Sony A1 Comparison Review

The Sony A1 is a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera that was officially introduced in January 2021 and is equipped with a full frame sensor. It offers a resolution of 49.8 megapixel.

Is the Sony A1 a good camera? The A1 has a Camera Elo of 3149. This very strong rating puts it among the elite group of camera grand masters. The A1 ranks among the top 10 percent of all mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (full frame cameras), the A1 also ranks among the top 10 percent.

Read on to find out more about the camera's size, sensor, features, reception by expert reviewers, and how it compares to other digital cameras.

Body comparison with a credit card

The physical dimensions of the Sony A1 relative to a credit card are illustrated in the side-by-side display below. Three consecutive perspectives from the front, the top, and the back are presented. All size dimensions are rounded to the nearest millimeter.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the Sony A1 alongside a set of similar cameras. If you want to review a particular camera pair side-by-side, just move across to the CAM-parator tool and choose from the broad selection of possible comparisons there.

Body Specifications

		Camera Model	Camera Width	Camera Height	Camera Depth	Camera Weight	Battery Life	Weather Sealing	Camera Launch	Launch Price	Street Price
1.		Sony A1	129 mm	97 mm	81 mm	737 g	530	Y	Jan 2021	US$ 6 499	amazon.com
2.		Sony A7 III	127 mm	96 mm	74 mm	650 g	610	Y	Feb 2018	US$ 1 999	amazon.com
3.		Sony A7 IV	131 mm	96 mm	80 mm	659 g	580	Y	Oct 2021	US$ 2 499	amazon.com
4.		Sony A7R II	127 mm	96 mm	60 mm	625 g	290	Y	Jun 2015	US$ 3 199	ebay.com
5.		Sony A7R III	127 mm	96 mm	74 mm	650 g	650	Y	Oct 2017	US$ 3 199	ebay.com
6.		Sony A7R IIIA	127 mm	96 mm	74 mm	650 g	650	Y	Apr 2021	US$ 3 199	amazon.com
7.		Sony A7R IV	129 mm	96 mm	78 mm	665 g	670	Y	Jul 2019	US$ 3 499	ebay.com
8.		Sony A7R IVA	129 mm	96 mm	78 mm	665 g	670	Y	Apr 2021	US$ 3 499	amazon.com
9.		Sony A7R V	131 mm	97 mm	82 mm	723 g	530	Y	Oct 2022	US$ 3 899	amazon.com
10.		Sony A7S III	127 mm	97 mm	81 mm	699 g	600	Y	Jul 2020	US$ 3 499	amazon.com
11.		Sony A99 II	143 mm	104 mm	76 mm	849 g	490	Y	Sep 2016	US$ 3 199	ebay.com
Note: Measurements and pricing do not include easily detachable parts, such as add-on or interchangeable lenses or optional viewfinders.
Convert to Imperial

The listed prices provide an indication of the market segment that the manufacturer of the cameras have been targeting. The Sony A1 was launched in the US market at a price of $6,499. Usually, retail prices stay at first close to the launch price, but after several months, discounts become available. Later in the product cycle and, in particular, when the replacement model is about to appear, further discounting and stock clearance sales often push the camera price considerably down. Then, after the new model is out, very good deals can frequently be found on the pre-owned market.

Check A1 price at
amazon.com

Sensor comparison with a 35mm slide

The size of the sensor inside a digital camera is one of the key determinants of image quality. A large sensor will tend to have larger individual pixels that provide better low-light sensitivity, wider dynamic range, and richer color-depth than smaller pixel-units in a sensor of the same technological generation. Moreover, a large sensor camera will give the photographer more control over depth-of-field in the image and, thus, the ability to better isolate a subject from the background. On the downside, larger sensors tend to be associated with larger, more expensive camera bodies and lenses.

The Sony A1 features a full frame sensor and has a format factor (sometimes also referred to as "crop factor") of 1.0. Within the spectrum of camera sensors, this places the Sony A1 among the large-sensor cameras that aim for top notch image quality.

