Sony FE 100–400mm F4.5 GM OSS vs Sony FE 70-300mm F4.5-5.6 G OSS
Better figure, where one is clearly better
| SonyFE 100–400mm F4.5 GM OSS | SonyFE 70-300mm F4.5-5.6 G OSS | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Released | June 2026 | April 2016 |
| Optics | ||
| Lens type | Zoom | Zoom |
| Focal length | 100–400 mm | 70–300 mm |
| Maximum aperture | f/4.5 | f/4.5–5.6 |
| Minimum aperture | f/32 | f/22–29 |
| Optical construction | 28 elements in 20 groups, including one filter | Sixteen elements in thirteen groups |
| Special elements | One ED XA and one XA aspherical element, two Super ED and three ED elements | Four aspherical elements and two ED elements |
| Coatings | Nano AR Coating II; fluorine coating on front element | Sony Nano AR coating |
| Diaphragm | 11 rounded blades | Nine rounded blades |
| Angle of view | 24°–6°10′ full frame; 16°–4°10′ APS-C | 34°–8°10′ full frame; 23°–5°20′ APS-C |
| Mount and compatibility | ||
| Mounts | Sony E | Sony E |
| Image circle | Full frame | Full frame |
| Image circle detail | Full-frame coverage; 150–600 mm equivalent field of view on APS-C | Full-frame coverage; 105–450 mm equivalent field of view on APS-C |
| Teleconverter support | Compatible with Sony SEL14TC and SEL20TC | Not compatible with Sony E-mount teleconverters |
| Focus and stabilisation | ||
| Autofocus | Yes | Yes |
| Minimum focus distance | 0.64 m | 0.9 m |
| Maximum magnification | 0.25× | 0.31× |
| Optical stabilisation | Yes | Yes |
| Autofocus detail | Four XD linear motors and floating focus; full-time direct manual focus and Linear Response MF | Linear actuator with internal focusing |
| Focus distance detail | Minimum focus 0.64 m at 100 mm or 1.5 m at 400 mm | 0.9 m minimum focus distance |
| Magnification detail | Sony specifies maximum magnification 0.25×; PetaPixel reports 1:3, which is not used for the main specification | 0.31× maximum magnification; not life-size macro |
| Stabilisation detail | Optical SteadyShot with standard, panning and irregular-motion modes; camera-body coordination and mode 3 depend on body compatibility and firmware | Built-in Optical SteadyShot; no maker stop rating in read pages |
| Video features | Design reduces focus breathing; breathing compensation on compatible bodies changes the field of view slightly | – |
| Design | ||
| Dust and moisture resistant | Yes | Yes |
| Filter diameter | 95 mm | 72 mm |
| Maximum diameter | 119.8 mm | 84 mm |
| Length | 328 mm | 143.5 mm |
| Weight | 1,840 g | 854 g (better) |
| Controls | Four customisable focus-hold buttons, AF/MF and full-time DMF switches, focus limiter, OSS switches, zoom torque switch, tripod-ring click switch and function ring for preset focus, power focus or full-frame/APS-C switching | Manual-focus and zoom rings, AF/MF switch, focus-hold button, focus-range limiter and stabilisation switch |
| Zoom design | Internal zoom; barrel length remains unchanged | Extending zoom barrel (OpticalLimits and Photo Review) |
| Filter detail | 95 mm front thread and 40.5 mm drop-in filter; Sony requires the supplied normal filter or optional polarising filter to remain installed when shooting | 72 mm front filter thread |
| Weather resistance | Dust- and moisture-resistant design; not guaranteed completely dust- or moisture-proof | Dust and moisture resistant design; not guaranteed to prevent all ingress |
| Dimensions detail | – | 84 mm maximum diameter × 143.5 mm maker length |
| Weight detail | Approximately 1840 g lens; separate hood and caps excluded. Sony's specifications do not provide a tripod-mount-excluded weight | Approximately 854 g lens; separate hood and caps excluded |
| Tripod mount | Integrated tripod mount; both reviews note that its foot is not readily removable and lacks direct Arca-Swiss compatibility | – |
| Lens hood | ALC-SH187 round bayonet hood | ALC-SH144 round bayonet hood, supplied |
| In the box | ALC-SH187 hood, ALC-F95S front cap, ALC-R1EM rear cap, soft case, lens strap, case strap and drop-in filter | ALC-SH144 hood, front and rear caps and soft case |
| Release detail | Sony UK announced on 13 May 2026 with June 2026 availability and an approximate £4400 list price; first-sale precision remains the month. SEL100400MC is the constant-F4.5 model, distinct from the earlier variable-aperture SEL100400GM | Sony Europe announcement dated 29 March 2016 specifies April availability; exact first global sale day unconfirmed. Two full independent exact reviews read: OpticalLimits Klaus Schroiff on Alpha 7R II, sample centring described as okay, and Photo Review on Alpha 7R II and Alpha 6300. Differing telephoto corners and blur opinions retained, sensor crop and processing qualified. Photo Review initially calls hood petal but later round; maker round hood used. Its malformed price and wrong-model alternative paragraph are not used. Main maker 8degrees10minutes full-frame telephoto angle corrects its 8degrees20minutes table. Review stabilisation measurements are not maker claims. No inferred predecessor link |
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