Nikon 1 J5 Comparison Review

The Nikon 1 J5 is a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera that was announced in April 2015 and is equipped with an one-inch sensor. It offers a resolution of 20.7 megapixel.

Is the Nikon 1 J5 a good camera? The J5 has a Camera Elo of 2089. This rating puts the J5 below average of all mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (one inch cameras), the J5 also ranks below average. Based on its within category standings, the camera earns a 2.5-star performance rating. – Well, the Nikon 1 J5 is more than 9 years old, and there have been many other good digital cameras released since 2015.

Read on to find out more about the camera's size, sensor, features, reception by expert reviewers, and how it compares to other digital cameras.

Body comparison with a credit card

An illustration of the physical dimensions of the Nikon 1 J5 vis-à-vis a credit card is provided in the side-by-side display below. Three consecutive perspectives from the front, the top, and the back are presented. All size dimensions are rounded to the nearest millimeter.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the Nikon 1 J5 alongside a set of similar cameras. If you want to review a particular camera pair side-by-side, just move across to the CAM-parator tool and choose from the broad selection of possible comparisons there.

Body Specifications

		Camera Model	Camera Width	Camera Height	Camera Depth	Camera Weight	Battery Life	Weather Sealing	Camera Launch	Launch Price	Street Price
1.		Nikon 1 J5	98 mm	60 mm	32 mm	231 g	250	n	Apr 2015	US$ 399	ebay.com
2.		Canon G7 X	103 mm	60 mm	40 mm	304 g	210	n	Sep 2014	US$ 699	ebay.com
3.		Canon G9 X	98 mm	58 mm	31 mm	209 g	220	n	Oct 2015	US$ 529	ebay.com
4.		Canon G9 X Mark II	98 mm	58 mm	31 mm	206 g	235	n	Jan 2017	US$ 529	ebay.com
5.		Nikon 1 J4	100 mm	60 mm	29 mm	232 g	300	n	Apr 2014	US$ 549	ebay.com
6.		Nikon 1 V3	111 mm	65 mm	33 mm	381 g	310	n	Mar 2014	US$ 799	ebay.com
7.		Panasonic FZ1000	137 mm	99 mm	131 mm	831 g	360	n	Jun 2014	US$ 899	ebay.com
8.		Sony A5000	110 mm	63 mm	36 mm	269 g	420	n	Jan 2014	US$ 449	ebay.com
9.		Sony RX100 III	102 mm	58 mm	41 mm	290 g	320	n	May 2014	US$ 799	ebay.com
10.		Sony RX100 IV	102 mm	58 mm	41 mm	298 g	280	n	Jun 2015	US$ 999	ebay.com
11.		Sony RX100 V	102 mm	58 mm	41 mm	299 g	220	n	Oct 2016	US$ 999	ebay.com
Note: Measurements and pricing do not include easily detachable parts, such as add-on or interchangeable lenses or optional viewfinders.
Convert to Imperial

The listed prices provide an indication of the market segment that the manufacturer of the cameras have been targeting. The Nikon 1 J5 was launched in the US market at a price of $399. Usually, retail prices stay at first close to the launch price, but after several months, discounts become available. Later in the product cycle and, in particular, when the replacement model is about to appear, further discounting and stock clearance sales often push the camera price considerably down. Then, after the new model is out, very good deals can frequently be found on the pre-owned market.

Check J5 offers at
ebay.com

Sensor comparison with a 35mm slide

The size of the imaging sensor is a crucial determinant of image quality. A large sensor will generally have larger individual pixels that offer better low-light sensitivity, provide wider dynamic range, and have richer color-depth than smaller pixels in a sensor of the same technological generation. Further, a large sensor camera will give the photographer additional creative options when using shallow depth-of-field to isolate a subject from its background. On the downside, larger sensors are more costly to manufacture and tent to lead to bigger and heavier cameras and lenses.

The Nikon 1 J5 features an one-inch sensor and has a format factor (sometimes also referred to as "crop factor") of 2.7. Within the spectrum of camera sensors, this places the Nikon 1 J5 among the medium-sized sensor cameras that aim to strike a balance between image quality and portability.

