When comparing Nikon D3200 vs Nikon D5300, the Slant community recommends Nikon D3200 for most people. In the question“What are the best DSLR cameras for beginners?” Nikon D3200 is ranked 4th while Nikon D5300 is ranked 6th. The most important reason people chose Nikon D3200 is:
The camera performs above it's price range, especially with a good lens in low ISO situations.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Great image quality
The camera performs above it's price range, especially with a good lens in low ISO situations.
Pro Long battery life.
The default batteries have a decent battery life, moreover, the batteries are cheap so you can have plenty of backup batteries in your set.
Pro Budget "Pro" for beginner "Pro"
The D3200 is great value for the money. The fact that it is old does not clear out its presence from the market. It is pocket-friendly with many pro features to get a beginner started.
Pro Geotags your photos
The camera can automatically add location information to images via the built-in GPS.
Pro Has a good flip out swivel-and-tilt screen
D5300 has a 3:2, 1.04M-dot swivel-and-tilt screen.
Pro Great dynamic range
According to tests performed by DxOmark D5300 has 13.86 stops of dynamic range in print and 13.06 stops on screen for images taken at 100 ISO. These are among the best results for cameras in this price range.
Pro Video autofocus
Pro Good AF point coverage
39 focus points with 19 points being cross-type making it easier to set the focus within the frame.
Pro Good video capabilities
Shoots up to 1080p60 resolution.
Pro Detailed images
The camera has a 24 MP CMOS sensor with an ISO range of 100 - 12800 (expandable up to 25,600).
Cons
Con Full potential of the camera is not realized with the kit lens
The sensor can capture more detail than the lens is letting through.
Con Can't control aperture in live view while shooting video
While shutter speed and exposure can be changed, aperture cannot.
Con Magnified live view lags quite a bit
The delay makes the zoomed in live view nearly unusable.