Nikon D780 vs Nikon D850

In this comparison, we will evaluate the Nikon D780 and the Nikon D850, highlighting the advantages of each over the other, discussing their pros and cons, shared strengths and weaknesses, and providing a rating based on their available features and specifications to assist you in choosing the one that best suits your needs.

Nikon D780 was introduced in January 2020 and Nikon D850 was introduced in August 2017. Let us first list highlights of the models.

Now that we've looked at the most essential specifications and gained a basic understanding of these cameras, we can delve into more details and see the differences between them.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Nikon D780 over Nikon D850.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Nikon D850 over Nikon D780.

We already listed pros and cons of each model. However, you may also find useful to look at their common strengths and weaknesses shown side-by-side.

Screen

Nikon D780 and Nikon D850 have 3.2" Tilting screens with 2,359k dot resolution. Tilting screen makes cameras very useful for photography purposes but not so useful for video shooting. Both models feature touchscreen which has advantages such as easy menu navigation, intuitive controls, quick setting adjustment and most importantly a Touch-to-Focus functionality allowing users to select a specific point on the screen where they want the camera to focus. This feature can be helpful for achieving precise focus in both photo and video recording.

Viewfinder

Cameras have built-in Optical (pentaprism) viewfinders. They both have 100% coverage.

BSI-CMOS Sensor

Nikon D780 features a 24.5 megapixel Full Frame BSI-CMOS sensor with dimensions of 35.9 x 23.9 mm and a total area of 858 mm². Its native ISO range is 100 - 51,200 and expands to 50 - 204,800 in boosted mode. Nikon D850 features a 45.7 megapixel Full Frame BSI-CMOS sensor with dimensions of 35.9 x 23.9 mm and a total area of 571.2 mm². Its native ISO range is 64 - 25,600 and expands to 32 - 102,400 in boosted mode.

The cameras have BSI-CMOS sensor, short for Backside Illuminated Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor sensor. In traditional CMOS sensors, the wiring and circuitry are located on the front side of the sensor, which can block some of the incoming light. BSI technology flips this design by placing the photosensitive elements (pixels) on the backside of the sensor, allowing more light to reach the pixels. This significantly enhances light sensitivity and improves low-light performance. BSI-CMOS sensors are particularly effective in low-light conditions, as they can capture more light, resulting in brighter and less noisy images. This makes them well-suited for indoor and night photography. BSI-CMOS sensors deliver a higher SNR and reduced cross-talk.

Here is a sensor size comparison chart where you can see how different sensors compare with each other:

Sensor size chart

	Sensor	Dimensions	Area	Aspect Ratio	Crop Factor
	Medium Format	44 x 33 mm	1452 mm2	4:3	0.79x
	Full Frame	36 x 24 mm	864 mm2	3:2	1x
	APS-H	27 x 18 mm	486 mm2	3:2	1.3x
	APS-C	23.6 x 15.6 mm	368.2 mm2	3:2	1.5x
	APS-C (Canon)	22.3 x 14.9 mm	332.3 mm2	3:2	1.6x
	Micro Four Thirds	17.4 x 13 mm	226.2 mm2	4:3	2x
	1-inch	13.2 x 8.8 mm	116.2 mm2	3:2	2.7x
	1/1.7-inch	7.44 x 5.58 mm	41.5 mm2	4:3	4.7x
	1/2.3-inch	6.17 x 4.55 mm	28.1 mm2	4:3	5.6x

Nikon D780 is equipped with EXPEED 6 processor and can take pictures up to 6048 x 4024 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 3936 x 2624 (DX crop) with 1:1, 3:2, 16:9 aspect ratios. Nikon D850 is equipped with EXPEED 5 processor and can take pictures up to 8256 x 5504 resolution.

Lens Mount

Cameras have Nikon F lens mount. Due to their Full Frame sensor their crop factor (also called lens multiplier) is equal to 1x. This means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length.

No Low-Pass Filter on Nikon D850

There is no optical low-pass filter (OLPF), also known as an anti-aliasing filter, in front of the sensor on Nikon D850. This results in a slightly sharper image but may also introduce moiré patterns and aliasing artifacts when photographing subjects with fine, repetitive patterns or details.

