Instax Mini 12vs D5
Fujifilm
Instax Mini 12 (2023)
Starting from £80 new
Best for Beginners, parties & gifting
View Instax Mini 12
Nikon
D5 (2016)
Starting from £1800 new
Best for Professional Sports, Photojournalism & Wildlife
View D5
GearScore™ Verdict — Which should you buy?
Beginners, Parties & Gifting — Instax Mini 12 (2023): The perfect starter instant camera — effortless to use, great colours, and comes in beautiful pastel shades.
Professional Sports, Photojournalism & Wildlife — D5 (2016): Nikon's ultimate pro DSLR and a certified space traveller — the D5's 153-point AF, 12fps, and ISO 3,280,000 made it the weapon of choice for Olympic and space photography.
Who should buy what
Instax Mini 12 (2023)
- Complete beginners wanting their first instant camera
- Anyone buying an instant camera as a gift
- Party hosts who want to hand out physical prints on the night
- Kids and teenagers who want a fun, colourful camera
D5 (2016)
- Sports and wildlife photographers with an F-mount telephoto investment
- Photojournalists who need the fastest, most reliable DSLR AF available
- Nikon system professionals looking for a flagship body at used prices
- Collectors of cameras with a documented space pedigree
Quick take: The instax mini 12 is the most affordable; only the d5 is weather sealed. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.
Full specifications
| Specification | Instax Mini 12 (2023) | D5 (2016) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £80 | £1,800 |
| Sensor | Instax Mini film (62 × 46mm image area) | 20.8MP full-frame BSI CMOS |
| Resolution | — | 20.8MP |
| Video | N/A — instant film camera | 4K UHD 30fps (heavy sensor crop) |
| Autofocus | Fixed focus (0.3m–∞ standard; 0.3–0.5m in close-up mode) | Multi-CAM 20K 153-point AF system, 99 cross-type |
| Stabilisation | N/A | — |
| Burst Rate | N/A | 12fps mechanical |
| Battery Life | 2× AA alkaline batteries (~100 shots) | ~3780 shots (CIPA) |
| Weight | ~293g (with batteries, without film) | 1405g (body only) |
| Dimensions | 107.6 × 121.7 × 67.3mm | 160 × 158.5 × 92mm |
| Weather Sealed | No | Yes |
| Viewfinder | Real-image optical viewfinder (0.37×) | OVF 0.72× magnification, 100% coverage |
| Screen | N/A | 3.2" tilting touchscreen, 2.36M dots |
| Mount | Instax Mini film pack (10 shots per pack) | Nikon F mount |
| Memory Cards | N/A — instant film only | Dual XQD slots (XQD variant) |
| Connectivity | N/A | Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ethernet (RJ-45), USB 3.0 |
Suitability by genre
| Genre | Instax Mini 12 | D5 |
|---|---|---|
| Parties & Events | — | |
| Travel | — | |
| Portrait | ||
| Everyday | — | |
| Low Light | — | |
| Landscape | ||
| Sports & Action | — | |
| Wildlife | — | |
| Wedding & Events | — | |
| Street | — |
GearScore™ suitability scores are based on aggregated purchaser reviews weighted by photography genre. See how scores are calculated →
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Camera family history