The Sony a7 IV has been officially announced, just a little over 3 years and 8 months since Sony unveiled the Sony a7III and described it as “the basic model”.
But Sony was just taking the mickey, as the a7III was anything but “basic”.
It packed a ton of features into its compact body and all for under $2000. The camera was soon sold out and very difficult to buy for the next 6 months.
The new a7 IV see’s some big improvements for 2021, but unfortunately if you were hoping for another sub $2000 camera you will be disappointed, as the price has now shot up to $2498.00 in the US and £2,399.00 in the UK.
So is the new a7 IV worth the extra $500? Stay tuned to find out or hit the pre-order buttons below if you have already decided!
First of all if you haven’t seen it already, this short introduction from Sony covers a lot of the key features.
If you have a little more time on your hands or are considering buying the a7 IV, then I’d recommend watching Sony’s product announcement video that covers the features in more detail.
If you don’t want to watch the videos, just keep reading 🙂
The a7 IV packs a new 33MP BSI-CMOS sensor along with Sony’s latest Bionz XR processors, which helps to drive big improvements in the performance department.
There’s a new full-frame body design with a larger grip and bigger buttons than its predecessor, very similar but not identical to the bodies of the a7S III and a1.
The EVF (Electronic Viewfinder) now has a higher-resolution with 3.69M dots. The LCD Display has also been improved to 1 036 800 dots over the 921,600k found in the a7III and it’s now also fully-articulating. The display also now makes full use of touch control for the menu, unlike the a7III that was limited to selecting the focus point and pinch to zoom.
The autofocus capabilities see some big improvements that have trickled down from the Sony a1. The superior processing power of the BIONZ XR engine provides improvement for Real-time Eye AF and Real-time Tracking features. Improved face detection translates into 30% better eye-detection accuracy according to Sony, while faster image processing yields higher accuracy when the subject is looking up, down, or sideways.
Subject recognition has been improved and along with human and animals eyes, birds eyes can now be identified and tracked in real-time. This also works for the first time in video mode.
When it comes to video, the a7 IV can shoot UHD 4K at up to 30p from the full width of its sensor (giving oversampled footage taken from 7K capture), or 60p in APS-C / Super35 mode (taken from 4.6K capture).
These video modes can all be captured in 10-bit 4:2:2 or 4:2:0 detail, with a choice of H.265 or H.264 Long GOP, or H.264 All-I compression.
The a7IV also gets Sony’s S-Cinetone colour matrix, which until now has only been available in the Sony a7S III and a1 from the Alpha Series. The Creative Look presets create other interesting visual moods in-camera, or you can use S-Log3 gamma to access the camera’s full dynamic range (15+ stops) for smoother post-production workflows.
The exposure compensation dial is now unmarked and can be re-programmed to control a series of functions. It’s also possible to define separate settings, Fn menus and custom buttons for stills and video modes, and there’s a dedicated, locking switch for selecting between stills, video and fast/slow video modes.
The a7 IV also offers lossless Raw compression, although the camera’s 10 fps maximum burst rate is only possible using lossy compression mode.
Sony has also added a host of smaller features including a video mode that crops and scales to cancel-out the effect of focus breathing when using certain Sony lenses, and a ‘Focus Map’ display that gives a rough guide to focus and depth-of-field when shooting video. These new features can be seen in the following videos.
Pricing and Availability
The new Sony 7 IV can be pre-ordered already and first shipments will begin in December 2021. The list price will be $2,498.00 USD, $3,200.00 CAD or £2,399.00 in the UK.
Early Reviews
Here’s a collection of early reviews from around the Web and YouTube.
Gerald Undone
Mark Galer
DPReview
Tony & Chelsea Northrup
Jason Vong
Julia Trotti
Chris Hau
Manny Ortiz
A7IV Key Specifications vs a7III
Here’s a look at the key specifications of the new a7IV and how they compare to its predecessor the a7III. Or you can take a look at my more in-depth Sony a7III vs a7 IV Comparison.
