Nikon
D3100
 vs
Sony SLT
A35

Updated (April, 2012): Compare the Nikon D3200 vs Sony SLT-A37

Nikon D3100

56

  
Sony SLT A35

56

  

Reasons to buy the Nikon D3100

Movie format
 Full HD
1080p @ 24fps
Live view
 Has live view
Preview your photos
Supports 24p
 24p movies
For that film look
Movie continuous focus
 Movie continuous focus
Makes it easy to get in-focus movies
Badge
 Autofocuses shooting video
Contrast detection
Size
 Really small
Prosumer size 124x96x73 mm
 

Reasons to buy the Sony SLT A35

Movie format
 Full HD
1080p @ 30fps
Color depth
 Great color depth
23.3 bits
Dynamic range
 Wide dynamic range
12.7 EV
Screen resolution
 High resolution screen
921k dots
Image stabilization
 Image stabilization
Sensor shift
Light sensitivity
 High ISO
12,800 ISO
 

differences

Advantages of the Nikon D3100
Low light performance Lower noise at high ISO 919 ISO vs 763 ISO
Help
 The D3100 has a slight edge (0.3 f-stops) in low noise, high ISO performance
Supports 24p Supports 24p Yes vs No
Help
 Get that real film feel
Lens availability Much more lenses available 169 lenses vs 92 lenses
Help
 More than 80% more lenses available
Viewfinder Has an optical viewfinder Pentamirror vs Digital
Help
 Optical viewfinders save battery life and are more detailed
Battery life Longer battery life 550 shots vs 420 shots
Help
 More than 30% more shots per battery charge
Thickness Much thinner 2.9" vs 3.3"
Help
 More than 10% thinner
Size Smaller 124x96x73 mm vs 124x92x85 mm
Help
 Around 10% smaller
Lowest price Slightly cheaper $399.00 vs $446.31
Help
 The best price we've seen is $47 cheaper (more than 10% less)
Nikon D3100 Learn more about
the Nikon D3100

Advantages of the Sony SLT A35
Screen resolution Much higher resolution screen 921k dots vs 230k dots
Help
 More than 4x higher resolution screen
Dynamic range More dynamic range 12.7 EV vs 11.3 EV
Help
 1.4 f-stops more dynamic range
External mic jack Has an external mic jack Yes vs No
Help
 Record high quality audio with an external microphone
Overall image quality Better image quality 74.0 vs 67.0
Help
 More than 10% better image quality
Image stabilization Image stabilization Sensor shift vs None
Help
 Helps eliminate blur caused by small camera movements
HDR Has in-camera HDR Yes vs No
Help
 Combines multiple exposures to capture high dynamic range
3D Takes 3D photos Yes vs No
Help
 Combines multiple photos into a 3D image
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity 12,800 ISO vs 3,200 ISO
Help
 The SLT A35's maximum light sensitivity is 2 f-stops better
Panorama Can create panoramas in-camera Yes vs No
Help
 Stitches together multiple photos for a wide perspective
Color depth Better color depth 23.3 bits vs 22.5 bits
Help
 Distinguishes 0.8 more bits of color
Autofocus Faster video autofocus Phase detection vs Contrast detection
Help
 Shoot videos without worrying about focus
Continuous shooting Shoots faster 5.5 fps vs 3 fps
Help
 More than 80% faster continuous shooting
Lens focus motor Has a built-in focus motor Yes vs No
Help
 Autofocuses with all autofocus lenses
Light sensitivity (boost) Better boost ISO 25,600 ISO vs 12,800 ISO
Help
 The SLT A35's boost ISO is 1 f-stop better
True resolution Higher true resolution 16 MP vs 14.2 MP
Help
 Capture more than 10% more detail in your photos
Sensor size Larger sensor APS-C 23.4x15.6mm vs APS-C 23.1x15.4mm
Help
 Almost the same
Cross type focus points More cross-type focus points 3 vs 1
Help
 Grab focus in difficult situations
Focus points More focus points 15 vs 11
Help
 Set focus accurately within the frame
Weight Lighter 415 g vs 505 g
Help
 Around 20% lighter
Sony SLT A35 Learn more about
the Sony SLT A35
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent entry-level DSLRs, and ignoring price

Nikon D3100 Nikon D3100
56 vs 56
Explain scores
Sony SLT A35 Sony SLT A35
Green arrow Too close to call! Snapsort considers these cameras too competitive to make a clear recommendation.

similarities

Compared to recent entry-level DSLRs

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Movie continuous focus Focus continuously recording movies Help
Makes it easy to get in-focus movies
Lowest price Inexpensive Help
D3100:$399.00
SLT A35:$446.31
Weight Light weight Help
D3100:505 g
SLT A35:415 g
Fastest shutter speed Slow max shutter speed Help
1/4000 of a second
Screen flips out No flip-out screens Help
Less flexible
True resolution Capture low resolution images Help
D3100:14.2 MP
SLT A35:16 MP
Weather sealed Neither is weather sealed Help
Need to shelter it from weather

dxomark

DXOMark

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon Rebel T3

Canon Rebel T3

Entry-level DSLR

$332 body only

$449 - $499 with 18-55mm lens
Battery life Has a slightly longer battery life
Thickness Is thicker
Sensor cleaning Lacks a self cleaning sensor
Compare the Rebel T3 vs the D3100
Compare the Rebel T3 vs the SLT A35
Nikon D3200

Nikon D3200

Entry-level DSLR

$547 with 18-55mm lens
Low light performance Is slightly less noisy at high ISO
Overall image quality Has slightly better image quality
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the D3200 vs the D3100
Compare the D3200 vs the SLT A35
Nikon D5100

