- Conclusion Get the lowdown
- Features How they compare
- Performance Real world benchmarks
- Differences Technical showdown
- Reviews Word on the street
- Competition Others to consider
- Discussion Answers and opinions
Compare with...
- Sony NEX-5N
- Olympus PEN E-PM1
- Nikon 1 V1
- Olympus PEN E-PL5
- Nikon 1 J2
Rated 78% by by c|net (May, 2012)With a streamlined interface, small - but not too small - bodies, solid performance, and very good photo quality for a modest price, the consumer NEX models don't excel in any particular aspect but deliver a nice, well-rounded package for people searching for something better than a point-and shoot.
Conclusion Which is better for you?
Features Key features of the Sony NEX-F3 compared to the Nikon 1 J1
MP16
APS-C
Rated 74% by by DPReview (Aug, 2012)Add in some of the best photo quality of any budget ILC out there, and it looks like Sony has a winner on their hands.
10 MP
Nikon CX
Rated 100% by by Pedro-A.-VeraYou can also shoot fast speed videos at either 400 or 1200fps, which are encoded to be played at normal speed and yields some interesting slow motion effects.
megapixels
| 0 MP | 16 MP   | 20 MP |
NEX-F3 by c|net (May, 2012)After it crops the photo, Sony feels compelled to unnecessarily bloat it back up to 16 megapixels.
1 J1 by DPReview (Jan, 2012)That said, with an absolute resolution of approximately 2000 LPH (Lines Per Picture Height) their 10MP sensor does a decent, if not outstanding job in our resolution test, partly helped by fairly strong default sharpening.
sensor size
NEX-F3 by David-Pierce (Jun, 2012)That the Sony NEX-F3 has an updated 16.1-megapixel APS-C sensor isn't as important as it once was, but it still means the camera's capable of shooting better, more versatile pictures than a point-and-shoot.
1 J1 by Photography Blog (Oct, 2011)During the review, the Nikon 1 J1 captured images of very high quality, especially if you consider the size of its sensor.
body size
117 x 67 x 42 mm
106 x 61 x 30 mm
NEX-F3 by David-Pierce (Jun, 2012)Since most cameras have gray-on-gray, text-heavy menu systems, Sony's colorful icon-based interface is a definite breath of fresh air, though I'm not sure it works better in practice than the more boring options.
1 J1 by Photography Blog (Oct, 2011)With an essentially grip-less design, the Nikon J1 is very much a two-handed affair that requires you to hold the camera's weight in the left hand, clutching the lens, and use your right hand for balance and operating the controls.
focus points
| 0 | 135 | 200 |
NEX-F3 by DPReview (Aug, 2012)You'll have stereo sound, continuous autofocus, and use of the image stabilizer if your lens has one.
1 J1 by c|net (Sep, 2011)In the complete auto AF, it selects the focus points quickly, but inconsistently; for any given scene, it will choose different sets of points each time you prefocus.
Performance Real world tests of Sony NEX-F3 vs Nikon 1 J1
DxOMark image quality
NEX-F3 by DPReview (Aug, 2012)It has great photo quality, a complete set of features, and snappy performance.
1 J1 by DPReview (Jan, 2012)As we'd expect from Nikon's DSLR and Coolpix ranges the cameras' auto WB behavior consistently produces generally accurate colors and natural, attractive skin tones, too.
DxOMark low light performance
NEX-F3 by DPReview (Aug, 2012)I'm not as enthusiastic about the quality of this photo as I was the night shot, mainly due to the brownish color cast and overall soft appearance (though at least it's equally soft across the frame).
1 J1 by Cristina (Dec, 2011)I wanted a camera that takes good pictures at night and now I can say I've got one!
shutter lag
| 0 ms | 94 ms | 100 ms |
NEX-F3 by David-Pierce (Jun, 2012)There's virtually no shutter lag, as long as you half-press to focus before you try to snap a picture.
1 J1 by David-Pierce (Oct, 2011)The camera takes about two seconds to turn on, and then shoots with virtually no shutter lag or recycle time — though if you shoot continuously, the camera slows down significantly after about 40 shots.
continuous shooting
1 J1 by c|net (Sep, 2011)Smart Photo Selector is a point-and-shoot staple, which bursts 20 shots and then saves the best 5 as determined by your camera.
battery life
470 photos
230 photos
NEX-F3 by DPReview (Aug, 2012)While battery life is excellent, the camera's internal charging system is very slow, and prevents you from charging a spare (you'll need to buy an external charger for that).
1 J1 by Michael-Horn--mikie (Apr, 2012)After 9 days of continuous shooting using the built in flash - and HD video - the most disappointing feature was short battery life - the battery failing before my 8Gb video card was filled on one day - my purchase before the trip - much to my regret did not include a second battery.