| Specifications | Sony A7 IV | Sony A7 III |
|---|---|---|
| Sensor: | 33.0MP 35mm full-frame, back-illuminated Exmor R CMOS Sensor | 24.2MP 35mm full frame, back-illuminated Exmor R CMOS Sensor |
| Processor: | BIONZ XR | BIONZ X |
| Dynamic Range: | 15 Stops | 15 Stops |
| ISO Sensitivity: | Still images: ISO 100-51200 (ISO numbers from 50 to 204800 can be set as expanded ISO), AUTO (ISO 100-12800, selectable lower limit and upper limit), Movies: ISO 100-51200 equivalent (ISO numbers up to 102400 can be set as expanded ISO), AUTO (ISO 100-12800, selectable lower limit and upper limit) | Still images: ISO 100-51200 (ISO numbers up from ISO 50 to ISO 204800 can be set as expanded ISO range.), AUTO (ISO 100-12800, selectable lower limit and upper limit), Movies: ISO 100-51200 equivalent(ISO numbers up ISO 102400 can be set as expanded ISO range.), AUTO (ISO 100-12800, selectable lower limit and upper limit) |
| Frames Per Second: | 10 FPS | 10 FPS |
| Autofocus Points: | 35 mm full frame: 759 points (phase-detection AF), APS-C mode with FF lens: 713 points (phase-detection AF), with APS-C lens: 575 points (phase-detection AF) / 425 points (contrast-detection AF) | 35mm full frame: 693 points (phase-detection AF), APS-C mode with full frame lens: 299 points (phase-detection AF), with APS-C lens: 221 points (phase-detection AF) / 425 points (contrast-detection AF) |
| Eye Autofocus: | Human, Animals, Birds, | Humans, Animals (mammals) |
| Stabilization (IBIS): | 5-axis (5.5-stops) | 5-axis (5-stops) |
| Video Resolution Max: | Full-width oversampled 4K from 7K, up to 30p, 4K/60p with Super35 / APS-C mode. | 4K / 30p |
| Recording Formats: | XAVC S, XAVC HS | XAVC S, AVCHD |
| Picture Profiles: | Yes (Off / PP1-PP11) Parameters: Black level, Gamma (Movie, Still, S-Cinetone, Cine1-4, ITU709, ITU709 [800%], S-Log2, S-Log3, HLG, HLG1-3), Black Gamma, Knee, Color Mode, Saturation, Color Phase, Color Depth, Detail, Copy, Reset | Yes (Off / PP1-PP10) Parameters: Black level, Gamma (Movie, Still, Cine1-4, ITU709, ITU709 [800%], S-Log2, S-Log3, HLG, HLG1-3), Black Gamma, Knee, Color Mode, Saturation, Color Phase, Color Depth, Detail, Copy, Reset |
| Electronic Viewfinder (EVF): | 3.68 million dots | 2.36 million dots |
| Display (LCD): | Vari-Angle LCD, 1 036 800 dots. | 921,600k dots, adjustable up by approx. 107 degrees, down by approx. 41 degrees. |
| Image Buffer: | JPEG Extra fine L: over 1000 frames, JPEG Fine L: over 1000 frames, JPEG Standard L: over 1000 frames, RAW: over 1000 frames, RAW & JPEG: over 1000 frames, RAW (Lossless Compressed): over 1000 frames, RAW (Lossless Compressed) & JPEG: over 1000 frames, RAW (Uncompressed): over 1000 frames, RAW (Uncompressed) & JPEG: 828 frames | JPEG Extra fine L: 163 frames, JPEG Fine L: 172 frames, JPEG Standard L: approx. 177 frames, RAW: 89 frames, RAW & JPG: 79 frames, RAW (Uncompressed): 40 frames, RAW (Uncompressed) & JPG: 36 frames |
| Shutter Speed: | 1/8000 to 30 sec | 1/8000 to 30 sec |
| Memory Card Slots: | Two memory card slots. CFexpress Type A + UHS-II/I SD cards are supported in Slot 1. Only UHS II/I SD cards are supported in slot 2. | Two Slots. UHS II/I SD cards are supported in slot 1, only UHS-I SD cards are supported in slot 2. Sony Memory Stick PRO Duo, Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo, Memory Stick Micro are also supported. |
| Wireless: | Wi-Fi Compatible, (5GHz and 2.4GHz band) | Wi-Fi Compatible, (2.4GHz band) |
| Ports: | Yes, Micro USB (SuperSpeed USB (USB 3.2) compatible. Full-size HDMI. | Yes, Micro USB (SuperSpeed USB (USB 3.1 Gen 1) compatible. Micro-HDMI. |
| Battery Life Stills: | Approx. 520 shots (Viewfinder) / approx. 580 shots (LCD monitor) (CIPA standard) | Approx. 610 shots (Viewfinder) / approx. 710 shots (LCD monitor) (CIPA standard) |
| Weight: | Approx. 658 g (approx. 1 lb 7.3 oz) | Approx. 650 g / 1lb 7.0 oz |
| Price (MRRP): | $2,498.00 / £2,399.00 | $1,998.00 / £1,699.00 |
So what do you think to the new a7 IV? Is it worth the extra $500 to add this camera to your gear bag? Let us know in the comments below or jump over to our Forum or a7IV Facebook Group to discuss.
Sony A7 IV Forum & Facebook Group
If you are looking for further help and advice on the a7 IV or would simply like to share your photos and videos, then please head over to our friendly full-frame Forum. If you prefer Facebook then we also run the Sony A7 IV Shooters Group.
If you have a battery grip on the A7IV do you need to take off battery pack every time you want to take SD card out to upload photos? This is my case for the A6400
Hi Bryce. The memory card access door in on the side of the a7IV, unlike the a6400 which is on the bottom and shares the battery compartment. So no, adding the battery grip will not prevent easy access to the memory card slots. Hope that helps! 🙂
“Is it worth the extra $600” should be “Is it worth the extra $500”
Oops! Thanks for that! I had $500 at the start of the article but obviously got my maths completely wrong by the end of the article! 🙂
One very minor error on this page. The one reviewer’s name is Jason Vong, not Jason Wong.
Otherwise, excellent info and links.
Thanks for catching that error. Fixed now. Hopefully Jason will never know 🙂