Full-frame is the most popular sensor format today, but you don’t have to spend big to bag a camera with this tech. Take the Z5 – Nikon’s cheapest full-frame mirrorless camera which has returned to record low prices – just $996.95 at Adorama (was $1,396.95) in the US for the body only, or $1,296.95 with a 24-50mm lens.
In the UK, it’s just £1,082 at Amazon for that camera and lens bundle, or £1,399 at Amazon with the versatile 24-200mm lens (was £2,089). Bargain.
Being five years old, the Nikon Z5 is a little long in the tooth now, but it’s still a top-rated full-framer for beginners, with 24MP stills, 3.69m-dot EVF, tilt touchsreen and weather-sealed body.
We think the low prices correlate with rumors of the Z5’s successor, which will presumably be called the Nikon Z5 II. Details of the rumored upgrade are thin on the ground, but we can make some educated guesses of what could come based on cameras that have been launched since, such as the Nikon Z6 III and Nikon Z50 II.
If you’re looking for a cheap full-frame camera, what should you do? Buy the Nikon Z5 in the superb deals listed below, or wait for more news about the Z5 II? Let’s take a look.
Note that you can also find this same Z5 body-only deal at B&H Photo and with the 24-50mm lens too.
Best Nikon Z5 deals
Buy the Z5 now, or wait to see what the rumored Z5 II is like?
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Nikon Rumors reckons that Nikon will have a quiet year, but that the Z5 II could come as early as May 2025. It makes sense for the Z5 II to be the next Nikon camera – the Z5 is the model that’s most overdue an upgrade, but there’s no guarantee that these rumors are correct.
If we imagine that a Z5 II is en route, how much could it cost, and what upgrades could we expect?
At the time of writing, the Z5 with 24-50mm lens is around $1,300 / £1,200 at several leading retailers, while the Nikon Z6 III, which is the next model up, is around $2,200 / £2,200 for the body only. A would-be Z5 II would likely split the difference, coming in for something like $1,700 / £1,600 with kit lens.
As for the upgrades, we’d expect a similar approach to how the crop-sensor Z50 II upgraded the Z50. That is, no change in resolution, so in the case of the Z5 II another 24MP sensor and no real image quality improvements for stills-focused users.
However, an expected Z5 II could feature Nikon’s latest Expeed 7 processor and autofocus system, like the crop-sensor Z50 II did, meaning much better all-round speed, subject detection autofocus, quicker burst shooting speeds and powerful video performance.
There could also be a Picture Control button for direct access to color profiles, together with app compatibility and the option to download Creator Recipes for different looks.
This is all speculation for now. Whether those potential upgrades are worth waiting for depend on what kind of use you’ll have with the camera and if you are willing to spend what would likely be an extra $400 / £400.
