's longevity, however. Not only has Canon decided that there is some wisdom in providing a simplified entry-level DSLR alongside a newly feature-boosted enthusiast-level Rebel, but there are also now a lot of manufacturers producing very competant cameras for this part of the market. Part of this problem appears to have been caused by the popularity of its big brother, the D300, the release of which seemed to coincide with (or perhaps prompt?) a round of price cuts from other manufacturers, pitching a lot of very capable cameras into $1100 territory. Just to see how it squares up to its elder sibbling, we'll compare it to the D300 to see whether the D90 buys you the same image quality for nearly half the price.

Nikon D90 advantages

11-point AF (1 cross-type) with 3D tracking
12 white balance presets (plus five slots for manual presets)
Video (1080 x 720, 24fps)
4.5 fps continuous shooting rate
High resolution 920,000 dot 3.0" LCD

	Nikon D90	Nikon D80	Canon EOS 450D	Pentax K20D
Price (Body only) (With kit lens)	$999/£639 $1235/£799 [check]	$652/£389 $785/£549 [check]	$579/£408 $655/£457[check]	$965/£620 $995/£630 [check]
Construction	• Plastic • Aluminum alloy	• Plastic • Aluminum alloy	• Plastic • Metal sub-structure	• Plastic • Metal sub-structure
Control dials	Two	Two	One	Two
Sensor Type	CMOS	CCD	CMOS	CMOS
Dust removal	• Image Sensor Cleaning • Image Dust Off	• Image Dust Off	• Low-pass filter vibration • Anti-static coating • Dust delete data	• SP coating • Dust removal using SR unit • Dust alert mode
Effective pixels	12.3 million	10.2 million	12.2 million	14.6 million
Pixel Density	3.3 MP/cm²	2.7 MP/cm²	3.7 MP/cm²	4.0 MP/cm²
Aspect ratio	3:2	3:2	3:2	3:2
FOV crop	1.5x	1.5x	1.6x	1.5x
Environmental sealing	• No	• No	• No	• Yes
Image stabilization	• Kit lens	• No	• Kit lens	• Sensor shift
Live View	• Yes • Contrast AF only • Face priority	• No	• Yes • Contrast or Phase AF	• Yes • Phase AF only
File formats	• JPEG • RAW (NEF)	• JPEG • RAW (NEF)	• JPEG • RAW (CR2)	• JPEG • RAW (PEF) • RAW (DNG)
Video	Yes 720p, 24fps	No	No	No
Auto focus	• 11 point • 1 cross-type • -1 to 18 EV	• 11 point • 1 cross-type • -1 to 18 EV	• 9 point • 1 cross-type • -0.5 to 18 EV	• 11 point • 9 cross-type • -1 to 18 EV
Metering sensor	480 zone	480 zone	35 zone	16 zone sensor
Metering modes	• 3D Color Matrix • Center-Weighted (6,8 or 10 mm diameter area) • Spot Metering	• 3D Color Matrix • Center-Weighted (6,8 or 10 mm diameter area) • Spot Metering	• Evaluative • Partial • Spot • Centre-weighted average	• Multi-segment • Center-weighted average • Spot
Exp. comp.	+/- 5.0 EV	+/- 5.0 EV	+/- 2.0 EV	+/- 3.0 EV
Continuous rate (high)	• 4.5 fps • 100 JPEG • 11 RAW	• 3 fps • 23 JPEG • 6 RAW	• 3.5 fps • 53 JPEG/Fine • 6 RAW	• 3 fps • 38 JPEG Hi • 14 RAW • 16 DNG
White balance	• Auto • 12 presets (with adj) • 5 manual presets • Kelvin temperature	• Auto • 8 presets (with adj) • Manual preset • Kelvin temperature	• Auto • 6 presets (with adj) • Manual preset • Kelvin temperature	• Auto • 6 presets (with adj) • Manual preset • Kelvin temperature
Image parameters	• 7 presets • 9 User defined • Quick Adjust • Sharpening • Contrast • Brightnesss • Saturation • Hue • B&W filter • B&W tone	• 7 presets • Sharpening • Tone • Color mode • Saturation • Hue • B&W filter • B&W tone	• 6 presets • 3 User defined • Sharpness • Contrast • Saturation • Color tone • B&W filter • B&W tone	• 6 presets • Saturation • Hue • Contrast • Sharpness
Noise reduction control	4 levels	4 levels	On/Off	4 Levels
DR extension mode	D-Lighting	D-Lighting	Highlight Tone Priority	DRng
External flash	• Hot-shoe • Wireless flash	• Hot-shoe • Wireless flash	• Hot-shoe • Wireless flash via optional controller	• Hot-shoe • Wireless flash
Flash sync speed	1/200 sec	1/200 sec	1/200 sec	1/180 sec
Viewfinder	• Pentaprism • 96% coverage • 0.94 x magnification	• Pentaprism • 95% coverage • 0.94 x magnification	• Pentamirror • 95% coverage • 0.87x magnification	• Pentaprism • 95% coverage • 0.95x magnification
LCD monitor	• 3.0" TFT LCD • 920,000 dots	• 2.5" TFT LCD • 230,000 dots	• 3.0" TFT LCD • 230,000 dots	• 2.7 " TFT LCD • 230,000 dots
Top panel LCD	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Vertical grip	Yes, MB-D80	Yes, MB-D80	Yes, BG-E5	Yes,D-BG2
Dimensions	132 x 103 x 77 mm (5.2 x 4.1 x 3.0 in)	132 x 103 x 77 mm (5.2 x 4.1 x 3.0 in)	129 x 98 x 62 mm (5.1 x 3.9 x 2.4 in)	142 x 101 x 70 mm (5.6 x 4.0 x 2.8 in)
Weight (inc batt)	703 g (24.8 oz)	668 g (23.6 oz)	524 g (18.5 oz)	800 g (28.2 oz)