Sony A7S Comparison Review

The Sony Alpha A7S is a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera that was officially introduced in April 2014 and is equipped with a full frame sensor. It offers a resolution of 12 megapixel.

Is the Sony A7S a good camera? The A7S has a Camera Elo of 2017. This rating puts the A7S below average of all mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (full frame cameras), the A7S also ranks below average. Based on its within category standings, the camera earns a 2.5-star performance rating. – Well, the Sony A7S is more than 9 years old, and there have been many other good digital cameras released since 2014.

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 A7S 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 width, height and depth dimensions are rounded to the nearest millimeter.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the Sony A7S 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 A7S	127 mm	94 mm	48 mm	489 g	380	Y	Apr 2014	2,499	ebay.com
2.		Nikon Df	144 mm	110 mm	67 mm	760 g	1400	Y	Nov 2013	2,749	ebay.com
3.		Sony ZV-E1	121 mm	72 mm	54 mm	483 g	570	Y	Mar 2023	2,199	amazon.com
4.		Sony A7R II	127 mm	96 mm	60 mm	625 g	290	Y	Jun 2015	3,199	ebay.com
5.		Sony A7S II	127 mm	96 mm	60 mm	627 g	370	Y	Sep 2015	2,999	ebay.com
6.		Sony RX1R II	113 mm	65 mm	72 mm	507 g	220	n	Oct 2015	3,299	amazon.com
7.		Sony A7 II	127 mm	96 mm	60 mm	599 g	350	Y	Nov 2014	1,999	ebay.com
8.		Sony A7	127 mm	94 mm	48 mm	474 g	340	Y	Oct 2013	1,699	ebay.com
9.		Sony A7R	127 mm	94 mm	48 mm	465 g	340	Y	Oct 2013	2,299	ebay.com
10.		Sony RX1R	113 mm	65 mm	70 mm	482 g	270	n	Jun 2013	2,799	ebay.com
11.		Sony RX1	113 mm	65 mm	70 mm	482 g	270	n	Sep 2012	2,799	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 A7S was launched in the US market at a price of $2,499. 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 A7S offers at
ebay.com

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. 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 tend to be more expensive and lead to bigger and heavier cameras and lenses.

The Sony A7S 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 A7S among the large-sensor cameras that aim for top notch image quality.

Since 2007, DXO Mark has published sensor performance measurements that have been derived using a consistent methodology. This service is based on lab testing and assigns an overall score to each camera sensor, as well as ratings for dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), color depth ("DXO Portrait"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports"). 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 A7S	Full Frame	12.0	4240	2832	1080/60p	23.9	13.2	3702	87
2.		Nikon Df	Full Frame	16.2	4928	3280	none	24.6	13.1	3279	89
3.		Sony ZV-E1	Full Frame	12.0	4240	2832	4K/60p	25.4	14.6	3181	96
4.		Sony A7R II	Full Frame	42.2	7952	5304	4K/30p	26.0	13.9	3434	98
5.		Sony A7S II	Full Frame	12.0	4240	2832	4K/30p	23.6	13.3	2993	85
6.		Sony RX1R II	Full Frame	42.2	7952	5304	1080/60p	25.8	13.9	3204	97
7.		Sony A7 II	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.9	13.6	2449	90
8.		Sony A7	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	24.8	14.2	2248	90
9.		Sony A7R	Full Frame	36.2	7360	4912	1080/60p	25.6	14.1	2746	95
10.		Sony RX1R	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	25.0	13.6	2537	91
11.		Sony RX1	Full Frame	24.0	6000	4000	1080/60p	25.1	14.3	2534	93
Note: DXO values in italics represent estimates based on sensor size and age.

Many modern cameras cannot only take still pictures, but also record videos. The A7S indeed provides movie recording capabilities. The highest resolution format that the A7S can use is 1080/60p.

