Nikon D3400 (Red): An entry level APS-C camera for everyday photography at an entry level price.
Features of note:
- A lower cost traditional DSLR with an APS-C sensor.
- The red color is pretty neat. It has a nice reflective sheen.
- It should be consistent and reliable. This line of camera has been offered a long time. I’ve used them in the past without issues.
- Ergonomics are solid considering the level of this camera. They have spent a long time revising this series of camera.
- Battery life is solid.
Features I’d like to see improved on:
- One control dial. You have to rely on the camera’s back screen a lot more than more expensive cameras in Nikon’s lineup. This is a standard omission in the D3000 series.
- No aperture control while recording video.
- No auto-focus motor for older D-type lenses.
- No high speed sync.
- Pentamirror viewfinder instead of Pentaprism.
- No MIC port. A downgrade over the D3300.
- Wireless is only bluetooth, so it will be slow and they limit uploads to 2mp in size.
Final thoughts?
Consider refurbished or used over this model. You could save a lot more money and not lose much feature wise at that low level. The outgoing model, D3300, isn’t much different. The Nikon D5000 series of cameras are a lot better feature wise. Get your hands on the camera and see if it feels like a good fit. This is really the most important aspect of a photographic tool. The camera is certainly good enough for most situations.