Consistent information on actual sensor performance is available from DXO Mark for most cameras. This service determines an overall sensor rating, as well as sub-scores for low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports"), dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), and color depth ("DXO Portrait"). The adjacent table reports on the physical sensor characteristics and the outcomes of the DXO sensor quality tests for a sample of alternative cameras.

Sensor Characteristics

		Camera Model	Sensor Class	Resolution (MP)	Horiz. Pixels	Vert. Pixels	Video Format	DXO Portrait	DXO Landscape	DXO Sports	DXO Overall
1.		Sony A1	Full Frame	49.8	8640	5760	8k/30p	25.9	14.5	3163	98
2.		Sony A7 III	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	4K/30p	25.0	14.7	3730	96
3.		Sony A7 IV	Full Frame	32.7	7008	4672	4K/60p	25.4	14.7	3379	97
4.		Sony A7R II	Full Frame	42.2	7952	5304	4K/30p	26.0	13.9	3434	98
5.		Sony A7R III	Full Frame	42.2	7952	5304	4K/30p	26.0	14.7	3523	100
6.		Sony A7R IIIA	Full Frame	42.2	7952	5304	4K/30p	26.0	14.7	3523	100
7.		Sony A7R IV	Full Frame	60.2	9504	6336	4K/30p	26.0	14.8	3344	99
8.		Sony A7R IVA	Full Frame	60.2	9504	6336	4K/30p	26.0	14.8	3344	99
9.		Sony A7R V	Full Frame	60.2	9504	6336	8k/24p	26.5	14.8	3187	100
10.		Sony A7S III	Full Frame	12.0	4240	2832	4K/120p	23.7	13.9	2520	86
11.		Sony A99 II	Full Frame	42.2	7952	5304	4K/30p	25.4	13.4	2317	92

Many modern cameras are not only capable of taking still images, but can also record movies. The A1 indeed provides movie recording capabilities. The highest resolution format that the A1 can use is 8k/30p.

Feature comparison

Beyond body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a range of features. For example, the A1 has an electronic viewfinder with a resolution of 9437k dots. The viewfinder offers a field of view of 100% and a magnification of 0.9x. The following tables report on some other key feature differences and similarities of the Sony A1 and comparable cameras.

Core Features

		Camera Model	Viewfinder (Type or 000 dots)	Control Panel (yes/no)	LCD Specifications (inch/000 dots)	LCD Attach- ment	Touch Screen (yes/no)	Max Shutter Speed *	Max Shutter Flaps *	Built-in Flash (yes/no)	Built-in Image Stab
1.		Sony A1	9437	n	3.0 / 1440	tilting	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
2.		Sony A7 III	2359	n	3.0 / 922	tilting	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
3.		Sony A7 IV	3686	n	3.0 / 1037	swivel	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
4.		Sony A7R II	2400	n	3.0 / 1229	tilting	n	1/8000s	5.0/s	n	Y
5.		Sony A7R III	3686	n	3.0 / 1440	tilting	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
6.		Sony A7R IIIA	3686	n	3.0 / 2340	tilting	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
7.		Sony A7R IV	5760	n	3.0 / 1440	tilting	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
8.		Sony A7R IVA	5760	n	3.0 / 2340	tilting	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
9.		Sony A7R V	9440	n	3.2 / 2100	full-flex	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
10.		Sony A7S III	9440	n	3.0 / 1440	swivel	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
11.		Sony A99 II	2400	Y	3.0 / 1229	full-flex	n	1/8000s	12.0/s	n	Y
Note: *) Information refers to the mechanical shutter, unless the camera only has an electronic one.

The LCD screen on the Sony A1 is flexibly attached to the body. In particular, the LCD can be tilted vertically to facilitate odd-angle shots in landscape orientation. This tilting design is often preferred, for example, by street photographers to a fully articulated, swivel type of LCD attachment, as it is more unobtrusive during shooting than a screen that flips out to the side.

One feature that differentiates the A1 from many older cameras is in-body image stabilization (IBIS). The A1 reduces the risk of handshake-induced blur with all attached lenses, while cameras without IBIS have to rely on optical image stabilization in OIS-equipped lenses to achieve the same effect.

