Nikon 1 J4 vs Sony A6600 Comparison

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Nikon 1 J4

18 MP | 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) CMOS Sensor

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Sony A6600

24 MP | APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) CMOS Sensor

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Nikon 1 J4 vs Sony A6600 Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two Mirrorless cameras from Nikon and Sony. Nikon 1 J4 was introduced to market in April 2014 and Sony A6600 was launched in August 2019. As you can see, 1 J4 is 5 years older than A6600. Let's see if this age difference between two cameras makes a big difference.

Nikon 1 J4 has a 18.0MP 1" sensor whereas Sony A6600 has a 24.0MP APS-C sensor.

Here is a brief look at the main features of Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600 before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Nikon 1 J4 Key Specs

Announcement Date: 2014-04-10

18MP - 1" CMOS Sensor

ISO 160 - 12800

Nikon 1 Mount

3" Fixed Type Screen

60 fps continuous shooting

Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution

1,200 fps High-Speed Video

Built-in Wireless

232g. 100 x 60 x 29 mm

Replaced Nikon 1 J3 Compare

Sony A6600 Key Specs

Announcement Date: 2019-08-28

24MP - APS-C CMOS Sensor

ISO 100 - 32000 ( expands to 102400)

Sony E Mount

Sensor-shift Image Stabilization

3" Tilting Screen

2359k dot Electronic viewfinder

11.0 fps continuous shooting

4K (UHD) - 3840 x 2160 video resolution

120 fps High-Speed Video

Built-in Wireless

503g. 120 x 67 x 69 mm

Weather Sealed Body

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600 compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.

Reasons to choose Nikon 1 J4 over Sony Alpha a6600

Built-in Flash	Yes vs No	Useful in low-light
LCD Screen Resolution	1.037k dots vs 922k dots	12% higher resolution screen
Continuous Shooting	60.0fps vs 11.0fps	49 fps faster
Weight	232 g vs 503 g	271 g lighter

Reasons to choose Sony Alpha a6600 over Nikon 1 J4

Image Stabilization	Sensor-shift vs None	Sharper images at longer focal lengths and long exposures
LCD Screen	Tilting vs Fixed Type	Flexible shooting positions
External Flash Shoe	Yes vs No	Better for flash photography
Viewfinder	Electronic vs None	Better framing and control
Max Sensor Resolution	24 MP vs 18 MP	33% more pixels
Max ISO	32.000 vs 12.800	150% higher Max ISO
Number of Focus Points	425 vs 171	254 more focus points
Battery Life	810 shots vs 300 shots	510 more frames with a single charge
Microphone Port	Yes vs No	High quality audio recording option
Headphone Port	Yes vs No	better video control
Environmental Sealing	Yes vs No	shoot at tough conditions
Timelapse Recording	Yes vs No	creative shooting
Sensor Pixel Area	15.28µm² vs 6.36µm²	140% larger pixel area
Max Video Resolution	3840 x 2160 vs 1920 x 1080	Higher Resolution Video
AE Bracketing	Yes vs No	Useful for tough lighting conditions and HDR
Selfie & Vlogger Friendly LCD	Yes vs No	Rotate LCD for taking Selfies
NFC Connection	Yes vs No	Easy wireless connectivity with compatible devices
Bluetooth	Yes vs No	Connect your camera to other devices via Blueetooth
Smartphone Remote	Yes vs No	Remote control your camera with a smartphone
UHS Card Support	UHS-I vs none	Read/Write in Ultra High Speeds
Animal Eye AF Tracking	Yes vs No	Easily lock and track focus on animals
Eye Tracking Focus	Yes vs No	Autofocus system locks on the eye and tracks the subject

Common Strengths of Nikon 1 J4 and Sony Alpha a6600

Wireless Connection	Yes vs Yes	Better connectivity
Touch Screen	Yes vs Yes	Easy control of camera functions
RAW Support	Yes vs Yes	Better image quality
Face Detection Focus	Yes vs Yes	very handy for portraits
Max Resolution	18 MP vs 24 MP	Bigger prints and more details
Continuous Shooting	60.0fps vs 11.0fps	Fast shooting speeds

Common Weaknesses of Nikon 1 J4 and Sony Alpha a6600

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Nikon 1 J4 vs Sony A6600: Physical Specs and Body features Comparison

Size and weight is a big decision factor when you are trying to find the ideal camera for your needs. In this section, We are going to illustrate Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Nikon 1 J4 has external dimensions of 100 x 60 x 29 mm (3.92 x 2.36 x 1.12″) and weighs 232 g (0.51 lb / 8.18 oz) (including batteries). Sony A6600 has external dimensions of 120 x 67 x 69 mm (4.72 x 2.64 x 2.72″) and weighs 503 g (1.11 lb / 17.74 oz) (including batteries).

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600. Nikon 1 J4 is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 20mm narrower, 7mm shorter and 40mm thinner than Sony A6600.

Comparison image of Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View

Here is the back view size comparison of Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600.

Comparison image of Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600 Size and Weight - Back View

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600.

Top View Comparison image of Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600 Size

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Nikon 1 J4 is significantly lighter (271g ) than the Sony A6600 which may become a big advantage especially on long walking trips.

Also keep in mind that body weight is not the only deciding factor when comparing two interchangeable camera bodies, you have to also take into account the lenses that you will be using with these bodies. Since Sony A6600 has an APS-C sized sensor and Nikon 1 J4 has a smaller 1" sensor, Nikon 1 J4's lenses for a similar focal length and aperture will generally be lighter and smaller than the Sony A6600 lenses.

