The D3200 represents the latest generation of Nikon’s entry-level DSLR offering. The camera’s headline feature is inevitably the new 24MP CMOS sensor which makes it equal to Sony’s Alpha SLT-A65, A77 and NEX-7 in offering the highest pixel count we’ve yet seen at the APS-C sensor size, and in terms of output resolution, second only to the full-frame professional-grade D800 in Nikon’s entire range. More significant than the bare fact of the D3200’s pixel count though is that it is available in camera with a starting price of$699(the same launch price as the D3100 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-C G3, for comparison). The D3200 may not exactly be revolutionary, but it doesn’t have to be. It just has to be competitive.
Pixel-count aside, the changes from the predecessor D3100 are subtle but, with 1080p30 video, a 920k dot LCD and the option to add an affordable Wi-Fi transmitter, there are clear benefits over the D3100’s specification. As usual for Nikons at this level, the D3200 doesn’t feature a built-in focus motor, and nor does it offer auto exposure bracketing. It also features a simplified version of the Active D-Lighting function that is now common across Nikon’s DSLR range.
The Nikon D3200 was the compnay’s budget DSLR launch for 2012, and it was good enough to instantly make the older D5100 obsolete. Despite now being over three years old and being superseded twice, it’s still widely available from major retailers. At current prices you can pick up the body-only D3200 for as little as £229, though most are better off picking up the kit with a 18-55mm lens for £279. That makes the camera around £110 less than the more recent Nikon D3300, a sizeable saving at these already-low prices. It’s also the same price as the far newer Canon 1200D. But in both cases does newer actually mean better?