Sony A6100 system camera

Sony A6100 - a new budget option

The Sony a6100 is a multi-purpose game in a compact package that won't blow your mind on a budget. 24.2 megapixel CMOS sensor and Bionz X processor, capture images with a wide sensitivity range and low noise. The combination of sensor and processor delivers UHD 4k video and continuous 11 fps shooting on moving objects. Real-time Eye AF and target tracking are also available for fast action. Focus is sharp in most situations.

Camera viewfinder is a 1.44 million dot OLED case, and gives you a nice view of the target. The rear display is a three-inch touch LCD with 921600 dots, and it's a tilting design, so working up and down is easy. The screen also tilts forward. The Sony a6100 includes Wi-Fi and Bluetooth so you can conveniently share footage wirelessly to your mobile device.

24.2MP Exmor CMOS sensor produces a clean image with a nice noise-free image quality and a sensitivity of between 100-32000, which can be extended to ISO 51200 when it's really dark. The sensor is unique in design thanks to its thin copper wiring, improved signal processing and LSI boosts the light gathering capability. The combination of the condenser and Bionz X allows a whopping 11 frames per second with burst AF and AE and allows shooting 14-bit RAW.

UHD 4K video recording is in XAVC S format. The internal recording is 30fps taken from a Super35mm area with an effective 6K resolution which is upsampled to 4k for maximum detail. No pixel binning is required and image quality is at its peak with no moiré and no saw blades. FullHD 1080p recording at 120fps is on offer, both resolutions using the 100 Mbps XAVC S codec in MP4 wrapper with 4:2:0 colour compression. 120fps translates to 4x and 5x slowdowns with the final product being 30p or 24p. In addition to high-resolution internal recording, you can record externally via HDMI with 4:2:2 colour compression. From 4k video you can also capture 8 megapixel stills from playback to a separate file.

4D FOCUS The system covers almost the entire area of the sensor, with 425 phase detect points and 425 contrast points capable of focusing in as little as 0.02 seconds. The density of focus points in this hybrid AF system make autofocus tracking very accurate and capable of tracking the subject in very difficult situations. Real-time Eye AF can be used when focusing on a subject's eyes (either human or animal) and works in both AF-S and AF-C modes. Thanks to the intermittent focus, you can also use A bayonet lenses with LA-EA3 or LA-EA1 adapters at full focus. In addition to autofocus, the Sony a6100 is equipped with a Peaking function in manual focus. The function highlights sharp edges so you can easily see which area of the image is sharp. Body design and built-in Wi-Fi. The SVGA Tru-Finder viewfinder has 1.44 million dots and a bright and clear image. In addition to the viewfinder, the camera has a three-inch touch LCD with a fairly adequate resolution of 921,000 dots.

The screen rotates up 180 degrees and down 74 degrees when you want to work up or down. The screen is equipped with White Magic technology (RGBW) which increases the brightness of the screen. The touchscreen allows you to move the focus point, for example, by simply touching the screen. A 3.5mm microphone port is integrated into the body for better sound recording. The included NP-FW50 rechargeable lithium-ion battery is sufficient for 420 images per charge (CIPA estimate, reality may be more).

Via USB you can transfer data to your computer. Speaking of data transfer, the built-in Wi-Fi lets you share images instantly to mobile devices. NFC (near field communication) support makes it easy to connect your traps. Once connected, you can view live images directly from your mobile device, control camera settings and trigger the camera. Bluetooth makes location data transfer painless.

More about the Sony a6100 camera can be found at Sony's from. If you're looking for a bigger and more versatile device, Sony's latest a6600 is a viable option.

Sony A6100 - specs

• APS-C (Sony E)
• Pixels: 24.2 Megapixels
• Maximum resolution: 6000 x 4000
• Aspect ratios: 1:1, 3:2, 16:9
• ISO: Auto, 100 - 32000 (Extended: 100 - 51200)
• Mechanical shutter speed: 1/4000 - 30 seconds
• Measurement: centre-weighted average, multi-zone, spot
• Exposure: Aperture Priority, Auto, Manual, Program, Shutter Priority
• Exposure compensation: -5 to +5 EV (1/3, 1/2 EV Steps)
• White Balance: Auto, Cloudy, Color Temperature, Custom, Daylight, Flash, Fluorescent (Cool White), Fluorescent (Day White), Fluorescent (Daylight), Fluorescent (Warm White), Incandescent, Shade, Underwater
• Continuous shooting: up to 11 fps @ 24.2 MP 33 exposures (Raw) up to 11 fps @ 24.2 MP 77 exposures (JPEG)
• Internal Video XAVC S UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 24.00p/25p/29.97p/100p/119.88p [60 to 100 Mb/s] Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 24.00p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [50 Mb/s] AVCHD Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 23.976p/50i/59.94i/59.94p [17 to 28 Mb/s]
• External video 4:2:2 8-Bit UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 24.00p/25p/29.97p Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 24.00p/50i/50p/59.94i/59.94p
• Recording limit: 29 Minutes, 59 seconds
• Built-in microphone (Stereo)
• External microphone (Stereo)
• Focus score: Phase Detection: 425 Contrast Detection: 425
• Detector resolution: 1,440,000 Dot
• Detector coverage: 100%
• Detector magnification approx: 0.7x
• Diopter Adjustment
• Screen size: 3″ 921,600 Dot
• Display type: 180° rotating touch LCD
• Flash sync: 1/160 seconds
• Memory card: SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Duo Hybrid (UHS-I)
• Connections: 3.5mm Microphone, HDMI D (Micro), Micro-B (USB 2.0)
• Wireless: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth
• Dimensions: 120 x 66.9 x 59.4 mm
• Weight: 396 g

See other Sony E / FE system cameras and accessories here