Nikon D5100 would be a better choice in my humble opinion. The D5100 is a great camera with amazing image quality. I think if you compare the two it would win out fairly easily. Its night time shots are also amazing. Right now it is also on sale at Amazon for around $770 for a kit.

I have had 3 Sony digital cameras fail as well as 2 video cameras. I love Sony equipment but that is $3,900 worth of paperweights. When I called Sony they realized they had a problem, there were recalls that are now out of date and I would have to pay to have everything fixed. Right there that tells me to move on. Sony is not a customer focused company. Sony representatives admitted to me that their equipment “dies” on the shelf. Perhaps bad components, suppliers or assembly techniques, I don’t know. Currently I have a D90 and looking to get a D5100 for travel. I would suggest purchasing electronics that are proven.

Your on a Nikon forum, what you expect us to say? IMOP, I think Nikon and Canon is more superior to Sony and Nikon is more superior to Canon...hehehe

kfdsan said:
So my choice - NIKON

Nikon's my choice too!

I am a recent convert from Sony to Nikon. We had 2 Sony Alpha a700's, excellent cameras, did some things that the comparable Nikon & Canon didn't. Then we began to have a few problems with both cameras. After many e-mails, and telephone calls, Sony tells us to send both cameras to them, with $500 each and a lens, they can recalibrate and repair them. With no guarantees that any repairs would help with other lenses that we owned. We talked to many photographers and came to the realization that Nikon, (& Canon) does cameras. Sony does everything electronics, and if people have problems with their cameras, it is a small percent of their business. For Nikon it is their main business. So we sold all of our Sony equipment, and now we have Nikon and we love it!!!

So my choice - NIKON

I asked the same thing when I looked at my first dSLR. Well I obviously got a Nikon and haven't been disappointed. Really Nikon makes cameras. Sony makes electronics. Sony created their camera line from Minolta and it has only been Sony for a little while. Not that Sony cameras are bad, and I actually liked the feel of the Sony more then I did my D5000 at first, but I think it is really whatever you want. I thought there would be more support and future for Nikon just because they have been around so long. I really think the build quality for Nikon Cameras and lenses was better at least until you start spending the big bucks for an A900 or whatever.

KhunNikon said:
Thanks so much for all of your responses. They're all very helpful.

I've come to the the conclusion that the "system" and "growth potential" as well as "resale value" are all in the favor of Nikon.

I also like this website and the participation of its members :)

Well you should have expected the answers you got, for this is a Nikon Forum, you might have gotten a different point of view if you had asked the question on a Sony forum.

My first DSLR was a Sony - A350.

I was bitterly, bitterly disappointed.

Even with an upgraded lens it was no better than 'mediocre'.

Take advice from someone who has wasted his money - buy the Nikon!

If you are getting a kit, look and see if there is a best buy near you. They give out a coupon every month for 12 percent off any product. It might be cheaper to go that route. Also, i like the little kit lens. If you want reach you can get the kit and then buy a 55-200mm. i believe thats going for about 250. That way you will have a range from 18-200. Im not sure thats in your budget though.

Thanks so much for all of your responses. They're all very helpful.

I've come to the the conclusion that the "system" and "growth potential" as well as "resale value" are all in the favor of Nikon.

I do like the value, features and size/weight of the Nikon D5100 over the SONY A580 which is slightly larger and heavier. The Nikon seems to have a good list of features that are usually found in point and shoot cameras, but yet its a serious DSLR as well. I think the D5100 is a better "transition" camera from my Panasonic FZ-30 into the Nikon DSLR family.

I only hope and wish the D5100 comes out before the end of April because I'm going to see if my local camera store can honor the Nikon Lens Instant Rebate with the D5100 body (I found out it ends this month). I like the Nikon 18-250mm VRII lens and it could save me $250 instantly :)

How good is the Nikon 18-55mm that they put on their kit cameras?

I also like this website and the participation of its members :)

Nikon! its .04 cents cheaper and nikon lenses are great!!

heartyfisher said:

Go nikon .. The specifications only scratch the surface . Remember you are not just buying into a camera you are buying into a whole photographic ecosystem. and with that perspective Nikon by far is ahead of Sony.

Well said, couldn't agree more! To be fair though, the same could be said about Canon. The only camera that I would like to have a play with from Sony is one of their SLT models. In this instance Sony is your only option. Just to reiterate, remember you're buying into a system. Unless you're going to run 2, or are not concerned about loosing a shed load of money if you change brands later on, choose wisely.

You are really buying into a lense system if your money doesn't get you more camera with Sony vs. Nikon.I have a friend with Sony full frame and he loves it, but he switched from Nikon film camera because he didn't have much invested in Nikon and could get ALOT more camera for the same price and only needed 1 super-zoom lense to meet his needs.

Nikon lenses are nice. A friend who is artist moved from Canon to Nikon because she says it allowed her to do less post-processing to get the images looking way she wants. She is using kit lenses and I am not personally familiar with Canon so I would take that comment with a grain of salt. The Zeiss lenses (manufactured by Yashica) which are the more expensive lenses available for Sony are only available as manual focus for other camera brands but they are really expensive. My experience with Zeiss lenses (I own an old Zeiss film camera) is they have great saturated colors, alot of contrast (quite nice!) I am less familiar with the more reasonably priced Sony lenses and don't know what lenses you would actually be likely to buy.

Decisions on lenses (and camera buys) is really personal -- no right or wrong answer. You have to think how you will use it and how your needs might grow.