Consistent information on actual sensor performance is available from DXO Mark for most cameras. This service is based on lab testing and assigns an overall score to each camera sensor, as well as ratings for dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), color depth ("DXO Portrait"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports"). The table below summarizes the physical sensor characteristics and sensor quality findings and compares them across a set of similar cameras.

Sensor Characteristics

		Camera Model	Sensor Class	Resolution (MP)	Horiz. Pixels	Vert. Pixels	Video Format	DXO Portrait	DXO Landscape	DXO Sports	DXO Overall
1.		Nikon 1 J5	1-inch	20.7	5568	3712	4K/15p	21.1	12.0	479	65
2.		Canon G7 X	1-inch	20.0	5472	3648	1080/60p	23.0	12.7	556	71
3.		Canon G9 X	1-inch	20.0	5472	3648	1080/60p	21.5	12.3	495	63
4.		Canon G9 X Mark II	1-inch	20.0	5472	3648	1080/60p	21.9	12.5	522	65
5.		Nikon 1 J4	1-inch	18.2	5232	3488	1080/60p	20.8	10.7	426	53
6.		Nikon 1 V3	1-inch	18.2	5232	3488	1080/60p	20.8	10.7	384	52
7.		Panasonic FZ1000	1-inch	20.0	5472	3648	4K/30p	22.1	11.7	517	64
8.		Sony A5000	APS-C	19.8	5456	3632	1080/60i	23.8	13.0	1089	79
9.		Sony RX100 III	1-inch	20.0	5472	3648	1080/60p	22.4	12.3	495	67
10.		Sony RX100 IV	1-inch	20.0	5472	3648	4K/30p	22.8	12.6	591	70
11.		Sony RX100 V	1-inch	20.0	5472	3648	4K/30p	22.8	12.4	586	70

Many modern cameras are not only capable of taking still images, but can also record movies. The J5 indeed provides movie recording capabilities. The highest resolution format that the J5 can use is 4K/15p.

Feature comparison

Apart from body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a range of features. The adjacent tables list some of the other core features of the Nikon 1 J5 along with similar information for a selection of comparators.

Core Features

		Camera Model	Viewfinder (Type or 000 dots)	Control Panel (yes/no)	LCD Specifications (inch/000 dots)	LCD Attach- ment	Touch Screen (yes/no)	Max Shutter Speed *	Max Shutter Flaps *	Built-in Flash (yes/no)	Built-in Image Stab
1.		Nikon 1 J5	none	n	3.0 / 1037	tilting	Y	1/4000s	60.0/s	Y	n
2.		Canon G7 X	none	n	3.0 / 1040	tilting	Y	1/2000s	6.5/s	Y	Y
3.		Canon G9 X	none	n	3.0 / 1040	fixed	Y	1/2000s	6.0/s	Y	Y
4.		Canon G9 X Mark II	none	n	3.0 / 1040	fixed	Y	1/2000s	8.2/s	Y	Y
5.		Nikon 1 J4	none	n	3.0 / 1037	Fixed	Y	1/4000s	60.0/s	Y	n
6.		Nikon 1 V3	optional	n	3.0 / 1037	tilting	Y	1/4000s	60.0/s	Y	n
7.		Panasonic FZ1000	2359	n	3.0 / 921	swivel	n	1/4000s	12.0/s	Y	Y
8.		Sony A5000	none	n	3.0 / 461	tilting	n	1/4000s	3.5/s	Y	n
9.		Sony RX100 III	1440	n	3.0 / 1229	tilting	n	1/2000s	10.0/s	Y	Y
10.		Sony RX100 IV	2359	n	3.0 / 1228	tilting	n	1/2000s	16.0/s	Y	Y
11.		Sony RX100 V	2359	n	3.0 / 1229	tilting	n	1/2000s	24.0/s	Y	Y
Note: *) Information refers to the mechanical shutter, unless the camera only has an electronic one.

The LCD screen on the Nikon 1 J5 is flexibly attached to the body. In particular, the LCD can be tilted vertically to facilitate odd-angle shots in landscape orientation. This tilting design is often preferred, for example, by street photographers to a fully articulated, swivel type of LCD attachment, as it is more unobtrusive during shooting than a screen that flips out to the side.

