Sony Alpha 7CR vs Sony Alpha NEX-3
Better figure, where one is clearly better
| SonyAlpha 7CR | SonyAlpha NEX-3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Released | September 2023 | June 2010 |
| Image and sensor | ||
| Camera type | Mirrorless | Mirrorless |
| Sensor format | Full frame | APS-C |
| Sensor type | Back-illuminated Exmor R CMOS | Exmor APS HD CMOS |
| Sensor dimensions | 35.7 × 23.8 mm | 23.4 × 15.6 mm |
| Effective resolution | 61 MP | 14.2 MP |
| Largest image | 9504 × 6336 | 4592 × 3056 |
| RAW recording | Yes | Yes |
| Standard ISO range | 100–32000 | 200–12800 |
| Sensor detail | Approximately 62.5 million total pixels; maker maximum movie effective resolution 50.8 MP; four- or sixteen-image pixel-shift capture requires assembly in dedicated computer software | Charge-protection coating and electromagnetic vibration of the optical low-pass filter for dust reduction |
| Image formats | JPEG, HEIF and RAW (Sony ARW 5.0); 14-bit RAW output; compressed, lossless-compressed and uncompressed RAW options; XAVC S, XAVC S-I and XAVC HS movies | JPEG, RAW and RAW+JPEG; Sony's Japanese launch table specifies ARW 2.2 |
| ISO detail | Standard still-image and movie ISO 100–32000; still-image extension ISO 50–102400 | Standard ISO 200–12800; Auto ISO 200–1600 |
| Image processor | BIONZ XR and dedicated AI processing unit | BIONZ |
| Lens and shooting | ||
| Lens mount | Sony E-mount | Sony E-mount |
| Stabilisation | Sensor shift | Optical lens stabilisation |
| Maximum continuous burst | 8 fps | 7 fps |
| Lens detail | Interchangeable E-mount; ILCE-7CR is supplied without a lens. The photo shows both body colours. | Launch kits contain E 16mm F2.8 and/or E 18–55mm F3.5–5.6 OSS. The original LA-EA1 adapter supports A-mount lenses with manual focusing at launch; later firmware is separate. |
| Autofocus | Fast Hybrid AF; up to 693 phase-detection points for stills or movies; EV -4 to 20 at ISO 100 with an f/2 lens; current maker subjects include automatic selection, humans, animals, birds, insects, cars, trains and aircraft | Contrast detection; 25-point multipoint, centre or flexible-spot areas; single or continuous autofocus, direct manual focus and manual focus |
| Shutter | Electronic first-curtain mechanical shutter up to 1/4000 second; silent electronic shutter up to 1/8000 second; 30-second exposures and Bulb; flash sync 1/160 second full-frame or 1/200 second APS-C with Sony flash | Electronically controlled vertical-traverse focal-plane shutter; 30 seconds to 1/4000 second plus Bulb; flash sync 1/160 second |
| Burst detail | Up to 8 fps Hi+; maker buffer approximately 36 compressed RAW, 16 lossless-compressed RAW or 14 uncompressed RAW images; up to 320 Fine JPEGs. Amateur Photographer found 8 fps requires compressed RAW without live view, and 6 fps with live view or lossless-compressed RAW. | Approximately 7 fps in Speed Priority Continuous, with focus and exposure fixed at the first frame; approximately 2.3 fps normal continuous advance |
| Stabilisation detail | Five-axis sensor shift; maker claim 7 stops under CIPA pitch/yaw testing with the FE 50 mm f/1.2 GM lens and long-exposure noise reduction off; current maker movie modes include Dynamic Active and Active electronic correction | No sensor-shift stabilisation (PhotographyBlog); optical correction requires a compatible OSS lens. The 18–55mm kit lens has OSS, while the 16mm does not. |
| Flash | No built-in flash; Multi Interface Shoe supports compatible external flash | Supplied detachable flash; guide number 7 at ISO 100 in metres; approximately four-second recycle time |
| Exposure controls | 1200-zone evaluative metering; exposure compensation ±5 EV | Intelligent Auto, program, aperture priority, shutter priority and manual; Sweep Panorama, DRO, three-exposure Auto HDR and six-exposure Hand-held Twilight or Anti Motion Blur |
| Video | ||
| Highest video resolution | 3840 × 2160 at 60 fps | 1280 × 720 at 30 fps |
