Nikon D3100 What You Need to Know for Best Performance
Original Price& Current Used Price
The D3100’s original MSRP was $699.95
Used D3100 cameras fall into a price range of $100 to $175. The difference will be due to condition and accessories included.
Nikon D3100 Battery Type & Replacements
The Nikon D3100 uses a Lithium-Ion EN-EL14 rechargeable battery & charger.
The battery can not be charged via USB. This means a battery charger will be necessary. There are third party battery chargers available.
Memory Card Compatibility & Recommendation
The Nikon D3100 is compatible with SD/SDHC/SDXC memory cards.
That means compatible D3100 SD cards can have a maximum storage capacity of up to 2TB.
If you need a card, my recommendation is to get a 128GB SD card with UHS-I. This will provide the best price to performance, capacity, and compatibility with other devices.
Nikon F Mount Lens Compatibility
The D3100 is compatible with Nikon F mount lenses. This opens up a wide range of lens possibilities. A full range of lenses exists including circular fisheye, ultra wide angle, perspective control, macro, telephoto, mirror, bellows, and all kinds of zooms.
There is a list of the best Nikon D3100 lenses that covers lenses for all different types of photography.
The camera has an APS-C “crop” sensor that has been designed to use DX lenses. These lenses are smaller and less expensive than FX lenses, which are designed to be used on full frame cameras.
The D3100 can also use full frame, ‘FX’, lenses. However, the downside to these lenses is that they tend to be larger, heavier, and more expensive than DX lenses.
Notable Features
- Active D-Lighting
- 3.0 fps continuous shooting
- Auto Active D-Lighting System
- Custom Setting Options
- Red eye correction
Sensor & Image Processor
The D3100 has an APS-C (23.1 x 15.4 mm) sized sensor. This is paired with the Expeed 2 image processor.
Video Capabilities
The Nikon D3100 can record video at 1920 x 1080 (24 fps), 1280 x 720 (30, 25, 24 fps), 640 x 424 (24 fps) in MPEG-4. The fixed screen on the D3100 can make shooting video difficult.
The lack of a fully articulated LCD screen is a big drawback for video use.
Does the Nikon D3100 Have Wireless? Wifi, Bluetooth, GPS?
Specs Table
| Manufacturer | Nikon |
| Model | D3100 |
| MSRP | $699.95 |
| Body type | Compact DSLR |
| Max resolution | 4608 x 3072 |
| Other resolutions | 3456 x 2304, 2304 x 1536 |
| Image ratio w:h | 3:2 |
| Effective pixels | 14.2 megapixels |
| Sensor photo detectors | 15 megapixels |
| Sensor size | APS-C (23.1 x 15.4 mm) |
| Sensor type | CMOS |
| Processor | Expeed 2 |
| ISO | Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200 (12800 with boost) |
| Boosted ISO (minimum) | None |
| Boosted ISO (maximum) | 12800.0 |
| White balance presets | 12.0 |
| Custom white balance | Yes (1) |
| Image stabilization | No |
| Image stabilization notes | None |
| Uncompressed format | RAW |
| JPEG quality levels | Fine, Normal, Basic |
| Autofocus | ['Contrast Detect (sensor)', 'Phase Detect', 'Multi-area', 'Selective single-point', 'Tracking', 'Single', 'Continuous', 'Face Detection', 'Live View'] |
| Manual focus | Yes |
| Number of focus points | 11.0 |
| Lens mount | Nikon F |
| Focal length multiplier | 1.5× |
| Articulated LCD | Fixed |
| Screen size | 3″ |
| Screen dots | 230000 |
| Touch screen | No |
| Screen type | TFT LCD monitor |
| Live view | Yes |
| Viewfinder type | Optical (pentamirror) |
| Viewfinder coverage | 95% |
| Viewfinder magnification | 0.8× (0.53× 35mm equiv.) |
| Minimum shutter speed | 30 sec |
| Maximum shutter speed | 1/4000 sec |
| Aperture priority | Yes |
| Shutter priority | Yes |
| Manual exposure mode | Yes |
| Subject / scene modes | Yes |
| Built-in flash | Yes (Pop-up) |
| Flash range | 12.00 m (at ISO 100) |
| External flash | Yes (Hot-shoe, Wireless plus sync connector) |
| Flash modes | Auto, Red-Eye, Slow, Red-Eye Slow, Rear curtain |
| Continuous drive | 3.0 fps |
| Self-timer | Yes |
| Metering modes | ['Multi', 'Center-weighted', 'Average'] |
| Exposure compensation | ±5 (at 1/3 EV steps) |
| AE Bracketing | None |
| WB Bracketing | No |
| Format | MPEG-4 |
| Videography notes | None |
| Modes | None |
| Microphone | Mono |
| Speaker | None |
| Storage types | SD/SDHC/SDXC |
| USB | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
| HDMI | Yes (Mini Type C) |
| Microphone port | None |
| Headphone port | None |
| Wireless | Eye-Fi Connected |
| Wireless notes | None |
| Remote control | Yes (Optional) |
| Environmentally sealed | No |
| Battery | Battery Pack |
| Battery description | Lithium-Ion EN-EL14 rechargeable battery & charger |
| Battery Life (CIPA) | None |
| Weight (inc. batteries) | 505 g (1.11 lb / 17.81 oz) |
| Dimensions | 124 x 96 x 75 mm (4.88 x 3.78 x 2.95″) |
| Orientation sensor | Yes |
| Timelapse recording | None |
| GPS | Optional |
| GPS notes | GP-1 |