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Sony Alpha NEX-5 · Photo source
Sony · Alpha
Alpha NEX-5
Sony's original NEX-5 is a small E-mount mirrorless camera with a 14.2 MP APS-C sensor, tilting screen and AVCHD Full HD recording.
- Type
- Mirrorless
- Sensor
- APS-C
- Megapixels
- 14.2
- Lens
- Sony E-mount
- Video
- 1920 × 1080
- Body weight
- 229 g
What reviewers say
Photography Blog and Imaging Resource praise the compact construction, tilting screen, low-light performance and movie features, while finding the menus awkward. Imaging Resource is much more enthusiastic about image detail; Photography Blog found its zoom-kit photographs soft. Imaging Resource used early samples and firmware 1.00, and notes that later firmware addressed some control complaints.
Specifications
Report a wrong or missing specImage and sensor
- Camera type
- Mirrorless
- Sensor format
- APS-C
- Sensor type
- Exmor APS HD CMOS
- Sensor dimensions
- 23.4 × 15.6 mm
- Effective resolution
- 14.2 MP
- Largest image
- 4592 × 3056
- RAW recording
- Yes
- Standard ISO range
- 200–12800
- Sensor detail
- 14.6 million total pixels; charge-protection coating on the optical low-pass filter and electromagnetic vibration for dust reduction
- Image formats
- JPEG, RAW and RAW+JPEG; Sony's original Japanese launch table specifies ARW 2.2; some contemporary secondary specifications say ARW 2.1
- ISO detail
- Standard ISO 200–12800; Auto ISO 200–1600 in Sony's launch release
- Image processor
- BIONZ
Lens and shooting
- Lens mount
- Sony E-mount
- Stabilisation
- Optical lens stabilisation
- Maximum continuous burst
- 7 fps
- Lens detail
- Interchangeable E-mount; launch kits use E 16mm F2.8 and/or E 18–55mm F3.5–5.6 OSS. The launch LA-EA1 A-mount adapter supports manual focusing; later firmware changes are separate from the original launch specification.
- Autofocus
- Contrast detection; 25-point multipoint, centre and flexible-spot areas; single or continuous autofocus, direct manual focus and manual focus
- Shutter
- Electronically controlled vertical-traverse focal-plane shutter; 30 seconds to 1/4000 second plus Bulb; flash sync 1/160 second
- Burst detail
- Speed Priority Continuous reaches approximately 7 fps with focus and exposure fixed at the first frame. Normal Continuous Advance reaches approximately 2.3 fps. Separate Hand-held Twilight and Anti Motion Blur modes combine six photographs into one output image.
- Stabilisation detail
- No sensor-shift stabilisation; Optical SteadyShot requires a compatible lens. The E 18–55mm OSS kit lens has optical correction; the E 16mm kit lens does not.
- Flash
- Supplied detachable flash mounts to the Smart Accessory Terminal; guide number 7 at ISO 100 in metres; approximately four-second recycle time
- Exposure controls
- Intelligent Auto, program, aperture priority, shutter priority and manual; scene modes, Sweep Panorama, DRO and three-exposure Auto HDR
Video
- Highest video resolution
- 1920 × 1080
- Video detail
- AVCHD 1920 × 1080 interlaced recording; Japanese launch model uses 60i (60 fields per second), with PAL 50i variants documented in the instruction manual. MP4 offers 1440 × 1080 or 640 × 480; the Japanese release gives 30p. The interlaced field rate is not a 60-full-frame-per-second claim. Approximately 29 minutes maximum continuous recording under the manual's conditions.
- Audio
- Built-in stereo microphone; AVCHD Dolby Digital two-channel audio or MP4 AAC-LC; optional Sony stereo microphone uses the accessory terminal
Screen and viewfinder
- Viewfinder
- None
- Screen size
- 3″
- Screen dots
- 921,600
- Touchscreen
- No
- Tilting screen
- Yes
- Display detail
- TruBlack wide TFT; tilts approximately 80° up and 45° down; 921,600 dots count RGB subpixels; no touchscreen (Photography Blog)
Connections and design
- Battery life (maker's claim)
- 330 photographs
- Body weight
- 229 g
- Release detail
- Sony Japan specifies 3 June 2010 for NEX-5A, NEX-5K and NEX-5D kits. This is the original NEX-5, not the later NEX-5N, 5R or 5T.