Feature comparison

Beyond body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a range of features. For example, the A7S has an electronic viewfinder with a resolution of 2400k dots. The viewfinder offers a field of view of 100% and a magnification of 0.71x. The following tables report on some other key feature differences and similarities of the Sony A7S 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 A7S	2400	n	3.0 / 921	tilting	n	1/8000s	5.0/s	n	n
2.		Nikon Df	optical	Y	3.2 / 921	fixed	n	1/4000s	5.5/s	n	n
3.		Sony ZV-E1	none	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 A7S II	2400	n	3.0 / 1229	tilting	n	1/8000s	5.0/s	n	Y
6.		Sony RX1R II	2360	n	3.0 / 1229	tilting	n	1/4000s	5.0/s	n	n
7.		Sony A7 II	2400	n	3.0 / 1230	tilting	n	1/8000s	5.0/s	n	Y
8.		Sony A7	2400	n	3.0 / 1230	tilting	n	1/8000s	5.0/s	n	n
9.		Sony A7R	2400	n	3.0 / 1230	tilting	n	1/8000s	4.0/s	n	n
10.		Sony RX1R	optional	n	3.0 / 1229	fixed	n	1/4000s	5.0/s	Y	n
11.		Sony RX1	optional	n	3.0 / 1229	fixed	n	1/4000s	5.0/s	Y	n
Notes: *) Information refers to the mechanical shutter, unless the camera only has an electronic one.

The LCD screen on the Sony Alpha A7S 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.

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 A7S 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 A7S	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
2.		Nikon Df	Y	- / -	-	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
3.		Sony ZV-E1	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	3.2	Y	-	Y
4.		Sony A7R II	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
5.		Sony A7S II	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
6.		Sony RX1R II	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
7.		Sony A7 II	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
8.		Sony A7	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
9.		Sony A7R	Y	stereo / mono	Y	Y	micro	2.0	Y	Y	-
10.		Sony RX1R	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
11.		Sony RX1	Y	stereo / mono	Y	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-

It is notable that the A7S 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 A7S can be found in the free online Sony A7S 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 says nothing about, for example, the handling, responsiveness, and overall imaging quality of the A7S in practical situations. 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 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 A7S	4/5	..	..	86/100	4.5/5	5/5	Apr 2014	2,499	ebay.com
2.		Nikon Df	4/5	..	..	81/100	4/5	4/5	Nov 2013	2,749	ebay.com
3.		Sony ZV-E1	..	..	..	..	..	..	Mar 2023	2,199	amazon.com
4.		Sony A7R II	5/5	+ +	5/5	90/100	5/5	5/5	Jun 2015	3,199	ebay.com
5.		Sony A7S II	5/5	+	..	..	4.5/5	5/5	Sep 2015	2,999	ebay.com
6.		Sony RX1R II	5/5	..	..	82/100	..	4.5/5	Oct 2015	3,299	amazon.com
7.		Sony A7 II	5/5	+	4/5	82/100	4.5/5	5/5	Nov 2014	1,999	ebay.com
8.		Sony A7	5/5	+ +	..	80/100	5/5	5/5	Oct 2013	1,699	ebay.com
9.		Sony A7R	5/5	+ +	..	82/100	4.5/5	5/5	Oct 2013	2,299	ebay.com
10.		Sony RX1R	5/5	..	..	..	4/5	4.5/5	Jun 2013	2,799	ebay.com
11.		Sony RX1	5/5	..	..	79/100	4/5	4.5/5	Sep 2012	2,799	ebay.com
Notes: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (..) not available.

The review scores listed above should be treated with care, though. The assessments were made in relation to similar cameras of the same technological generation. Hence, a score should always be seen in the context of the camera's market launch date and its price, 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.

Check A7S offers at
ebay.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. There is also a set of direct links to comparison reviews that other users of the CAM-parator app explored.

~

Did you notice an error on this page? If so, please get in touch, so that we can correct the information.

You are here:  Home  »  CAM-parator  »  Sony A7S Review