Connection comparison

For some imaging applications, the extent to which a camera can communicate with its environment can be an important aspect in the camera decision process. The table below provides an overview of the connectivity of the Sony A1 and, in particular, the interfaces the cameras (and selected comparators) provide for accessory control and data transfer.

Input-Output Connections

		Camera Model	Hotshoe Port	Internal Mic / Speaker	Microphone Port	Headphone Port	HDMI Port	USB Port	WiFi Support	NFC Support	Bluetooth Support
1.		Sony A1	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	full	3.2	Y	-	Y
2.		Sony A7 III	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	3.1	Y	Y	Y
3.		Sony A7 IV	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	full	3.2	Y	-	Y
4.		Sony A7R II	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
5.		Sony A7R III	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	3.1	Y	Y	Y
6.		Sony A7R IIIA	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	3.2	Y	Y	Y
7.		Sony A7R IV	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	3.1	Y	Y	Y
8.		Sony A7R IVA	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	3.2	Y	Y	Y
9.		Sony A7R V	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	full	3.2	Y	-	Y
10.		Sony A7S III	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	full	3.2	Y	-	Y
11.		Sony A99 II	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	Y

It is notable that the A1 has a microphone port. Such an external microphone input can help to substantially improve the quality of audio recordings when a good external microphone is used.

Further information on the features and operation of the A1 can be found in the free online Sony A1 Manual or on the Sony support site.

Expert reviews

While the comparison of the spec-sheets of cameras can offer a general idea of their imaging potential, it remains partial and cannot reveal, for example, the handling experience and imaging performance when actually working with the A1. User reviews that are available, for instance, at amazon can sometimes shed light on these issues, but such feedback is all too often partial, inconsistent, and inaccurate. This is why hands-on reviews by experts are important. The following table reports the overall rankings of the cameras as published by some of the major camera review sites (amateurphotographer [AP], cameralabs [CL], digitalcameraworld [DCW], dpreview [DPR], ephotozine [EPZ], photographyblog [PB]).

Review Scores

		Camera   Model	AP   score	CL   score	DCW   score	DPR   score	EPZ   score	PB   score	Camera Launch	Launch Price	Street Price
1.		Sony A1	5/5	o	4.5/5	93/100	4.5/5	5/5	Jan 2021	US$ 6 499	amazon.com
2.		Sony A7 III	..	+ +	4.5/5	89/100	5/5	5/5	Feb 2018	US$ 1 999	amazon.com
3.		Sony A7 IV	5/5	+ +	4.5/5	89/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Oct 2021	US$ 2 499	amazon.com
4.		Sony A7R II	5/5	+ +	5/5	90/100	5/5	5/5	Jun 2015	US$ 3 199	ebay.com
5.		Sony A7R III	..	+ +	4/5	90/100	4.5/5	5/5	Oct 2017	US$ 3 199	ebay.com
6.		Sony A7R IIIA	..	+ +	4/5	90/100	4.5/5	5/5	Apr 2021	US$ 3 199	amazon.com
7.		Sony A7R IV	5/5	+	4.5/5	91/100	4.5/5	5/5	Jul 2019	US$ 3 499	ebay.com
8.		Sony A7R IVA	5/5	+	4.5/5	91/100	4.5/5	5/5	Apr 2021	US$ 3 499	amazon.com
9.		Sony A7R V	5/5	+ +	4.5/5	92/100	..	..	Oct 2022	US$ 3 899	amazon.com
10.		Sony A7S III	4.5/5	+ +	5/5	91/100	4.5/5	5/5	Jul 2020	US$ 3 499	amazon.com
11.		Sony A99 II	..	..	4.5/5	85/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Sep 2016	US$ 3 199	ebay.com
Note: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (..) not available.

The above review scores should be interpreted with care, though. The ratings are only valid when referring to cameras in the same category and of the same age. A score, therefore, has to be seen in close connection to the price and market introduction time of the camera, and comparisons of ratings among very different cameras or across long time periods have little meaning. Also, kindly note that some of the listed sites have over time developped their review approaches and their reporting style.

Check A1 price at
amazon.com

Camera to camera comparisons

If you would like to see a side-by-side review with another camera, just use the search menu below. Alternatively, you can follow any of the listed hyperlinks for comparisons that others found interesting.

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