Nikon D5000 impressions, head-to-head with D90

Nikon’s D5000 is a curious beast. It boasts an unorthodox model name, packs a strikingly unique display and aims at an atypically small niche. In a way, it’s a poor man’s D90, but stopping there would be selling this gem short. The D5000 kit, which ships with the same 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR lens that comes bundled with the D60 kit, sports an MSRP of $849.99, placing it squarely between the aforementioned D60 kit (currently streeting for $549.95) and the D90 kit (which can be found for around $1,150). ‘Course, the D90 kit lands you a nicer 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6G ED AF-S VR lens, a higher resolution rear LCD, a top-mounted display for showing vital statistics, a more rugged body and a few other internal upgrades. We’ve had some time to toy with Nikon’s latest, and we’ve laid out our impressions just past the break. Join us, won’t you?

Gallery: Nikon D5000 hands-on