It’s camera season, which means every major camera maker is preparing to announce its products for the new year. It goes without saying that Sony’s bet on putting large APS-C image sensors in small camera bodies paid off. Sony’s lineup of NEX cameras are among the most popular mirrorless cameras. Compared to Olympus and Panasonic’s Micro Four Thirds cameras, Sony’s NEX cameras produce higher resolution pictures with greater clarity without the need for expensive lenses.
Late last year, Sony nixed the “NEX” branding in favor of “Alpha” (A). The new Sony A6000 is the successor to last year’s well-received NEX-6, which was in turn an update to the NEX-7. The biggest thing the A6000 has going for it is its Bionz X image processor and ultra-fast AF system. Sony claims the A6000 has the fastest AF system available, speedier than most pro DSLRs.
Camera geeks will find performance to be plenty acceptable: 24-megapixel APS-C sensor (up from 16.1-megapixels on NEX-6), ISO 100-25600, 179-point phase-detection AF (up from 99 on NEX-6), 25-point contrast-detection AF, 11 frames per second continuous shooting (up from 10 fps on NEX-6), and 1080p HD video recording at 60p and 24p (cinematic recording.
The A6000 also retains Wi-Fi connectivity, one-touch NFC smartphone/tablet pairing and the suite of PlayMemories Cameras apps. The software and UI on the A6000 has been tweaked, though. For instance, there’s a handy calendar view for easier photo viewing. The A6000’s 3.0-inch (921K-dot) LCD screen still tilts 90-degrees up and 45-degrees down, but sadly it still isn’t a touchscreen. Pro shooters will say a touchscreen isn’t necessary, but it’s undeniable that the feature is extremely useful and convenient. Sony’s latest flagship camera also has a built-in flash, which we presume can be be pulled back for bouncing, just like on the NEX-6/7.
The only real change that appears to be a step down on the A6000 is the electronic viewfinder’s resolution, which is SVGA OLED (800 x 600) compared to the XGA OLED (1024 x 768) on the NEX-6.
If you don’t mind the downgrade in EVF resolution, the A6000 is a killer camera that’s compatible with all existing E-mount lenses. It’s also reasonably priced at $799 with a 16-55 motorized zoom lens. The A6000 will be available in April in black or silver models.
Price: $799
Source: Sony