No Image Stabilization

The cameras do not have image stabilization. On Nikon D780 it means that you need lenses with optical image stabilization for vibration reduction. As for Nikon D850 nothing can be done. On Nikon D850 it means that you need lenses with optical image stabilization for vibration reduction. As for Nikon D780 nothing can be done.

Built-in Wi-Fi

Cameras have built-in Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n 2.4 GHz on Nikon D780, 802.11b/g 2.4 GHz on Nikon D850) which allows to easily transfer photos and videos from the camera to other Wi-Fi-enabled devices, such as smartphones, tablets, printers, or computers. This eliminates the need for cables and allows for quick and convenient media sharing and social media integration. It gives you the ability to control your camera remotely using a smartphone or tablet. This is particularly useful for taking self-portraits, group shots, or capturing images in challenging conditions without having to touch the camera. Firmware updates can also be downloaded and installed wirelessly.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in WiFi.

Bluetooth

Nikon D780 and Nikon D850 have built-in Bluetooth (version 4.1 on Nikon D780, version 4.1 LE on Nikon D850) which lets you to connect the camera to a smartphone or a dedicated remote control device. This allows you to remotely trigger the camera, adjust settings and controls remotely through a paired mobile app. While Wi-Fi is generally faster for transferring larger files, Bluetooth can be used for small, selective transfers, it can provide real-time information about your camera's battery status, memory card capacity, and other key settings directly on your paired smartphone or smartwatch.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in Bluetooth.

NFC on Nikon D850

Nikon D850 has Near Field Communication (NFC) technology which simplifies the process of pairing it with other NFC-enabled devices like smartphones or tablets. It allows to quickly transfer photos and videos or remotely control the camera from compatible device. NFC can also be used for authentication and security purposes. It can verify your identity before accessing certain features or transferring sensitive data. It can be used with NFC-enabled accessories as well, such as lenses, flashes and GPS devices.

USB Inputs and HDMI Outputs

Both models have USB 3.2 Gen 1x1 (5 GBit/sec) inputs for data transfer. Nikon D780 has a Mini HDMI and Nikon D850 has a Mini HDMI connector for video signal output.

Battery

Nikon D780 comes with EN-EL15b battery pack with battery life of 2260 shots and Nikon D850 comes with EN-EL15a battery pack with battery life of 1840 shots.

External Storage Slots

Nikon D780 has Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-II) card slots. Nikon D850 has two card slots - one for SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-II) and one for CFexpress Type B / XQD.

Shutter

Nikon D780 and Nikon D850 have Electronic shutter and Mechanical Focal Plane. shutter. Shutter speed can go up to 1/8000 sec on Nikon D780, and up to 1/8000 sec on Nikon D850. Nikon D780 can shoot continuously up to 12.0 fps. Nikon D850 can shoot continuously up to 7.0 fps.

Focusing

Nikon D780 has 51 (15 cross-type) focusing points and Nikon D850 has 153 (99 cross-type) focusing points. Nikon D780 has detection range from -3 to +19 EV and Nikon D850 has detection range from -4 to +20 EV.

Exposure

Both cameras' exposure metering ranges from -3 to +20 EV and you can set the exposure compensation within the ±5 EV range on Nikon D780 and ±5 EV range on Nikon D850. You can also do exposure lock, exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Nikon D780 and exposure lock, exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Nikon D850.

Flash

Cameras have no built-in flash but an external flash may be connected to both of them via Hot Shoe to Nikon D780 and via Hot Shoe or PC Terminal to Nikon D850. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/200 sec on Nikon D780 and 1/250 sec on Nikon D850.

Nikon D780 body has dimensions of 144 x 116 x 76 mm (5.67 x 4.57 x 2.99") and Nikon D850 body has dimensions of 146 x 124 x 79 mm (5.75 x 4.88 x 3.11"). Nikon D780 weighs 840 g (1.85 lb / 29.63 oz) and Nikon D850 weighs 1005 g (2.22 lb / 35.45 oz).

Nikon D780

Nikon D850

144 mm

116 mm

146 mm

124 mm

116 mm

124 mm

76 mm

79 mm