Sony A7R III Comparison Review

The Sony Alpha A7R III is a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera that was officially introduced in October 2017 and is equipped with a full frame sensor. It offers a resolution of 42.2 megapixel.

Is the Sony A7R III a good camera? The A7R III has a Camera Elo of 2796. This rating puts the A7R III among the top 30 percent of all mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (full frame cameras), the A7R III 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 A7R III vis-à-vis a credit card. Three successive views from the front, the top, and the rear are shown. All width, height and depth measures are rounded to the nearest millimeter.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the Sony A7R III 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 A7R III	127 mm	96 mm	74 mm	650 g	650	Y	Oct 2017	3,199	ebay.com
2.		Nikon Z7	134 mm	101 mm	67 mm	675 g	330	Y	Aug 2018	3,399	ebay.com
3.		Sony A1	129 mm	97 mm	81 mm	737 g	530	Y	Jan 2021	6,499	amazon.com
4.		Sony A7 III	127 mm	96 mm	74 mm	650 g	610	Y	Feb 2018	1,999	amazon.com
5.		Sony A7R II	127 mm	96 mm	60 mm	625 g	290	Y	Jun 2015	3,199	ebay.com
6.		Sony A7R IIIA	127 mm	96 mm	74 mm	650 g	650	Y	Apr 2021	3,199	amazon.com
7.		Sony A7R IV	129 mm	96 mm	78 mm	665 g	670	Y	Jul 2019	3,499	ebay.com
8.		Sony A7R IVA	129 mm	96 mm	78 mm	665 g	670	Y	Apr 2021	3,499	amazon.com
9.		Sony A7R V	131 mm	97 mm	82 mm	723 g	530	Y	Oct 2022	3,899	amazon.com
10.		Sony A7S III	127 mm	97 mm	81 mm	699 g	600	Y	Jul 2020	3,499	amazon.com
11.		Sony A9	127 mm	96 mm	63 mm	673 g	650	Y	Apr 2017	4,499	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 A7R III was launched in the US market at a price of $3,199. 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 A7R III offers at
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Sensor comparison with a 35mm slide

The size of the imaging sensor is a crucial determinant of image quality. All other things equal, a large sensor will have larger individual pixel-units that offer better low-light sensitivity, wider dynamic range, and richer color-depth than smaller pixels 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 A7R III 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 A7R III among the large-sensor cameras that aim for top notch image quality.

For most cameras, data on sensor performance has been reported by DXO Mark. 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 A7R III	Full Frame	42.2	7952	5304	4K/30p	26.0	14.7	3523	100
2.		Nikon Z7	Full Frame	45.4	8256	5504	4K/30p	26.3	14.6	2668	99
3.		Sony A1	Full Frame	49.8	8640	5760	8k/30p	25.9	14.5	3163	98
4.		Sony A7 III	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	4K/30p	25.0	14.7	3730	96
5.		Sony A7R II	Full Frame	42.2	7952	5304	4K/30p	26.0	13.9	3434	98
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 A9	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	4K/30p	24.9	13.3	3517	92

Many modern cameras cannot only take still pictures, but also record videos. The A7R III indeed provides movie recording capabilities. The highest resolution format that the A7R III can use is 4K/30p.

Feature comparison

Beyond body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a range of features. For example, the A7R III has an electronic viewfinder with a resolution of 3686k dots. The viewfinder offers a field of view of 100% and a magnification of 0.78x. The following tables report on some other key feature differences and similarities of the Sony A7R III 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 A7R III	3686	n	3.0 / 1440	tilting	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
2.		Nikon Z7	3690	Y	3.2 / 2100	tilting	Y	1/8000s	9.0/s	n	Y
3.		Sony A1	9437	n	3.0 / 1440	tilting	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
4.		Sony A7 III	2359	n	3.0 / 922	tilting	Y	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	Y
5.		Sony A7R II	2400	n	3.0 / 1229	tilting	n	1/8000s	5.0/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 A9	3686	n	3.0 / 1440	tilting	Y	1/8000s	20.0/s	n	Y
Note: *) Information refers to the mechanical shutter, unless the camera only has an electronic one.

The LCD screen on the Sony Alpha A7R III 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 A7R III from many older cameras is in-body image stabilization (IBIS). The A7R III 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 Alpha A7R III 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 A7R III	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	3.1	Y	Y	Y
2.		Nikon Z7	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	3.1	Y	-	Y
3.		Sony A1	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	full	3.2	Y	-	Y
4.		Sony A7 III	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	3.1	Y	Y	Y
5.		Sony A7R II	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	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 A9	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	Y

It is notable that the A7R III 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 A7R III can be found in the free online Sony A7R III Manual or on the Sony support site.

Expert reviews

While the specs-based evaluation of cameras is instructive in revealing their potential as photographic tools, it remains incomplete and does no justice, for example, to the way the A7R III handle or perform in practice. At times, user reviews, such as those published at amazon, address these issues in a useful manner, but such feedback is on many occasions incomplete, inconsistent, and unreliable. This is where reviews by experts come in. 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 A7R III	..	+ +	4/5	90/100	4.5/5	5/5	Oct 2017	3,199	ebay.com
2.		Nikon Z7	5/5	+	4.8/5	89/100	4.5/5	5/5	Aug 2018	3,399	ebay.com
3.		Sony A1	5/5	o	4.5/5	93/100	4.5/5	5/5	Jan 2021	6,499	amazon.com
4.		Sony A7 III	..	+ +	4.5/5	89/100	5/5	5/5	Feb 2018	1,999	amazon.com
5.		Sony A7R II	5/5	+ +	5/5	90/100	5/5	5/5	Jun 2015	3,199	ebay.com
6.		Sony A7R IIIA	..	+ +	4/5	90/100	4.5/5	5/5	Apr 2021	3,199	amazon.com
7.		Sony A7R IV	5/5	+	4.5/5	91/100	4.5/5	5/5	Jul 2019	3,499	ebay.com
8.		Sony A7R IVA	5/5	+	4.5/5	91/100	4.5/5	5/5	Apr 2021	3,499	amazon.com
9.		Sony A7R V	5/5	+ +	4.5/5	92/100	..	..	Oct 2022	3,899	amazon.com
10.		Sony A7S III	4.5/5	+ +	5/5	91/100	4.5/5	5/5	Jul 2020	3,499	amazon.com
11.		Sony A9	5/5	+ +	4.8/5	89/100	5/5	5/5	Apr 2017	4,499	ebay.com
Note: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (..) not available.

Care should be taken when interpreting the review scores above, 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 comparing ratings of very distinct cameras or ones that are far apart in terms of their release date have little meaning. Also, kindly note that some of the listed sites have over time developped their review approaches and their reporting style.

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Camera to camera comparisons

If you would like to see a side-by-side review with another camera, just make your choice using the following search menu. An an alternative, you can also directly jump to any one of the listed comparisons that were previously generated by the CAM-parator tool.

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