Just to throw another wrench in the works: If you're going to buy into a system (and whether you go Sony or Nikon, or some other brand altogether, that's what you're doing), you have to look not just at the cameras you're considering (the apples-to-apples comparisons) but also elsewhere in the line. In other words, you also need to compare their prosumer and professional models as well, 'cause at some point, you're likely to find that you want to upgrade. Which brand's going to offer you better upgrade options? If you go with the Sony and decide at some point that the D7000 or D400 is looking good (or vice-versa, if you go with Nikon), you're looking at the prospect of replacing not only the body, but also a lot of glass.

Both bodies are likely similar in performance. Make your decision on the "system." Nikon has far more lens choices than Sony, although they can be quite a bit pricier. Nikon also has a wireless flash system that works with most of their Speedlights. Choose Nikon, and you'll generally have many more lens options, and many more supported accessories to choose from.

Also, since Nikon has a much larger DSLR customer base than Sony, you'll also have many more lenses and other Nikon support gear available to you on the used market. That also means that the resale value on any Nikon gear you acquire will sustain its value on the used market much better than the Sony gear, should you decide to sell any of it later.

I agree with Sprayandpray.

My answer takes you down a different road.

you need to figure out what you intend to do with the camera, and the answer : taking pictures is not the correct answer.

If you know the answer to the above question , then you will know which camera to buy.

Manufacturers and sales people try to sell you cameras on specs, however they should be bought on your present and projected needs.

That is why we have cameras from D3100 to D3, because buying a unit with features you do not understand and will not use, or as some people do, buy a camera and put it in point and shoot mode and leave it there, then it is a waste of money.

Get a photographer friend and spend some time with them, learn about the features of cameras and what you can achieve with these features, and at the end of the time spent with them, you will know, which camera is correct for you.

Remember a D5100 is not a point and shoot camera, it is a serious learing tool that takes you along a lifelong journey, and only you can answer if you want to take those steps or stay in the P&S land.

All the sony alpha specification are generally very good. They also have some lenses that sure seems to hit the sweet spot. I was looking with a bit of envy at the sony line up.. that is until at one of our camera club shoots.. where we are doing a studio shoot with flash and other studio lights. all teh cameras were compatible including some of the advanced point and shoots but the poor guys/gals with a sony dslr couldnt participate cos their flash hot shoe was not "standard" .. that just put me off sony for good I think..

Go nikon .. The specification only scratch the surface . Nikons generaly have a very mature well thought out feel to it. remember you are not just buying into a camera you are buying into a whole photographic ecosystem. and with that perspective Nikon by far is ahead of Sony.

spraynpray said:
I always wonder why people ask others which camera they should get? Others will tell you what camera they prefer - it's your dollar not theirs so why not settle down and handle both cameras and then be happy with your own decision?

People have both cameras in the club I belong to and they both take fine pictures so make your choice and pay your money.

No offense meant of course.

Thanks for your input. That's a fair statement.

My take is I ask because I want opinions from owners, biased or not. I don't just want a salesperson's input. I'm looking for "insights" and maybe even Customer Service or Support encounters from either company. I'm looking for useful information that will help me make a purchase decision.

Also because they are only $ 0.04 cents apart. The Sony A580L is $899.99 and the Canon D5100 is $899.95.
Tough call. I could go either way. Both are good. Both are 16.2MP DSLR shooters with 18-55mm lens. Very closely matched.

I'm upgrading from a Panasonic DMC FZ-30. I have no experience with Sony or Nikon. I know both are fine cameras. In fact either one would probably work just fine. But input from users/owners is helpful on some things I may have overlooked in my research or chats with salespeople.

Any constructive information you might have would be most useful. It might also be useful to others after me that may find themselves in the same situation.

I guess the answer to your question is - opionions/information - that's why people ask which camera to get. Useful information could help nudge the decision either way :)

Thanks again for your input :)

I always wonder why people ask others which camera they should get? Others will tell you what camera they prefer - it's your dollar not theirs so why not settle down and handle both cameras and then be happy with your own decision?

People have both cameras in the club I belong to and they both take fine pictures so make your choice and pay your money.

No offense meant of course.

I like both and am having a hard time deciding.
Both have in-camera HDR processing, SONY uses 3 shots and the 5100 uses 2 shots.

The Sony has an accessory vertical grip with spare battery.
Wish Nikon had that option too. They never made it for their 3000 & 5000 series cameras.

decisions decisions

The Sony has really bad ergonomics. It's a little better then previous models but still not as good as Nikon. The Sony's LCD screen only flips up or down and that's it. It isn't a variable pivot screen like Nikon's where you can position it to face up, down, left,or right.

Assuming everything is the same (or as close as possible) - we all know sony has been making sensors for Nikon for a while. I would definitely go with Nikon just because support that comes with it. The fact that Nikon sells tons more cameras more than Sony should tell you Nikon's doing something right. In addition to that - you get to more lenses to choose from, more accessories etc. for instance if you need to shoot a wedding and need to borrow somebodies gear, chances are they'll have nikon stuff before they'll have sony!!

you also realize that you'll get a very biased response here on a nikon forum? ;)

Well based on your description, they are the same except the D5100 has more (and probably better) lens options and it's a Nikon... D5100 wins! :D I may be a bit biased. :)

Seriously though, I don't know anything about the Sony but if the D5100 uses the same sensor as the D7000 (I think it does), then that's a big plus (unless the Sony also uses it). I would have high expectations for the durability and ergonomics of the Nikon. But again, I'm biased towards Nikon. Honestly they are probably both great cameras.

Sorry I don't think I helped at all.

Well, here's the BIG question: Nikon D5100 or SONY DSLR-A580???

Both cameras have almost the same body only and kit prices,
both are about the same size,
both have basically the same image sensor,
both have swivel screens.
Both have their own high tech features & effects.
The D5100 has more lens options.

Which one do you think is better??