The Sony A7 IV is currently the most capable mirrorless all-rounder camera that money can buy. It is not as powerful as the Sony A1, as quick as the Canon EOS R6, or as inexpensive as the Fujifilm X-T4. Still, it does provide an excellent combination of photography capability and video adaptability, making it a perfect all-around camera. It’s the most remarkable illustration of the hybrid convenience that new mirrorless cameras can offer, thanks to how it effectively combines two cameras into one.
Three years after the release of the legendary A7 III, Sony has released the A7 IV with several upgrades, including a new sensor with 33 megapixels, a new CPU called the Bionz XR, and significant enhancements to its video capabilities.
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Its focusing system may now be outdone by the AI-powered tracking of the Sony A7R V. However; it still delivers some of the most excellent AF abilities we’ve seen outside of professional sports cameras. It offers the best AF skills we’ve seen outside of professional sports cameras.
When taking photographs or videos, the Sony A7 IV does an excellent job of focusing on the subject you have selected and locking focus onto their eyes in the case of humans and animals. This is true regardless of whether you are shooting stills or moving images.
Sony a7 IV Design
The Sony A7 IV may appear to be a carbon copy of its predecessor, but there have been quite a few minor improvements made to the camera that, when taken together, make it a lot more fun to use.
An enhanced electronic viewfinder (EVF) with a resolution of 3.69 million dots and a refresh rate of 120 frames per second can be found on the camera’s top. Although you can purchase a viewfinder that is practically identical to this one on the Canon EOS R6, which retails for the same amount of money, this was a much-needed improvement that performs very well when attempting to track moving subjects.
Just below the electronic viewfinder (EVF) is a brand-new touchscreen that can be tilted. A significant advantage for those who take videos by themselves is that this may be rotated so that it faces the direction in which they are recording. However, photographers may find that the more traditional tilt-screen in the Sony A1 better suits their needs.
Sony a7 IV Features & Focusing
The Sony A7 IV is not nearly the game-changer that its predecessor was for full-frame mirrorless cameras, but the advancements make it close to the Canon EOS R6. Because of this, it is an excellent choice for photographers who capture weddings as well as wildlife.
The Bionz XR CPU, identical to the one found in the Sony A1, is the driving force behind these performance improvements. Since the Sony A7 IV does not have a stacked sensor like the Sony A1, it cannot unlock the same burst-shooting capability level as the Sony A1.
However, the two most noticeable enhancements that this CPU provides are Sony’s most recent AF smarts and a much-increased buffer depth while shooting in burst mode.
The Sony A7 IV has maintained the same maximum burst shooting speed of 10 frames per second as the A7 III while having a resolution increased to 33 megapixels. If you wish to shoot raw files without any loss of quality, you can only do it at 5 or 6 frames per second.
Because of this, it is substantially slower than the Canon EOS R6, which can reach high rates of 20 frames per second when using the electronic shutter. However, the focusing speeds and buffer of the A7 IV go a long way toward making up for this shortcoming.
Sony a7 IV Performance
Regarding its burst shooting capabilities, the Sony A7 IV isn’t exactly a speed demon, as we learned in the previous section on its characteristics. The choice by Sony to increase its resolution to 33 megapixels has practically wiped out any power benefits of its new CPU, which means that its peak performance remains the same as that of the A7 III at ten frames per second (and that’s with raw data that have been compressed).
However, even though the Canon EOS R6 is probably a better option if you spend a lot of time depressing the shutter button and taking pictures of moving things, the Sony A7 IV is still more than capable of handling the task of photographing wildlife.
It is also essential to consider the benefits of its class-leading autofocus technology and deep buffer. When a camera can nail focus with such consistency, it is not always necessary to take pictures at a rate of 20 frames per second to capture a moment. When shooting lossless compressed raw files, an upgrade to the camera’s software in September 2022 added the ability to select file sizes ‘S’ and ‘M’ in addition to the ‘L’ option previously available.
Sony a7 IV Image & Video Quality
If you were hoping that the new 33-megapixel sensor of the Sony A7 IV would significantly enhance the camera’s image quality compared to the A7 III, you might be disappointed.
However, in general, the changes made to the A7 IV are aimed more toward adaptability than improving the camera’s absolute picture quality. Those who frequently crop into their images will find the additional resolution helpful.
Because an increase in megapixels results in a decrease in the size of each photosite on the A7 IV’s sensor, Sony has relied on image processing to assist in areas such as low-light performance.
To your satisfaction, it generates clean images at low ISOs; nevertheless, beginning at ISO 6400 and going higher, noise becomes more noticeable. It is reasonable to expect this from a sensor with a pretty high megapixel count, but it is accurate to state that the Sony A7 IV is more suited to capturing fine details than it is to be a low-light monster.
