Sony Alpha A6500

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Announced just six months after the previous Sony A6300, Sony hasn’t left it long before bringing out the Alpha A6500. While this might sound like a premature update, A6500 gains in-body image stabilization to further blur the line between Sony’s APS-C line-up and its Alpha 7 full-frame range of mirrorless cameras.

Sony has also bestowed its latest APS-C mirrorless camera with a greatly enhanced buffer to make it a tempting proposition for shooting action, while there’s also the welcome inclusion of a touchscreen interface finally. 

The inclusion of these new features makes the Sony Alpha A6500 one of the most fully featured crop-sensor cameras on the market.

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Features

• APS-C CMOS sensor, 24.2MP


• 3.0-inch, vari-angle touchscreen, 921,000 dots


• 4K video capture

While the Sony A6500 sticks with the Sony Alpha A6300’s 24.2MP APS-C sensor and 4D focus system (with 425 phase detect AF points), there have been some welcome improvements elsewhere.

It’s notably the first Sony APS-C camera to come with a 5-axis in-body image stabilization – just as we’ve seen with Sony’s second-generation Alpha 7 series of cameras.The great news is that it not only works with Sony’s non-stabilized optics, but it can also be used in conjunction with Sony’s OSS stabilized lenses.  

Sony has also overhauled the buffer of the A6500, delivering a considerable boost in performance that sees the camera capable of capturing 307 full-size JPEG files or 107 RAWs – all at a quick 11fps burst rate.

A faster large scale integration (LSI) chip and image processing algorithm improves texture reproduction while reducing noise. With this new chipset and code, the A6500 specifically produces less noise in the mid-to-high portions of the camera’s 100-25,600 (expandable up to ISO 51,200) sensitivity range.

The Sony A6500 gains no additional video capabilities over its predecessor. However, users will find themselves well equipped to shoot 4K at 25p and 30p, plus Full HD footage up to 120p for slow motion action. 

In an effort to address the A6300’s infamous overheating issues, Sony has come up with a new ‘Auto PWR OFF Temp’ setting that prioritizes recording over keeping the camera cool.

This effectively turns off the camera’s thermal limiter, so you can shoot 4K footage for 29 minutes and 50 seconds straight. After that you can record another half hour session assuming the camera is operating within normal conditions.

It removes a major restriction, but this is only a bandaid solution at best. While we haven’t seen the same overheating problems on the Sony A6500, it has still gets decently warm during cold winter, which leaves us weary of how it will perform in warmer months or under a hot sun.

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