One convenient feature of the J5 is the presence of an on-board flash. While this built-in flash is not very powerful, it can at times be useful as a fill-in light to brighten deep shadow areas.

Connection comparison

For some imaging applications, the extent to which a camera can communicate with its environment can be an important aspect in the camera decision process. The table below provides an overview of the connectivity of the Nikon 1 J5 and, in particular, the interfaces the cameras (and selected comparators) provide for accessory control and data transfer.

Input-Output Connections

		Camera Model	Hotshoe Port	Internal Mic / Speaker	Microphone Port	Headphone Port	HDMI Port	USB Port	WiFi Support	NFC Support	Bluetooth Support
1.		Nikon 1 J5	-	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
2.		Canon G7 X	-	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
3.		Canon G9 X	-	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
4.		Canon G9 X Mark II	-	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	Y
5.		Nikon 1 J4	-	stereo / mono	-	-	mini	2.0	Y	-	-
6.		Nikon 1 V3	-	stereo / mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	Y	-	-
7.		Panasonic FZ1000	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
8.		Sony A5000	-	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
9.		Sony RX100 III	-	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
10.		Sony RX100 IV	-	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
11.		Sony RX100 V	-	stereo / mono	-	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-

It is notable that the J5 offers wifi support. Wifi can be a very convenient means to transfer image data to an off-camera location.

Further information on the features and operation of the J5 can be found in the free online Nikon 1 J5 Manual or on the Nikon support site.

Expert reviews

While the specs-based evaluation of cameras is instructive in revealing their potential as photographic tools, it remains incomplete and does no justice, for example, to the way the J5 handle or perform in practice. At times, user reviews, such as those published at amazon, address these issues in a useful manner, but such feedback is on many occasions incomplete, inconsistent, and unreliable. This is where reviews by experts come in. The following table reports the overall rankings of the cameras as published by some of the major camera review sites (amateurphotographer [AP], cameralabs [CL], digitalcameraworld [DCW], dpreview [DPR], ephotozine [EPZ], photographyblog [PB]).

Review Scores

		Camera   Model	AP   score	CL   score	DCW   score	DPR   score	EPZ   score	PB   score	Camera Launch	Launch Price	Street Price
1.		Nikon 1 J5	..	..	..	..	4.5/5	4.5/5	Apr 2015	US$ 399	ebay.com
2.		Canon G7 X	4/5	+ +	..	77/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Sep 2014	US$ 699	ebay.com
3.		Canon G9 X	3.5/5	+ +	..	..	4.5/5	4.5/5	Oct 2015	US$ 529	ebay.com
4.		Canon G9 X Mark II	4/5	..	4/5	75/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Jan 2017	US$ 529	ebay.com
5.		Nikon 1 J4	3/5	..	..	..	4.5/5	4/5	Apr 2014	US$ 549	ebay.com
6.		Nikon 1 V3	3/5	..	..	76/100	4.5/5	4/5	Mar 2014	US$ 799	ebay.com
7.		Panasonic FZ1000	4/5	+ +	..	82/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Jun 2014	US$ 899	ebay.com
8.		Sony A5000	3/5	+	..	..	4.5/5	4.5/5	Jan 2014	US$ 449	ebay.com
9.		Sony RX100 III	5/5	+ +	..	82/100	4.5/5	5/5	May 2014	US$ 799	ebay.com
10.		Sony RX100 IV	4.5/5	+ +	..	85/100	4/5	4.5/5	Jun 2015	US$ 999	ebay.com
11.		Sony RX100 V	4.5/5	+ +	..	83/100	4/5	4.5/5	Oct 2016	US$ 999	ebay.com
Note: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (..) not available.

The review scores listed above should be treated with care, though. The ratings were established in reference to similarly priced cameras that were available in the market at the time of the review. Thus, a score needs to be put into the context of the launch date and the launch price of the camera, and comparisons of ratings among very different cameras or across long time periods have little meaning. Also, kindly note that some of the listed sites have over time developped their review approaches and their reporting style.

Check J5 offers at
ebay.com

Camera to camera comparisons

If you would like to see a side-by-side review with another camera, just use the search menu below. There is also a set of direct links to comparison reviews that other users of the CAM-parator app explored.

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