Differences What are the advantages of each
Advantages compared to the Nikon 1 J1
| Significantly larger sensor | APS-C | vs | Nikon CX |
|---|---|---|---|
| More than 3x larger sensor; higher quality photos | |||
| Significantly better overall image quality | 73.0 | vs | 56.0 |
| More than 30% better image quality | |||
| Significantly higher resolution screen | 920 k dots | vs | 460 k dots |
| 2x higher resolution screen | |||
| Has a flash hot shoe | Proprietary | vs | Fewer choices in how to light your subject |
| Most cameras have a flash hot shoe; Connect a variety of external flashes for maximum lighting flexibility | |||
| Many more photos per charge | 470 | vs | 230 |
| 240 more shots; Longer battery life | |||
| Significantly higher light sensitivity | 16,000 ISO | vs | 3,200 ISO |
| 5x higher light sensitivity; Avoid blur in low light situations | |||
| Much less noise at high ISO | 1,114 ISO | vs | 372 ISO |
| Around 3x higher low light performance | |||
| Has a flip out screen | Yes | vs | No |
| Somewhat common; Great for recording movies | |||
| Create realistic 3D images | Yes | vs | No |
| Somewhat common; Create 3D photos to view on a 3D TV | |||
| Significantly faster benchmarked shot to shot times | 0.68 s | vs | 1,500 s |
| 2205.9x faster shot to shot; Take multiple consecutive photos quickly | |||
| Significantly higher resolution | 16 MP | vs | 10 MP |
| Around 60% higher resolution; Capture more detail, good for large prints | |||
| Significantly better dynamic range | 12.3 ev | vs | 11.0 ev |
| More than 10% better dynamic range | |||
| Significantly more contrast-detection focus points | 25 | vs | 0 |
| 25 more contrast detection focus points; Better autofocus in low light settings | |||
| More color depth | 22.7 bits | vs | 21.5 bits |
| Around 10% more color depth | |||
| Automatic panorama | Yes | vs | No |
| Somewhat common; Stitches together multiple photos into a single ultra-wide view | |||
| Shoots video in 24p | Yes | vs | No |
| Somewhat common; For that film look | |||
| Supports HDR | Yes | vs | No |
| Somewhat common; Combines multiple photos together to capture both bright and dark areas | |||
| Significantly more highly reviewed by consumers | 80.16% | vs | 72.61% |
| More than 10% more highly reviewed by consumers | |||
| Marginally more recently announced | May, 2012 | vs | Sep, 2011 |
| Announced date 7 months later | |||
Advantages compared to the Sony NEX-F3
| Much faster rapid fire | 60 fps | vs | 2.5 fps |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24x faster continuous shooting; Take photos in rapid succession to capture motion | |||
| Many more phase-detection focus points | 135 | vs | 0 |
| 135 more phase detection focus points; Faster autofocus in reasonably lit settings | |||
| Shoots high speed video | Yes | vs | No |
| Somewhat common; Create slow motion video | |||
| Slightly less delay taking photos | 94 ms | vs | 314 ms |
| 3.3x less shutter lag; Avoid missing spontaneous moments | |||
| Much faster max shutter speed | 1/16000 s | vs | 1/4000 s |
| 4x faster max shutter speed; capture fast action | |||
| Thinner | 30 mm | vs | 42 mm |
| Around 30% thinner | |||
| Smaller | 106 x 61 x 30 mm | vs | 117 x 67 x 42 mm |
| More than 40% smaller | |||
| Lighter | 277 g | vs | 314 g |
| More than 10% lighter | |||
Reviews Word on the street
Sony NEX-F3 | Nikon 1 J1 | ||
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 | Rated by 4 users at amazon.com Rated 100% by by Ron-G. (Jan, 2013) Rated 100% by by Chuckie-Wuckie (Oct, 2012) Rated 100% by by Loraine-Easterling (Mar, 2013) | Rated by 101 users at amazon.com Rated 80% by by Robert-Cullers--RCullers Rated 100% by by Ronald-M.-Piekosz--Human-Being (Mar, 2012) Rated 80% by by Kentucky-Rose | |
Competition What else you should consider
 | 1 | Sony NEX-5N Best image quality as rated by DXOMark |
 | 2 | Olympus PEN E-PM1 2-way tie: More contrast-detection focus points |
 | 3 | Nikon 1 V1 Has a viewfinder |
 | 4 | Olympus PEN E-PL5 Fastest to start up |
 | 5 | Nikon 1 J2 Many many cross-type focus points |
 | 6 | Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3 3-way tie: Has a touch screen |
 | 7 | Samsung NX1000 Largest sensor |
 | 8 | Nikon Coolpix P7700 2-way tie: Has an external mic jack |
Popular Questions
May 25, 2012
Ease of use, high quality photos, good portrait and landscape shots.
I am a beginner photographer and I take mostly photos of my family while on vacation. I would also like to be able to take some artistic photographs and abstract photographs as well.
Visitor
6
Answers Sony NEX-F3
Tim-Matthews 
Beginner II
The NEX-F3 is in general a better camera over the J. However the NEX-F5 is a better investment for the money. View Tim-Matthews's recommendation
- 0 comments
- May 25, 2012
- Reply to: Ease of use, high quality photos, good portrait and landscape shots.
Nikon 1 J1
AmiT-3G 
Beginner I
Nikon has many more available lenses than Sony View AmiT-3G's recommendation
- 0 comments
- May 25, 2012
- Reply to: Ease of use, high quality photos, good portrait and landscape shots.
