Nikon D3100 review: specs and price

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Device is protected with extra seals to prevent failures due to any kind of weather.

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An optical viewfinder (or OVF) allows the photographer to compose a shot while seeing exactly what the lens sees. There is no time lag and they require no power - as opposed to electronic viewfinders which can drain battery life. They are also better in low light situations.

With 100% coverage you can compose the image correctly when you capture the photo. With less than full coverage you may have to crop your photos afterwards to get them looking perfect.

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A hot shoe can be used to attach an external flash, as well as light meters, viewfinders, rangefinders and other attachments.

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The larger the sensor the more light the sensor captures yielding in better image quality.

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The more focus points the more flexibility in picking which part of the scene to focus on. They also give the image sensor a better probability in identifying the right area of the scene to focus on in more automatic modes.

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With AF tracking, once you choose the subject and press the shutter release part way down, as the subject moves, the autofocus will follow it. No more out of focus shots.

With a higher light sensitivity (ISO level), the sensor absorbs more light. This can be used to capture moving objects using a fast shutter speed, or to take images in low light without using a flash.

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Optical image stabilization uses gyroscopic sensors to detect the vibrations of the camera. The lens adjusts the optical path accordingly, ensuring that any type of motion blur is corrected before the sensor captures the image.

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The maximum resolution available for videos shot with the main camera. Although it may be possible to choose among other frame rates, those recordings usually have lower resolutions.

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A phase detection autofocus system is faster than a contrast detection autofocus system. Even when recording scenes with a lot of fast movements, the videos are sharp and clear.

When recording movies they stay focussed and sharp.

24p is a video format (24 frames per second) traditionally used in cinema. Nowadays, it is used to create film-like motion characteristics.

More microphones result in better sound quality and enable the device to filter out background noise.

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CIPA is an independent, standard measurement that determines how many shots a camera can take before the battery dies.

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The battery is removable and can be replaced by the user if broken.

The battery can be recharged and used over again.

An indicator shows you when the device has low battery.

A device's overall image quality score considers: color depth, dynamic range and low light performance. Source: DxOMark.

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The maximum ISO at which the device still captures excellent quality images. Source: DxOMark.

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The better a device's color depth the more color nuances it can distinguish. Source: DxOMark.

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The better the dynamic range the system captures a wider number of values from dark to light leading to more details in low and highlights. Source: DxOMark.

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The device has a standard memory slot (such as an SD or micro SD card slot) so that you can either extend the internal storage with affordable memory modules or you can retrieve data, such as photographs, easily from a memory card.

A remote control allows you to control the device remotely. The remote control can be included or optional.