Nikon Launches D3200 for Rs 48,950

If you are someone eager to get your hands dirty with photography, but cannot afford to spend a lot, the D3200 is a great starter camera. The AF-S 18-55mm VR lens is not all that bad either in good lighting, but at the end of the day, you get what you pay for.
Pros:

• Cheap price [Rs 32,250, body only; Rs 37,950 (with AF-S 18-55mm VR Kit Lens); Rs 48,950 (with AF-S 18-105mm VR Kit Lens))]
• 24 megapixel sensor renders low noise and great detail
• Good movie quality

Cons:

• ISO performance tops out at 6400
• Flash performance not good for close-up shooting
• Tiny body doesn't balance well with pro-grade lenses

After almost two years of being the entry-level photographer's friend, Nikon has replaced the D3100 with the updated D3200. Of all the updates the new camera brings with it, the most notable would definitely be the new 24 megapixel sensor. When the D3200 was announced, many assumed that the sensor at the heart of the camera was the same found in Sony's Alpha 77 (the first APS-C camera with a 24 megapixel camera), but it turns out, Nikon has placed its own sensor in the D3200.
However, the sensor isn't the only aspect about the camera to receive an update. Several smaller, but important aspects of the camera have been greatly improved on to make the Nikon D3200 a camera that can stand on its own in the entry-level segment.
 
Build and ergonomics
For a reason that effectively continues to elude us, we can't fathom why entry-level cameras are so tiny! The Canon SX40 HS is as big (in fact, thicker by 2mm) as the Nikon D3200, and it's only a super zoom camera. We often hope that something about the look and feel would distinguish a DSLR from a point and shoot, but oh well.
The D3200 didn't fit well into our hands at all, but that's not because it has bad ergonomics, but because it's just too small to fit into normally-sized hands. However, placing the camera in smaller hands led us to believe that the ergonomics of the camera are indeed quite comfortable.
This is definitely going to be a pain to shoot with if you have medium to large (to ginormous) hands, but if your forelimbs fall in the category of 'tiny', then you will totally be at ease with the D3200.

There aren't a whole lot of buttons on this little puppy (which is a good thing because, well, we wonder where would Nikon fit them). There's the usual slew of buttons that allow you access to menus, playback, navigation and magnification placed quite neatly on the back (again, the placement is more fitting for someone with small hands). There is also a dedicated live-view button, which we quite liked.
The 'start-stop' button for video recording remains a dedicated button on the top of the camera, next to the shutter release.
The D3200 is constructed out of high-grade polycarbonate, giving it a tough, but light build. However, a lack of weather sealing, even on the battery door and shutter button, is definitely a letdown for the dirt-laden and humid conditions available in India. While expecting professional grade weather sealing on a basic entry-level camera is nothing short of ludicrous, we did hope that manufacturers would at least introduce some level of weather protection on these cameras.