Sony A6500

Without a doubt, the Sony A6500 blew many minds in 2016. Its specs remain inarguably impressive in 2019, and it holds up just fine against today’s similarly built models. 

People thought the A6300 was the superstar camera until this convenient mirrorless beauty came along to up the ante. In October 2016, Sony revamped its groundbreaking-at-the-time predecessor with a few key features that took the original model up a few important notches. The crowning jewel feature of the A6500 is its lightning speed autofocus, ranking second fastest in the world only to its recent successor, the A6400, which was curiously wedged between the series’s existing two models in February of this year. That’s 425 autofocus points, to be exact, and let me tell you, they make for an extraordinary shooting experience when you’re capturing video or moving subjects. You can’t afford to settle for less these days. Especially if you all too well remember the days when you spent hours (or what seemed like hours) waiting for that little focus box to do its job! 

Autofocus isn’t the A6500’s only highlight, though, and with top-notch in-body image stabilization, it’s a perfect on-the-go camera for travelers, sports shooters, and videographers. In fact, it’s the first Sony cropped sensor camera to boast 5-axis stabilization. Footage is extra smooth, and if shaky clips were a problem for you with the A6300, you’ll have no such issue with this stable Mabel. Videographers will rejoice in 4K video capability, too, and the A6500’s compact size makes it a lifesaver when you’re out and about and can’t be bothered to lug around your hefty DSLR. Every image that comes out of this camera is crystal clear and just about as sharp as it gets, thanks to its 24.2 megapixels and above average low light performance. With an ISO range up to 25600, I was pleasantly surprised at how little grain came out in my nighttime shots. I can’t stress it enough – the clarity is astounding for such a small body, which brings me to my next point – size and weight.

Like I said, the A6500 performs incredibly for being relatively compact. It handles well, though, and doesn’t have the same borderline fragile feel as other Sony mirrorless cameras. The body and buttons are weather sealed and ready for adventure, and these characteristics together make it capable of withstanding a bit of wear and tear. It isn’t waterproof, though, so don’t go dunking it underwater for that perfect snorkeling shot without taking proper protective measures. It’s comfortable to hold – solid, but fairly light at 15.98 oz, further amping up its portability score. Like I said earlier, the only downfall here is the potential weight unbalance, depending on your lens of choice. This camera is small, but mighty, and you don’t have to worry about it weighing down your bag.

Sony estimates the battery life of the A6500 at around 310 shots, or 105 minutes of continuous video shooting. That’s not great, but it’s rather standard for mirrorless cameras. If you’re committing to ditching the DSLR, even temporarily, it’s important to know that you might have to switch up your photography workflow to accommodate longer charging times. 

A definite step up from the A6300, the A6500’s foldout LCD screen is another great feature geared toward videographers and your typical selfie fanatic. It’s a 3-inch, 921K pixel display, and while many reported difficulty with the touchscreen’s functionality, I didn’t have an issue with it. However, I understand that it’s not exactly up to speed with its current competitors, and many modern mirrorless cameras boast quicker, more intuitive touch response. All-in-all, the disparity is hardly noticeable to the average user, and the addition of touch access is indisputably convenient. A great feature that comes with the addition of the touch screen is the ability to choose your focus point by touching the screen. Another convenience: the quick start up time, which is about 1.3 seconds, comparable to most mirrorless cameras and almost identical to the A6300’s.