| Video detail | Internal 3840 × 2160 up to 60p NTSC or 50p PAL, with 10-bit 4:2:2 options; 60p/50p narrows the angle of view by approximately 1.2×. Photography Blog identifies oversampled 4K 30p from approximately 6.2K in Super 35 mode. XAVC S-I 4K reaches 600 Mbps at 60p; Full HD up to 120p NTSC or 100p PAL. HDMI can output 3848 × 2168 16-bit RAW at up to 60p to a compatible external recorder. S-Log3, S-Cinetone, user LUT display and AI Auto Framing. | MP4 with MPEG-4 Visual compression; 1280 × 720 at 30p in Fine or Standard quality, or 640 × 480 at 30p. These are the NEX-3 figures in Sony's Japanese announcement; AVCHD Full HD belongs to the NEX-5. |
| Audio | Built-in stereo microphone; 3.5 mm microphone and headphone sockets; digital-audio Multi Interface Shoe; compatible accessories support four-channel 24-bit LPCM | Built-in stereo microphone; MPEG-4 AAC-LC audio; optional ECM-SST1 accessory microphone |
| Screen and viewfinder | ||
| Viewfinder | Electronic | None |
| Screen size | 3″ | 3″ |
| Screen dots | 1,036,800 | 921,600 |
| Touchscreen | Yes | No |
| Tilting screen | Yes | Yes |
| Display detail | Side-opening vari-angle touchscreen; opens approximately 176° and rotates approximately 270°; touch menu operation | TruBlack wide TFT; tilts approximately 80° up and 45° down; no touchscreen (PhotographyBlog) |
| Viewfinder detail | 0.39-type XGA OLED; 2,359,296 dots; approximately 0.70× magnification with a 50 mm lens at infinity; 60 or 120 fps refresh | No built-in viewfinder (PhotographyBlog); optional FDA-SV1 optical finder is designed for the E 16mm lens |
| Connections and design | ||
| Wi-Fi | Yes | – |
| Bluetooth | Yes | – |
| Battery life (maker's claim) | 530 photographs | 330 photographs |
| Body weight | 430 g | 239 g (better) |
| Release detail | Sony Australia specifies retail availability from September 2023. Alpha 7CR is a higher-resolution compact model alongside Alpha 7C II. Current maker specifications include later-supported subject recognition and movie-stabilisation features. | Sony Japan specifies 10 June 2010 for NEX-3A, NEX-3K and NEX-3D kits. This is the original NEX-3, not the NEX-C3, F3 or 3N. |
| Recording media | One SD slot supporting UHS-I and UHS-II; no CFexpress support | Memory Stick PRO Duo and PRO-HG Duo; SD, SDHC and SDXC |
| Ports | USB-C (USB 3.2 at 5 Gbps), Micro HDMI Type D, 3.5 mm microphone and headphone sockets and digital-audio Multi Interface Shoe | – |
| Wireless connections | Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac at 2.4 and 5 GHz; Bluetooth 4.2; no NFC; Creators’ App remote operation and image transfer | – |
| Battery life detail | NP-FZ100; current Sony CIPA claim approximately 530 photographs with LCD or 490 with viewfinder; actual movie claim approximately 100 minutes with LCD or 95 with viewfinder. Both launch-period reviews give lower 520/470-shot figures. | NP-FW50; approximately 330 photographs under CIPA conditions |
| Charging | USB-C in-camera charging and power supply with USB Power Delivery; maker specifies an 18 W or higher USB PD source and 3 A cable | Supplied BC-VW1 external charger |
| Dimensions | Approximately 124.0 × 71.1 × 63.4 mm; depth from grip to monitor 58.6 mm | Approximately 117.2 × 62.6 × 33.4 mm (width × height × depth), excluding protrusions; Sony's separate 25.4 mm thinnest-section figure excludes the grip and mount |
| Weight detail | Approximately 430 g body only; 515 g with battery and memory card; both exclude lens. Photography Blog gives 525 g labelled body only and Amateur Photographer gives 524 g; maker’s explicit figures are used. | Approximately 239 g camera only; 297 g including battery and Memory Stick PRO Duo; lens excluded |
| Materials | Maker specifies recycled materials including SORPLAS in the body, depending on production timing | – |
| Colours | Silver/black or black | Black, red or white; silver was a Sony Style exclusive in Japan |
| In the box | Sony Australia confirms the GP-X2 extension grip is included; no lens | NP-FW50 battery, BC-VW1 charger, USB cable, detachable flash and case, shoulder strap, lens cap and software CD; lenses depend on kit |
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