Nikon D60

Features
The megapixel count stays at 10.2 this time as well. Considering the segment this camera caters to, it's definitely not a bad thing. The improvement, however, comes in the form of EXPEED processing — Nikon's new image processing system that's used by heavyweight models such as the D3 and the D300.

A notable and long overdue addition is the new Airflow sensor cleaning system that comes on every time you turn the camera on or off. The effectiveness of this system may be debatable, but it's definitely better than nothing.

The kit lens (AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR) supports image stabilization. For those new to the Nikon entry-level cameras, one of the reasons these camera bodies are lower priced is because the autofocus mechanism has been moved to the AF-S and AF-I lenses instead. So while you can still attach the regular Nikkor AF (or compatible) lenses to the camera, you wouldn't be able to use autofocus with them. This would be a drawback if you're moving on from an older Nikon model to one of these, but considering that these cameras are clearly 'entry-level', experienced users with a pre-existing lens collection are clearly not a target.

Unfortunately Nikon decided to stick with the 3-point autofocus system with the D60. The competing brands in this category give you a minimum of 5-point autofocus, so I was really hoping Nikon would boost that in the D60.

There are quite a few additional bells and whistles in the D60, namely an auto rotating interface, JPEG post processing, and stop motion movie function, but the features that really make the camera interesting are in-camera RAW processing and Active-D lighting.

If you prefer shooting in RAW mode, chances are you'd appreciate a good RAW+JPEG mode in your camera. While the D60 does offer this, it surprisingly records JPEG in only the basic quality level in this setting. While it's okay for a preview, you'd have to process RAW into JPEG through Photoshop to make it usable. Just make sure you have the latest Camera Raw 4.4.1 plugin for Adobe Photoshop.

So, while there are enough good features to justify this camera, let's see how well it performs in our tests.