Sony A77 II Comparison Review

The Sony Alpha SLT-A77 II is a DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera that was officially introduced in May 2014 and is equipped with an APS-C sensor. It offers a resolution of 24 megapixel.

Is the Sony A77 II a good camera? The A77 II has a Camera Elo of 2219. This rating puts the A77 II among the top 20 percent of all digital single lens reflex cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (APS cameras), the A77 II ranks among the top 40 percent. Based on its within category standings, the camera earns a 4-star performance rating.

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 side-by-side display below illustrates the physical size of the Sony A77 II vis-à-vis a credit card. 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 A77 II 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 (USD)	Street Price
1.		Sony A77 II	143 mm	104 mm	81 mm	647 g	480	Y	May 2014	1,199	ebay.com
2.		Panasonic GX8	133 mm	78 mm	63 mm	487 g	330	Y	Jul 2015	1,199	ebay.com
3.		Sony A9 II	129 mm	96 mm	76 mm	678 g	690	Y	Oct 2019	4,499	amazon.com
4.		Sony A6600	120 mm	67 mm	69 mm	503 g	810	Y	Aug 2019	1,399	amazon.com
5.		Sony A7 III	127 mm	96 mm	74 mm	650 g	610	Y	Feb 2018	1,999	amazon.com
6.		Sony A9	127 mm	96 mm	63 mm	673 g	650	Y	Apr 2017	4,499	ebay.com
7.		Sony A6500	120 mm	67 mm	53 mm	453 g	350	Y	Oct 2016	1,399	ebay.com
8.		Sony A7S II	127 mm	96 mm	60 mm	627 g	370	Y	Sep 2015	2,999	ebay.com
9.		Sony A68	143 mm	104 mm	81 mm	610 g	540	n	Nov 2015	699	ebay.com
10.		Sony A7 II	127 mm	96 mm	60 mm	599 g	350	Y	Nov 2014	1,999	ebay.com
11.		Sony A77	143 mm	104 mm	81 mm	732 g	470	Y	Aug 2011	1,399	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 A77 II was launched in the US market at a price of $1,199. 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 A77 II offers at
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Sensor comparison with a 35mm slide

The imaging sensor is at the core of digital cameras and its size is one of the main determining factors 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. Further, a large sensor camera will give the photographer additional creative options when using shallow depth-of-field to isolate a subject from its background. On the downside, larger sensors are more costly to manufacture and tent to lead to bigger and heavier cameras and lenses.

The Sony A77 II features an APS-C sensor and has a format factor (sometimes also referred to as "crop factor") of 1.5. Within the spectrum of camera sensors, this places the Sony A77 II among the medium-sized sensor cameras that aim to strike a balance between image quality and portability.

Since 2007, DXO Mark has published sensor performance measurements that have been derived using a consistent methodology. This service assesses and scores the color depth ("DXO Portrait"), dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports") of camera sensors, and also publishes an overall camera score. The table below summarizes the physical sensor characteristics and sensor quality findings and compares them across a set of similar 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 A77 II	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.4	13.4	1013	82
2.		Panasonic GX8	Four Thirds	20.2	5184	3888	4K/30p	23.5	12.6	806	75
3.		Sony A9 II	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	4K/30p	25.0	14.0	3434	93
4.		Sony A6600	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	4K/30p	23.8	13.4	1497	82
5.		Sony A7 III	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	4K/30p	25.0	14.7	3730	96
6.		Sony A9	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	4K/30p	24.9	13.3	3517	92
7.		Sony A6500	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	4K/30p	24.5	13.7	1405	85
8.		Sony A7S II	Full Frame	12.0	4240	2832	4K/30p	23.6	13.3	2993	85
9.		Sony A68	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60i	24.1	13.5	701	79
10.		Sony A7 II	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.9	13.6	2449	90
11.		Sony A77	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.0	13.2	801	78

Many modern cameras are not only capable of taking still images, but also of capturing video footage. The A77 II indeed provides movie recording capabilities. The highest resolution format that the A77 II can use is 1080/60p.

