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posted Thursday, November 7, 2013 at 10:27 PM EDT

 
 

Everybody has been wowed by the image quality of the new Sony A7R, and with good reason. But its doppelganger, the 24.3-megapixel Sony A7, is definitely no slouch in the photo department. In our just completed image comparison analysis of the Sony A7 against several top contenders -- the Sony A99, Canon 6D, Nikon D600, Fuji X-Pro1 and even the Sony A7R itself -- the A7 more than holds its own. In fact, we're wondering if the A7 is the king of the 24-megapixel cameras.

The Sony A7 may have one-third fewer pixels than its near twin, but its sensor includes a generous helping of phase detection pixels, while the A7R is contrast-detect only. The A7's hybrid system was designed to deliver faster autofocusing, better AF tracking and swifter burst shooting performance. The A7 and the A7R both feature a brand-new BIONZ X image processor that reduces noise and compensates for diffraction limiting, as well as draws out finer details without creating sharpening halos. (Overall, a huge improvement in Sony's in-camera JPEG processing; well worth a look if you've been discounting Sony's cameras for that reason.)

Perhaps most interesting is the impact of the new processor in the A7, compared to the results from the same sensor in the Sony A99: Check out the Sony A7 comparison crops for yourself, you might be surprised by the difference.

If you want to compare the A7 against a camera we didn't single out for our analysis -- in fact, against any camera we've ever tested here at IR -- you can do so by using our Comparometer™.

Check out our Sony A7 image quality comparions here. You can read our first impressions Sony A7 review for a closer look at the camera's technology and features. And don't forget to pixel peep our updated selection of real-world gallery photos taken with the Sony A7 here.

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