Sony A7 IV Unveiled: 33MP Sensor & ISO 200,000!

[KeithDM]

On the Sony Alpha forum.

Sony finally presents the Sony A7 IV, the successor to the basic model of the Sony A7 series.

It is to be launched on the market in December and will cost €2,800 / £2,400 / $ 2,498.

Already available for pre-order at B&H!

Sony A7 IV At A Glance

• Newly developed 33MP sensor
• BIONZ XR processor
• 15+ stops dynamic range
• 10 fps continuous shooting speed
• Buffer for up to 830 JPG+RAW
• Max sensitivity ISO 204,800
• Eye AF, Animal Eye AF
• Focus Map visualises focus planes
• EVF w/ 3.69 MP and 120 fps frame rate
• 4k30 video oversampling from 7K
• 4k streaming (and FHD 60p streaming)
• S-Cinetone, 10-bit 4:2:2 HLG, All-I XAVC S-I, S-log3
• Image stabiliser w/ 5.5 EV
• 5GHz Wi-Fi
• USB 10Gbps live streaming
• Battery capacity 610 shots
• Body design like A7 SIII
• Swivel display
• Switch between photo, video and "Slow & Quick" mode
• Improved touchscreen functions
• UHS-II SD and CF Xpress

 

[ggibson]

The A7IV has a lot of small improvements, but nothing mind-blowing to me. I'm considering upgrading my A7rII, but a used A9 or A7rIV fall in roughly the same price range. Those have more obvious advantages like a stacked sensor/fast e-shutter or much higher resolution sensor.

 

[Jorgen Udvang]

It's interesting to follow the comments on this highly anticipated launch. Although the improvements of the Mark IV are substantial, it's questionable if they are enough reason to upgrade for most stills photographers, and the comments reflect that. For video it's different, and this camera is on another level compared to the Mark III, but also here, the ceiling that represents useful improvements for normal enthusiasts is getting closer. I have a feeling that the reason for the higher price compared to the previous model is mainly that Sony expects to sell fewer units, so needs to earn more from each camera.

Competition in this class of camera must be almost unbearable. Not only are the similarly priced mirrorless cameras from competitors very good, but even at this level, camera phones start to challenge, including Sony's own Experia 1 series. Add to that advanced software like DxO's PureRAW, which makes older cameras shine like never before, and mainstream "traditional" mirrorless cameras are in for a tough future.

 

[iiiNelson]

Looks like a solid addition but I’m also am not the targeted demographic for this type of camera I assume. Personally people buy full frame cameras for a variety of reasons. Seeing the video needing to go to an APS-C crop for high frame rate video is a pet peeve of mine personally. Either the body needs active cooling, a larger surface area, or something to mitigate having to deal with these compromises. Probably won’t matter for a lot of people but it is a pain point with most FF hybrid cameras on the market.

 

[pegelli]

It's interesting to follow the comments on this highly anticipated launch. Although the improvements of the Mark IV are substantial, it's questionable if they are enough reason to upgrade for most stills photographers, and the comments reflect that. For video it's different, and this camera is on another level compared to the Mark III, but also here, the ceiling that represents useful improvements for normal enthusiasts is getting closer. I have a feeling that the reason for the higher price compared to the previous model is mainly that Sony expects to sell fewer units, so needs to earn more from each camera.

Competition in this class of camera must be almost unbearable. Not only are the similarly priced mirrorless cameras from competitors very good, but even at this level, camera phones start to challenge, including Sony's own Experia 1 series. Add to that advanced software like DxO's PureRAW, which makes older cameras shine like never before, and mainstream "traditional" mirrorless cameras are in for a tough future.

I think you're right Jorgen, but I think it's even broader, if you replace "Mark IV" by "new camera" and "Mark III"by "the previous model" it's almost universally true for every new upgrade from Sony, Canon, Nikon or Panasonic etc.
In my mind there's objectively very little light between all these brands and choosing one is a matter of personal taste and bias, ergonomic preferences and subtle spec differences which align with the individual preference of the user, combined with the best match with the system(s) (s)he already owns.

For me and my style of shooting I could't see any reason to upgrade from the II series to the III series and currently this doesn't change for the IV series.
However if you're bought into the system and are a birder or sports shooter (or heavily into video) and don't want to lay out the cash for an A1 this might still be a worthwhile upgrade. It all comes down to the personal use case in my mind.

 

[ggibson]

I got my A7IV today, liking it a lot so far. As I posted earlier, I’m coming from an A7rii. The AF seems incredibly better. Eager to shoot it some more while I’m with family over the next couple days.