14 DAY TRIAL // Although the newest mirrorless camera additions from Sony, the A7 and the A7R, are only available for pre-order, DxO Labs have already gotten their hands on the Alpha 7R model, revealing some impressive test results.
When compared to the more expensive Nikon D800 and D800E full frame SLRs, the new Sony A7R managed to get the same overall score of 95 points as the popular D800 camera and only one point behind the D800E.
This is excellent news for Sony fans, who will be able to get the same picture quality using a mirrorless camera as they would have gotten from Nikon's professional grade D800 SLR.
If we analyze these results from a monetary perspective, they suggest that if we buy the Sony A7R, we can save somewhere around $500 / €369 for the same sensor quality, not to mention the reduced size of the body.
In terms of low-light ISO capabilities, the A7R is an excellent performer even though it ranks only in the eighth place, right after Nikon's D800E. If we take in consideration that the ISO rating is a logarithmic scale, the differences between these cameras are somewhere around 0.1 stops.
Sony A7R features a 36-Mpix Full-frame Exmor CMOS (35.9 x 24.0mm) sensor (probably the same as the Nikon D800, as tests suggest), powered by the latest BIONZ X image processor.
The cheaper A7 camera comes with a 24-Mpix Full-frame Exmor CMOS sensor (35.8 x 23.9mm) and will be powered by the same BIONZ X image processor.
Both cameras will be compatible with any E-mount lens available on the market (taking into consideration the crop factor for non FF lenses).
The new Sony A7 and A7R will hit stores on December 1 at a price of $1,699.99 / €1,258 and $2,299.99 / €1,700, respectively. Until then, we can only dream about the high-end features offered by Sony in such a small camera body.
