Nikon D3400, $650 entry dSLR, arrives with new AF-P series lenses

The Nikon D3300 has long been my go-to recommendation for a cheap dSLR, but after 2 years it's usually time to slap a new coat of paint on consumer products. Nikon's 2016 update to that camera, the D3400, has some small enhancements to bring it up to date, but nothing vital.

Along with the camera, Nikon has announced new kit lenses to accompany it. The 18-55mm versions of its new AF-P lenses -- they incorporate stepper motors like Canon's STM lenses for smoother and quieter focus in LCD-based Live View -- were announced in January and have been available in Europe and Australia, but they're finally making their US debut. Additionally, the company revealed another pair of 70-300mm AF-P lenses.

There are two versions of each of the two zooms, one with optical image stabilization (Nikon's Vibration Reduction, or VR) and one without; the names differ solely by the "VR" designation and $50 (a more significant £60 in the UK and as-yet unknown price in Australia). This is going to get really confusing for shoppers, who will, I bet, inadvertently end up buying the wrong kit.

The AF-P DX Nikkor 18-55mm f3.5-5.6G VR is $250 (£230, AU$200) while the non-VR version is $200 (£170; I don't see this version of the lens in Australia), and the AF-P DX Nikkor 70-300mm f4.5- 6.3G ED VR costs $400 (directly converted £307, AU$520), $350 (approximately £270, AU$455) for the nonstabilized one.

Nikon's initially offering two kits of the D3400, one with the 18-55mm VR lens for $650. The other option is a dual-lens kit with the VR version of the 18-55mm lens but the non-VR version of the 70-300mm. While that's a silly configuration -- stabilization on the lens where you don't need it and no stabilization on the one where you do -- it allows Nikon to hit its just-under-$1,000 price of...$999.95. I don't have overseas information yet, but those convert to approximately £500, AU$845 for the first kit and £770, AU$1,300 for the dual-lens kit.

What's new

• Sensor update. Though it's the same resolution as the D3300, the new sensor follows Nikon's trend of removing the low-pass filter (also known as the antialiasing filter) to deliver sharper photos. In fact, along with the update to the company's Expeed 4 imaging engine, it looks an awful lot like the imaging system that's in the D5300. It gives the camera a better noise profile, extended into what were the expanded regions on the D3300.
• Wireless support. No Wi-Fi here; Nikon's betting on Bluetooth to maintain a persistent low-power connection between the camera and your mobile device. That's fine given how lame the company's SnapBridge app is. Hopefully there'll be an iPhone/
  -compatible app by the time the camera ships, because there still isn't at the moment.
• Improved battery life. The D3400's extends to 1,200 shots from 700, despite using the same battery.

My take

Like Canon, Nikon is now in a position where its older, better cameras (in Nikon's case the D5300 from 2013) are cheaper than their cheap dSLRs -- which, by the way, also have old technology, but a 2016 date on them. The D5300 has better autofocus and metering systems, an articulated LCD and Wi-Fi. The Canon EOS Rebel T6/EOS 1300D is cheaper, but the D3400 has better hardware, so its real Canon competition is the old EOS Rebel T5i/700D, which, like the D5300, has better specs for the same price. Still, unless Nikon broke something, it should carry on the D3300's torch as a solid first dSLR.

Comparative specifications