Feature comparison

Apart from body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a range of features. For example, the A77 II has an electronic viewfinder with a resolution of 2359k dots. The viewfinder offers a field of view of 100% and a magnification of 0.73x. The following tables report on some other key feature differences and similarities of the Sony A77 II 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 A77 II	2359	Y	3.0 / 1229	full-flex	n	1/8000s	12.0/s	Y	Y
2.		Panasonic GX8	2360	n	3.0 / 1040	swivel	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
3.		Sony A9 II	3686	n	3.0 / 1440	tilting	Y	1/8000s	20.0/s	n	Y
4.		Sony A6600	2359	n	3.0 / 922	tilting	Y	1/4000s	11.0/s	n	Y
5.		Sony A7 III	2359	n	3.0 / 922	tilting	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
6.		Sony A9	3686	n	3.0 / 1440	tilting	Y	1/8000s	20.0/s	n	Y
7.		Sony A6500	2359	n	3.0 / 922	tilting	Y	1/4000s	11.0/s	Y	Y
8.		Sony A7S II	2400	n	3.0 / 1229	tilting	n	1/8000s	5.0/s	n	Y
9.		Sony A68	1440	Y	2.7 / 460	tilting	n	1/4000s	8.0/s	Y	Y
10.		Sony A7 II	2400	n	3.0 / 1230	tilting	n	1/8000s	5.0/s	n	Y
11.		Sony A77	2359	Y	3.0 / 921	full-flex	n	1/8000s	12.0/s	Y	Y
Notes: *) Information refers to the mechanical shutter, unless the camera only has an electronic one.

The LCD screen on the Sony Alpha SLT-A77 II is flexibly attached to the body. In particular, the LCD is multi-hinged and can be tilted both vertically and horizontally to enable odd-angle shots in landscape and portrait orientation. The LCD thereby offers a lot of flexibility to adjust and use the rear screen in a diverse set of situations.

One convenient feature of the A77 II is the presence of an on-board flash. While this built-in flash is not very powerful, it can at times be useful as a fill-in light to brighten deep shadow areas.

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 Alpha SLT-A77 II 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 A77 II	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	Y	Y	-
2.		Panasonic GX8	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
3.		Sony A9 II	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	3.1	Y	Y	Y
4.		Sony A6600	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	YES	2.0	Y	Y	Y
5.		Sony A7 III	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	3.1	Y	Y	Y
6.		Sony A9	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	Y
7.		Sony A6500	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
8.		Sony A7S II	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
9.		Sony A68	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	micro	2.0	-	-	-
10.		Sony A7 II	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
11.		Sony A77	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-

It is notable that the A77 II 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 A77 II can be found in the free online Sony A77 II 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 incomplete and does no justice, for example, to the way the A77 II handle or perform in practice. User reviews, such as those found at amazon, can sometimes inform about these issues, but such feedback is often incomplete, inconsistent, and biased. This is why expert reviews are important. The adjacent table relays the overall verdicts of several of the most popular 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 (USD)	Street Price
1.		Sony A77 II	4/5	..	..	80/100	4.5/5	5/5	May 2014	1,199	ebay.com
2.		Panasonic GX8	5/5	+	..	82/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Jul 2015	1,199	ebay.com
3.		Sony A9 II	..	..	5/5	90/100	5/5	5/5	Oct 2019	4,499	amazon.com
4.		Sony A6600	4/5	+	4/5	83/100	4.5/5	4/5	Aug 2019	1,399	amazon.com
5.		Sony A7 III	..	+ +	4.5/5	89/100	5/5	5/5	Feb 2018	1,999	amazon.com
6.		Sony A9	5/5	+ +	4.8/5	89/100	5/5	5/5	Apr 2017	4,499	ebay.com
7.		Sony A6500	5/5	+ +	3.5/5	85/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Oct 2016	1,399	ebay.com
8.		Sony A7S II	5/5	+	..	..	4.5/5	5/5	Sep 2015	2,999	ebay.com
9.		Sony A68	3/5	..	..	..	4/5	4/5	Nov 2015	699	ebay.com
10.		Sony A7 II	5/5	+	4/5	82/100	4.5/5	5/5	Nov 2014	1,999	ebay.com
11.		Sony A77	5/5	91/100	..	81/100	..	5/5	Aug 2011	1,399	ebay.com
Notes: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (..) not available.

The review scores listed above should be treated with care, though. The ratings are only valid when referring to cameras in the same category and of the same age. Hence, a score should always be seen in the context of the camera's market launch date and its price, 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 A77 II offers at
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Camera to camera comparisons

In case you would like to check on the differences and similarities with other camera models, just make your choice using the following search menu. Alternatively, you can follow any of the listed hyperlinks for comparisons that others found interesting.

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