- Recording media
- Memory Stick PRO Duo and PRO-HG Duo; SD, SDHC and SDXC
- Ports
- Mini-B USB 2.0 Hi-Speed, Mini HDMI Type C and proprietary Smart Accessory Terminal
- Battery life detail
- NP-FW50; approximately 330 photographs under CIPA conditions, using the supplied fully charged battery and flash for half the shots
- Charging
- Supplied BC-VW1 external charger
- Dimensions
- Approximately 110.8 × 58.8 × 38.2 mm (width × height × depth), excluding protrusions
- Weight detail
- Approximately 229 g camera only; 287 g including battery and Memory Stick PRO Duo; both exclude the lens
- Materials
- Magnesium-alloy front cover
- Colours
- Black or silver
- In the box
- NP-FW50 battery, BC-VW1 charger, USB cable, detachable flash and flash case, shoulder strap, software CD; lenses depend on kit
Pros and cons
Pros
- RAW recording and interchangeable E-mount lenses
- Tilting screen and stereo movie recording
- Magnesium-alloy front cover
Cons
- No built-in viewfinder or sensor stabilisation
- Clip-on flash uses a proprietary connector
Closest rivals
Model | Type | Sensor | Megapixels | Lens | Video | Body weight | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mirrorless | APS-C | 14.2 | Sony E-mount | 1280 × 720 at 30 fps | 239 g | Jun 2010 | |
| Mirrorless | APS-C | 16.1 | Sony E-mount | 1920 × 1080 at 60 fps | 210 g | Sept 2011 | |
| Mirrorless | APS-C | 16.2 | Sony E-mount | 1280 × 720 at 30 fps | 225 g | Jun 2011 |
Sources
- sony.jp/ichigan/manual_english/nex-5_manual.pdf
- sony.jp/CorporateCruise/Press/201005/10-0511
- sony.jp/ichigan/products/archive/NEX-5K/image.html
- photographyblog.com/reviews/sony_nex_5_review
Photo: sony.jp
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 black rear display and controls: Sony Japan, exact NEX-5 product/press context; complete supplied composition and background retained.
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 silver rear display and controls: Sony Japan, exact NEX-5 product/press context; complete supplied composition and background retained.
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 silver camera with E 18–55mm lens: Sony Japan, exact NEX-5 product/press context; complete supplied composition and background retained.
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 black and silver 18–55mm lens-kit finish lineup: Sony Japan, exact NEX-5 product/press context; complete supplied composition and background retained.
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 black and silver cameras and NEX-3 red camera shown together in the maker-labelled launch lineup: Sony Japan, exact NEX-5 product/press context; complete supplied composition and background retained.
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 front, rear, top and side photographs shown together in the maker-labelled composition: Sony Japan, exact NEX-5 product/press context; complete supplied composition and background retained.
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 black camera with E 18–55mm lens and raised attached flash: Sony Japan, exact NEX-5 product/press context; complete supplied composition and background retained.
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 black camera with E 18–55mm lens and optional mounted stereo microphone: Sony Japan, exact NEX-5 product/press context; complete supplied composition and background retained.
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 with zoom lens beside the detached pancake lens: Sony Japan, exact NEX-5 product/press context; complete supplied composition and background retained.
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 with adapted 70–200mm and 24–70mm A-mount lenses above the maker lens-family arrangement: Sony Japan, exact NEX-5 product/press context; complete supplied composition and background retained.
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 silver camera held with its rear screen tilted outward: Sony Japan, exact NEX-5 product/press context; complete supplied composition and background retained.
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 black camera held with its rear screen tilted outward: Sony Japan, exact NEX-5 product/press context; complete supplied composition and background retained.
- Sony Alpha NEX-5 and NEX-3 cameras fitted in their labelled LCS-EMB1A and LCS-EMB2A half-cases, beside the available case colours: Sony Japan joint NEX-3/NEX-5 launch; labelled model-specific fitted half-case composition, complete supplied canvas retained.
