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It’s a slower performing camera overall, mind you.
And with a time gap that large, this was never going to be a piecemeal generational update.
The Z5 has fallen in price since its 2020 launch and is excellent value today.
However, theres a healthy jump in the launch price of the Nikon Z5 II.
For some there may be enough of a gap to justify the old model.
But in 2025, a camera with 4.5fps burst shooting and a video limit of 4K/30?
The Z5 has fallen in price since its 2020 launch and is excellent value today.
The Nikon Z5 may be one compromize too many for some camera buyers.
As these are more affordable models, the most important bundle is the one with a mainstream kit lens.
In 2025 were paying $1,999.95 / 1,859 / AU$3,300 for a similar bundle.
We were able to find the original Z5 for substantially less online, though.
Design
The Nikon Z5 and Nikon Z5 II shells differ, but their control layouts are largely the same.
Theres no top-mounted display, which would be unusual in a camera of this class.
Look to the otherwise comparableNikon Z6 IIIif you want such a screen.
Dimensions and weight are almost identical too.
Both cameras also have dual UHS-II slots.
Both generations have 3.2-inch displays, but the resolution is bumped from 1.04m dots to 2.1m dots.
In pixel terms this is an upgrade from 720 x 480 pixels to something like 1020 x 680 pixels.
Its hinge brings the most impactful change, though.
And a faster sensor read-out massively improves burst shooting.
While 4.5fps is sufficient for plenty of styles of shooting, its quite remedial by todays standards.
Those two numbers are not a like-for-like comparison, though.
The mechanical shutter can run at 14fps for JPEGs, for 11fps for RAW images.
It is still dramatically faster than its predecessor, in part thanks to the upgraded EXPEED 7 processor.
Theres very little difference in native dynamic range, though.
The Z5 has fallen in price since its 2020 launch and is excellent value today.
Video
The Nikon Z5 II is a much more capable video shooter than the original Nikon Z5.
There are two key upgrades.
Just verify you dont skimp out when buying a UHS-II card to avoid headaches.
When shooting at 4K/60, theres a non-optional 1.5x crop.
This is whats required to use the raw sensor data, rather than downsampling from the full sensor width.
It had a 1.7x crop in that mode.
The Nikon Z5 II also gains proper slo-mo shooting, with a 120fps maximum frame rate at 1080p.
60fps is the top frame rate at 1080p for the Nikon Z5.
The Z5 offers a relatively paltry 4.5fps.
And that includes autofocus.
The Z5’s autofocus is much more basic.
Back in 2020, we were mostly hearing about face and eye tracking/detection with cameras like the Nikon Z5.
There are some notable changes in the EVF and rear display of the Nikon Z5 II.
It has 18, to the Nikon Z5s 11.
Brightness has been the key space for improvement in OLED panels over the last couple of years.
Theres unfortunately not going to be a major increase in battery life across these generations, though.
The two cameras use the same EN-EL15c battery.
The Nikon Z5 is rated at 470 shots (LCD) or 380 shots (viewfinder).
Early verdict
The Nikon Z5 II represents a massive upgrade over the Nikon Z5.
Its been a while.
The Nikon Z5 II is unlikely to take obviously better photos than the Nikon Z5 in perfect conditions.
They both have full-frame sensors of a similar resolution.
