Sony is so closely associated with full-frame mirrorless cameras that it’s easy to forget that it also sells the A6000 APS-C range – especially since the last one, the A6600, came out five long years ago in 2019. The flagship A6700 finally arrived last year however, with a feature list that seems to have been worth the wait.
It’s the same price as the A6600 was when it launched four years ago, but it addresses its predecessor’s main shortcomings by upping the resolution a bit and reducing the shutter. At the same time, it has been likened to a mini-FX30 cinema camera, as it has the same sensor and video capabilities.
I’ve never been a big fan of Sony’s A6000 series. But now that the A6700 has been out for a while, I wanted to see if it lived up to some of the hype and how it compared to competing models from Canon and Fujifilm. As you’ll see, it’s mostly good news with some bad news.
Sony
The A6700 is Sony’s first APS-C mirrorless hybrid camera in years, but it was worth the wait. It greatly reduces the rolling shutter that was a problem point in previous models, while improving image sharpness. It’s also an excellent camcorder with 4K at up to 120fps and 10-bit log capture. The main downside is that burst speeds are well behind the competition, especially in electronic shutter mode
- Excellent video capabilities
- Accurate autofocus
- Improved management
- A minimal roller blind
- Good image quality
- Slow burst rates
- Overheating
Body and handling
One of the things I’ve disliked about Sony’s APS-C bodies over the years is the usability and appearance, especially compared to Fujifilm’s good-looking and easy-to-use models. I wouldn’t call the A6700 beautiful, but at least Sony fixed the control part.
The redesigned grip is larger and more comfortable, making it more comfortable to use throughout the day. At the same time, Sony added a new control dial on the front, making the camera easier to use in manual or priority mode.
It includes a new dedicated Photo, Video and S&Q drive that lets you save settings separately for each. The menus are also a big step forward, as the A6700 uses the improved system from the last full-frame models. The only thing missing is a joystick, but the focus point can be adjusted using the d-pad-like dial on the back.
The A6700 is also Sony’s first APS-C camera with an articulating display, so it’s better for vloggers than the rotating display of previous models. The relatively low resolution EVF is a weak point as it is sometimes difficult to check focus, but it does the job most of the time. .
Another downside is the single card slot, but at least it supports high-speed UHS-II cards. Fortunately, it has the same large battery as the full-frame models, giving it an excellent CIPA rating of 570 shots.
Other features include microphone and headphone ports (along with support for Sony’s hot-shoe audio accessories), a USB-C port for charging and data transfer, and an HDMI port. The latter, unfortunately, is of the clumsy and flimsy micro variety.
All of this adds up to a 6000 series camera that I would be happy to use for most types of work. I used to find these models not suitable for work, especially for video.
productivity
Performance, however, is more of a mixed bag. Lossless RAW bursts are possible at speeds up to 11 frames per second, in either mechanical or electronic shutter mode. This compares to 15 and 30 fps for the similarly priced Canon EOS R7 and 15/20 fps for the Fujifilm X-T5. This is quite a deficit considering that the latter two have much higher resolution sensors.
The A6700 only stores up to 36 compressed RAW frames before the buffer fills, compared to the A6600’s 45 and comparable competitors. Based strictly on speed, however, the R7 and X-T5 are better action cameras.
Fortunately, autofocus is superb, and that’s perhaps more important for a consumer camera. In continuous mode, you’ll get reliable results even with fast-moving subjects. And AI tracking locks onto eyes and faces, ensuring you don’t miss important shots of rambunctious kids, soccer matches, and more.
It also works with planes, animals, birds, cars or trains and insects. Unlike Canon’s automatic system, however, you have to tell the A6700 exactly what you’re tracking. Once you get it set up the way you want, though, it’s slightly more reliable than Canon’s system and significantly better than the X-T5.
Five-axis in-body stabilization is good but not great, offering 5 stops compared to 8 on the EOS R7 and 7 on the Fuji X-T5. Still, I was able to get clear shots down to about an eighth of a second.
Rolling shutter was my main complaint with the A6600, but now it’s much improved and about as good as you can get without a stacked sensor. It’s still there though, so you’ll want to use the mechanical shutter for fast-moving objects like propellers and trains.
Image quality
With a new 26-megapixel sensor, the A6700 captures more detail than previous 24-megapixel models. However, as mentioned, it falls short compared to the 32.5-megapixel Canon R7 and 40-megapixel X-T5.
Colors are mostly spotty, but I still prefer Canon’s skin tones. JPEGs look good out of camera if a touch too sharp. With 14-bit RAW uncompressed files, I found plenty of room to adjust and tweak images, reduce highlights or add detail to shadows. Note that when shooting burst, RAW files are only captured with 12-bit color accuracy.
It benefits from the lower resolution. The A6700 is better in low light than the competition, with noise well controlled up to ISO 6400. Images are usable up to ISO 12800, but anything above the ISO 102,400 limit is for emergency use only. It’s best to focus on shadow exposure at high ISOs, as raising them even a few stops creates excessive noise.
Video
The A6700 is so far above its predecessor for video that it’s pointless to compare them. Rather think of it as cheaper, a smaller FX30 cinema camera with the same image quality. The main difference is that the A6700 doesn’t have the same cooling capability, as I’ll discuss shortly.
It takes parts of the full width of the sensor for 4K at 30 and 60 fps, so video is sharper than the X-T5 or R7. And the A6700 beats both models by having a 4K 120fps mode, although it’s cropped significantly at 1.58x.
Due to the relatively small body and lack of fans, you have to watch out for overheating at 120p as it will shut down after 20-30 minutes. For indoor shooting, you can usually shoot up to 4K 60p without any stutter with the ‘auto power temp’ setting on ‘high’. However, outside on a hot day you may reach the limits and have to wait for the camera to cool down.
Like the FX30, you can shoot all 10-bit video modes with S-Log3 capture. You can also load your own LUTs to make the footage easier to view, or bake it into the final image.
Rolling shutter is still there, so you still have to be careful with spinning pans, fast objects, and the like. It’s much less annoying than Sony’s previous crop sensor models, though.
It has a video feature that the FX3 actually lacks, namely auto-framing. This is handy for vloggers as it can turn on and follow them as they move around the frame – with less loss of quality than the ZV-E1 (this feature is finicky on the A6700 so be sure to test it first ). It also offers focus compensation that digitally eliminates breathing, and again, this extra resolution compared to the ZV-E1 results in a sharper result.
Video stabilization isn’t as good as the ZV-E1, though. Active mode is fine for manual use and slow panning, but doesn’t do much to smooth out steps and adds 1.13x cropping.
As for video quality, you see the same accurate colors and stable low-light capability as you do with photos. The 10-bit log options allow a lot of flexibility in publishing, especially with contrast images.
Summary
The A6700 is by far Sony’s best APS-C camera to date, excelling in both stills and video and offering much better performance. While it’s much more capable than the A6600, it has the same $1,400 price tag.
As a camera, it is slower than its main competition, the Canon R7 and Fujifilm X-T5, so these models are better for shooting action. However, the Sony’s autofocus is slightly better, and faster bursts are useless if the photos are not sharp.
As a camcorder, however, it beats its main rivals across the board. Overall, this is a great option for content creators or hybrid shooters who prefer video but do some photography. If that’s you, I would highly recommend it.
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