D5300 and D7100

It seems to me the only difference between these camaras is that the D7100 is weather proofed, I never take a camera out in bad weather so I think I will save a lot of money by going for the D5300. ?

You could easy be right i have not looked at the D5300,i had the D5100 and with being an old £art it just didnt feel right but the D7xxx series felt more solid which i like

i own a 7100 $1258 with 18-55 and 55-300vr , about 1000 for the same deal with the 5300 , i like two card slots and the weather sealing, battery life better too by a couple of hundred shots , i also like a larger camera , gps would be good but not essential for me , looks like a good camera for the price though

A comparison by numbers
Nikon D5300 vs D7100 - Our Analysis

The internal focus motor of the d7100 also seems to be a big factor to me.

I'm surprised to see that the d5300 actually has better ISO capabilities, but then again it is a newer camera...

As mentioned, two card slots on the d7100. Also significantly different user interfaces. Front and rear command wheels on the d7100 for quicker changes. Also the top LDC display is great to instantly see what your most important settings are. Quicker access to many settings via buttons rather than menus. The d7100 has an internal focus motor for older lenses. I don't think the d5300 has autofocus fine tuning. There is probably more differences that I am not thinking of off hand.

Difference that matters is the in body motor, which is missing in the 3xxx and 5xxx series. With that you have autofocus with all the "D" lenses. If you do more video than stills then the swivel screen of D5300 helps,

Other factors are geared more towards professionals - 2 card slots, better build, 2 command wheels etc.

There are a lot of differences between the two. Some have been mentioned, like the weather sealing and 2 card slots, but the d7100 has quite a few additional improvements over the d5300. Some are the larger OVF, higher resolution screen, more focus points, more cross type focus points, higher max shutter speed, 5 frame bracketing, and the 1.3x crop mode. The d5300 does have the swivel LCD and the built in GPS. It also has slightly better ISO due to it having the newer Expeed 4 processor instead of the Expeed 3. When I first got into Nikon I bought a d5200, took it home, tried it out, returned it and bought d7100. The d7100 has some features that are important to me that the d5x00 series doesn't have.

D7100 or bust.....Pro features...Nef said...

Yes D7100 well built and has a great feel in hands. Pro features

D7100 - Magnesium allow body, auto back-up with 2 memory slots, weather sealed, MUCH better viewfinder (larger, clearer, 100% frame coverage), more focus points, built-in focus motor for older lenses (HUGE), flash bracketing, focus fine-tuning for individual lenses, more shots per battery charge and pro control set-up which makes for less digging through menus. Plus, for my man hands, it just fits better.

D5300 - Much lighter to carry around, flip out screen and built in Wi-Fi.

BOTH - Great cameras, nice sensors, no AA filter.

Can't lose either way, tbh, but I know what I chose when upgrading from the D3100.

I shoot with a D7100 and my GF recently upgraded to a D5300. I'd really hate to give up the top-mounted LCD, dual card-slots and dual command-wheels of my D7100; once you get used to having those, I don't think anyone would want to. The internal focus-motor, weather sealing and sturdier magnesium alloy body of the D7100 are also very important to me and a big part of what you're paying for over the D5300.

All that being said, from an image quality standpoint *alone*, the D5300 pretty much equals my D7100. With really good primes like the 35mm f/1.8G and the 85mm f/1.8G -- and assuming you do your part -- the D5300 turns out jaw droppingly good images.

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I have read similiar opinons all over internet.In terms image quality ,things are quite equal.
I havent tried D7100 so I cant say about it..

I have had both and a full set of AF-S Nikkors. I sold the D7100.
The bigest difference of the newer D5300 has not been mentioned. It is the Expeed 4 Processor.
It makes possible better images from the tweeked and more optimized Sensor.
It makes possible the high ISO performance up to 12,800 usable. Twice that of the D7100.
It makes possible 1080 P60 Video that is better. Not just for Slow Motion, but smoother, cleaner, and more detailed too.

The new monocot body is not just lighter, but resist impact damage better too.
They are now making Army battle helmets out of the stuff.
And it dissapates heat better for longer continuous videos (if you have an external recorder).

The 3.2 inch swivel monitor is extremely handy and although a few dots less, I don't see much difference in resolution.
Angling it in bright light can really help.