Nikon D5100

Entry-level DSLR

$497 body only

$597 - $805 with 18-55mm lens
Low light performance Is slightly less noisy at high ISO
Overall image quality Has slightly better image quality
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is significantly heavier
Compare the D5100 vs the D3100
Compare the D5100 vs the SLT A35
Canon Rebel T3i

Canon Rebel T3i

Entry-level DSLR

$549 body only

$599 - $649 with 18-55mm lens
True resolution Takes slightly higher resolution photos
Screen flips out Has a screen which flips out
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the Rebel T3i vs the D3100
Compare the Rebel T3i vs the SLT A35
Canon EOS Rebel T2i

Canon Rebel T2i

Entry-level DSLR

$550 body only

$609 with 18-55mm lens
True resolution Takes slightly higher resolution photos
Size Is slightly smaller
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the Rebel T2i vs the D3100
Compare the Rebel T2i vs the SLT A35
Canon EOS 60D

Canon EOS 60D

Pro DSLR

$699 - $899 body only

$999 - $1,279 with 18-135mm lens
Viewfinder size Slightly larger viewfinder
True resolution Takes slightly higher resolution photos
Lowest price Is significantly more expensive
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the EOS 60D vs the D3100
Compare the EOS 60D vs the SLT A35

Nikon D3100 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Nikon D90

Nikon D90

Entry-level DSLR

$675 - $899 body only

$799 - $1,099 with 18-105mm lens
Screen resolution Much higher resolution screen
Dynamic range More dynamic range
Movie format Lower resolution movies
Autofocus Lacks video autofocus
Compare the D90 vs the D3100
Nikon D3000

Nikon D3000

Entry-level DSLR

$436 with 18-55mm lens
Sensor size Larger sensor
Size Smaller
Movie format Does not take movies
Low light performance Significantly more noise at high ISO
Compare the D3000 vs the D3100

Sony SLT A35 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Sony SLT-A37

Sony SLT-A37

Entry-level DSLR

$468 - $482 with 18-55mm lens
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity
Supports 24p Supports 24p
Screen size Much smaller screen
Screen resolution Much lower resolution screen
Compare the SLT-A37 vs the SLT A35
Sony SLT-A33

Sony SLT-A33

Entry-level DSLR

$848 - $1,023 with 18-55mm lens
Screen flips out Has a flip-out screen
Continuous shooting Shoots faster
Low light performance More noise at high ISO
Overall image quality Worse image quality
Compare the SLT-A33 vs the SLT A35
Sony SLT-A55

Sony SLT-A55

Entry-level DSLR

$1,098 body only

$1,193 with 18-55mm lens
Continuous shooting Shoots significantly faster
GPS Has a GPS
Lowest price Much more expensive
Color depth Worse color depth
Compare the SLT-A55 vs the SLT A35
Sony SLT A57

Sony SLT A57

Entry-level DSLR

$460 - $499 body only

$519 - $539 with 18-55mm lens
Continuous shooting Shoots much faster
Supports 24p Supports 24p
Size Larger
Weight Significantly heavier
Compare the SLT A57 vs the SLT A35

appearance

Nikon D3100 Sony SLT A35
Nikon D3100 Sony SLT A35
Nikon D3100 Sony SLT A35

discussion

Showing 11 comments

mimi (8:03 AM, October 04, 2012)
i suggest you go for the sony a35. it's MUCH better than nikon d3100.
 
mimi (8:02 AM, October 04, 2012)
very true
 
Wise_entity (7:49 PM, January 28, 2012)
non sense comparison a typical Nikon fanatic site.
 
Avatar for vishnu vardhan vishnu vardhan (7:59 PM, December 08, 2011)
the A35 has shortest shutter lag .05 seconds! You can control shutter speed, aperture, iso in manual mode! and EV compensation , metering , auto exposure lock in programmed mode! a35 is a no brainer 
 
Avatar for vishnu vardhan vishnu vardhan (7:59 PM, December 08, 2011)
the A35 has shortest shutter lag .05 seconds! You can control shutter speed, aperture, iso in manual mode! and EV compensation , metering , auto exposure lock in programmed mode! a35 is a no brainer 
 
RachW (5:35 PM, December 07, 2011)
Have you got the Sony yet? I am leaning towards that one out of it and the D3100 but people say Nikon is a more trusted brand - what do you think?
 
luvmyboys (5:27 PM, December 04, 2011)
Playing with both cameras and doing TONS of research I am going with the Sony. 
 
RachelW (2:51 PM, November 27, 2011)
Interesting - am torn between these two for my christmas present, the A35 seems to come off better here but can anyone else personally recommend either one? Would like to be able to change the shutter speed to get some blurred "movement" shots but mainly for the photo to be taken as soon as I press the button :)
 
Blue__monday (11:13 PM, November 26, 2011)
Both great cameras, but the Sony a35 win :)
 
AndrewG (7:40 PM, November 22, 2011)
Scoring doesn't seem right here; in all the important aspects for a camera, i.e. features allowing you to take good pictures, the Sony wins; how then is the Nikon a better camera? No one looks at a photo and says wow, so that was taken by a Nikon/Sony, they look at it and say wow that's a good photo!  
 
prashans (9:17 PM, November 08, 2011)
I am confuse between these 2 DSLR cameras there are more functons in SONY SLT A35  then D3100 and D3100 i think its more famous. My concern is the image quality and the stablility  in long run ... can anyone suggest which one should i go for  ?