Sony a7 IV Specs
| Body type | SLR-style mirrorless |
|---|---|
| Body material | Magnesium alloy |
| Sensor | |
| Max resolution | 7008 x 4672 |
| Image ratio w:h | 1:1, 4:3, 3:2, 16:9 |
| Effective pixels | 33 megapixels |
| Sensor photo detectors | 34 megapixels |
| Sensor size | Full frame (35.6 x 23.8 mm) |
| Sensor type | BSI-CMOS |
| Processor | Bionz XR |
| Color space | sRGB, Adobe RGB, BT.2020 |
| Color filter array | Primary color filter |
| Image | |
| ISO | Auto, 100-51200 (expands to 50-204800) |
| Boosted ISO (minimum) | 50 |
| Boosted ISO (maximum) | 204800 |
| White balance presets | 7 |
| Custom white balance | Yes |
| Image stabilization | Sensor-shift |
| Image stabilization notes | 5-axis |
| CIPA image stabilization rating | 5.5 stop(s) |
| Uncompressed format | RAW |
| JPEG quality levels | Extra fine, fine, normal |
| File format | JPEG (Exif v2.32)HEIFRaw (ARW 4.0) |
| Optics & Focus | |
| Autofocus | Contrast Detect (sensor)Phase DetectMulti-areaCenterSelective single-pointTrackingSingleContinuousTouchFace DetectionLive View |
| Autofocus assist lamp | Yes |
| Manual focus | Yes |
| Number of focus points | 759 |
| Lens mount | Sony E |
| Focal length multiplier | 1× |
| Screen / viewfinder | |
| Articulated LCD | Fully articulated |
| Screen size | 3″ |
| Screen dots | 1,036,800 |
| Touch screen | Yes |
| Screen type | TFT LCD |
| Live view | Yes |
| Viewfinder type | Electronic |
| Viewfinder coverage | 100% |
| Viewfinder magnification | 0.78× |
| Viewfinder resolution | 3,686,400 |
| Photography features | |
| Minimum shutter speed | 30 sec |
| Maximum shutter speed | 1/8000 sec |
| Exposure modes | ProgramAperture priorityShutter priorityManual |
| Built-in flash | No |
| External flash | Yes (Multi-interface shoe) |
| Flash X sync speed | 1/250 sec |
| Drive modes | SingleContinuousSelf-timerBracketing (AE/WB/DRO) |
| Continuous drive | 10.0 fps |
| Self-timer | Yes |
| Metering modes | MultiCenter-weightedHighlight-weightedAverageSpot |
| Exposure compensation | ±5 (at 1/3 EV, 1/2 EV steps) |
| AE Bracketing | ±5 (3, 5 frames at 1/3 EV, 1/2 EV, 2/3 EV, 1 EV steps) |
| WB Bracketing | Yes |
| Videography features | |
| Format | MPEG-4, XAVC S, XAVC HS, XAVC S-I, H.264, H.265 |
| Modes | 3840 x 2160 @ 60p / 200 Mbps, XAVC HS, MP4, H.265, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 50p / 200 Mbps, XAVC HS, MP4, H.265, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 140 Mbps, XAVC HS, MP4, H.265, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 25p / 140 Mbps, XAVC HS, MP4, H.265, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 24p / 100 Mbps, XAVC HS, MP4, H.265, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 60p / 600 Mbps, XAVC S-I, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 50p / 500 Mbps, XAVC S-I, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 300 Mbps, XAVC S-I, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 25p / 250 Mbps, XAVC S-I, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 24p / 240 Mbps, XAVC S-I, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 60p / 200 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 50p / 200 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 30p / 140 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 25p / 140 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 24p / 100 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 60p / 222 Mbps, XAVC S-I, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 50p / 185 Mbps, XAVC S-I, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 30p / 111 Mbps, XAVC S-I, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 25p / 93 Mbps, XAVC S-I, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 24p / 89 Mbps, XAVC S-I, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 120p / 100 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 100p / 100 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 60p / 50 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 50p / 50 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 25p / 50 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 24p / 50 Mbps, XAVC S, MP4, H.264, Linear PCM |
| Microphone | Stereo |
| Speaker | Mono |
| Storage | |
| Storage types | One CFexpress Type A/UHS-II SD, One UHS-II SD |
| Connectivity | |
| USB | USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 GBit/sec) |
| USB charging | Yes (USB PD supported) |
| HDMI | Yes (Standard) |
| Microphone port | Yes |
| Headphone port | Yes |
| Wireless | Built-In |
| Wireless notes | 802.11ac (dual band) + Bluetooth |
| Remote control | Yes (wireless or smartphone) |
| Physical | |
| Environmentally sealed | Yes |
| Battery | Battery Pack |
| Battery description | NP-FZ100 lithium-ion battery charger |
| Battery Life (CIPA) | 580 |
| Weight (inc. batteries) | 659 g (1.45 lb / 23.25 oz) |
| Dimensions | 131 x 96 x 80 mm (5.16 x 3.78 x 3.15″) |
| Other features | |
| Orientation sensor | Yes |
| GPS | None |
Sony a7 IV Verdict
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The Sony A7 IV is the most impressive hybrid mirrorless camera currently available. It has class-leading autofocus, fantastic picture quality, and strong video features, all packed into one body that can be configured in various ways, making it a contemporary all-rounder that justifies its price tag to a significant extent.
It is not the fastest shooter in its class, so dedicated street or sports photographers should search elsewhere, and it does not have the best image quality. For everyone else, though, the A7 IV is a rock-solid all-rounder with few prominent areas of weakness. This may be the last camera you ever buy.
