Nikon P950 vs Nikon D5500

Here is a detailed overview of the Nikon P950 and Nikon D5500, one being a Small Sensor Superzoom and the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR and they are both built by Nikon. There is a huge difference between the sensor resolutions of the P950 (16MP) and D5500 (24MP) and the P950 (1/2.3") and D5500 (APS-C) posses different sensor dimensions.

Photography Glossary

The P950 was launched 5 years later than the D5500 and that is quite a significant gap as far as tech is concerned. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Nikon P950 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera and the Nikon D5500 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before going into a step-by-step comparison, here is a concise introduction of how the P950 scores against the D5500 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

Following is a preview of the gallery photos for Nikon Coolpix P950 and Nikon D5500. The complete galleries are viewable at Nikon P950 Gallery and Nikon D5500 Gallery.

If you are going to carry your camera, you will want to consider its weight and measurements. The Nikon P950 comes with outside dimensions of 140mm x 110mm x 150mm (5.5" x 4.3" x 5.9") accompanied by a weight of 1005 grams (2.22 lbs) while the Nikon D5500 has proportions of 124mm x 97mm x 70mm (4.9" x 3.8" x 2.8") along with a weight of 420 grams (0.93 lbs).

Look at the Nikon P950 and Nikon D5500 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Bear in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you have chosen at that moment. Here is a front view over all size comparison of the P950 and the D5500.

Using size and weight, the portability rating of the P950 and D5500 is 52 and 71 respectively.

Oftentimes, it is tough to imagine the contrast between sensor sizing simply by looking at a spec sheet. The graphic here should give you a better sense of the sensor dimensions in the P950 and D5500.

Clearly, each of these cameras have different resolutions and different sensor sizing. The P950 because of its tinier sensor is going to make achieving shallower depth of field more challenging and the Nikon D5500 will resolve greater detail utilizing its extra 8MP. Higher resolution can also make it easier to crop shots a bit more aggressively. The fresher P950 provides an edge with regard to sensor tech.