Weight Comparison

Mirrorless Cameras

1 J4

A6600

Min

Average

Max

Thickness Comparison

Mirrorless Cameras

1 J4

A6600

Min

Average

Max

Weather Sealing

Thanks to the weather sealed body of A6600, you can use this camera with more confidence under conditions where there is risk of exposure to water and dust compared to 1 J4.

LCD Screen Size and Features

Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600's LCD screens has the same diagonal size of 3".

On the other hand, Sony A6600 features a Tilting screen where you can change the angle of the screen to make it easier to shoot from waist or over the head levels whereas the Nikon 1 J4 has a fixed type screen which provides less flexibility in shooting positions compared to A6600.

Nikon 1 J4 vs Sony A6600: Sensor Comparison

Nikon 1 J4 has a 18.0MP 1" (13.2 x 8.8 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Expeed 4 processor. On the other hand, Sony A6600 has a 24.0MP APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Bionz X processor.

Sony A6600's sensor provides 6MP more than Nikon 1 J4's sensor, which gives a significant advantage in real life. You can print your images larger or crop more freely. On the other hand, please keep in mind that Max sensor resolution is not the only determinant of resolving power. Factors such as the optical elements, low pass filter, pixel size and sensor technology also affects the final resolution of the captured image.

Below you can see the 1 J4 and A6600 sensor size comparison.

Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600 Cameras

As seen above, Sony A6600 has a 3.2x Larger sensor area than Nikon 1 J4. Larger sensors give photographer more control on the depth of field and blurry background compared to smaller sensor when shot in same focal length and aperture.

Nikon 1 J4 vs Sony A6600 Comparison of Available Lenses

Which camera has more lenses?

Number of available lenses is a big decision factor while choosing your interchangeable lens camera. When we look at the available lenses for these two cameras, we see that Sony A6600 has an advantage over Nikon 1 J4 There are 128 lenses for Sony A6600's Sony E mount, on the other hand there are only 13 lenses for Nikon 1 J4's Nikon 1 lens mount.

Another important factor is the availability of image stabilization. Sony A6600 has a big advantage in this regard because it has a sensor based image stabilization which means that all the lenses mounted to this body will be stabilized. On the other hand, Nikon 1 J4 doesn't have this feature so you have to buy a lens with optical stabilization feature. Currently there are 7 lenses for Nikon 1 mount with Optical Image Stabilization features.

Lens Type	# of Nikon 1 J4 Lenses	# of Sony A6600 Lenses
Standard Zoom	4	12
Standard Prime	2	18
Wideangle Zoom	1	7
Wideangle Prime	2	42
Telephoto Zoom	2	9
Telephoto Prime	n/a	18
SuperZoom	2	8
Wideangle Fisheye Prime	n/a	2
Macro Prime	n/a	8
Perspective Control Prime	n/a	2
Telephoto Mirror Prime	n/a	n/a
TOTAL	13	128

What types of Photography are Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600 Good for?

In this section, we rank and compare Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600 for five different photography types in order to make your decision process easier in case you are specifically interested in one or more of these areas.

Nikon 1 J4 for Portrait Photography

POOR

Sony A6600 for Portrait Photography

GOOD

Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 18.0MP
Average Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details

Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 24.0MP
Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Average Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details

Nikon 1 J4 for Street Photography

AVERAGE

Sony A6600 for Street Photography

EXCELLENT

Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
Medium sized Body
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Read the details

Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Tilting LCD Screen
Medium sized Body
Read the details

Nikon 1 J4 for Sports Photography

GOOD

Sony A6600 for Sports Photography

GOOD

Fast Continuous Shooting: 60.0fps
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
105 Cross Type Focus sensors
171 Focus Points
Wireless Connection
Average Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
No Built-in Viewfinder
Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Fast Continuous Shooting: 11.0fps
Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
425 Focus Points
Good Battery Life: 810 shots
Good Low Light ISO
Wireless Connection
Average Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details

Nikon 1 J4 for Daily Photography

AVERAGE

Sony A6600 for Daily Photography

GOOD

232g
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
Medium size Body
Read the details

Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Environmental Sealings
Medium size Body
503g
Body Thickness 69mm
Read the details

Nikon 1 J4 for Landscape Photography

POOR

Sony A6600 for Landscape Photography

AVERAGE

Very High Resolution Sensor: 18.0MP
Live-view
Average sized 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm) sensor
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 24.0MP
Environmental Sealings
Live-view
Read the details

Nikon 1 J4 vs Sony A6600: OUR DECISION

You may have already made your decision about which camera suits better for your needs and your budget so far but in case you wonder how we rated Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600, below you can find their scores in five different aspects. Our Decision Algorithm dynamically scores cameras using 63 different specs, current price and DxO Mark scores (where possible) in order to make a more objective and consistent comparison.

Here is a summary of how Nikon 1 J4 and Sony A6600 scores compare:

Nikon 1 J4

Imaging

Features

Value

Portability

Overall

Ranked #70 out of 126 in Rangefinder-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked #327 out of 1220 in all Cameras

Sony A6600

Imaging

Features

Value

Portability

Overall

Ranked #4 out of 126 in Rangefinder-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked #51 out of 1220 in all Cameras

Sony A6600 is the overall winner of this comparison. It has a higher Overall Score and beats Nikon 1 J4 in all criteria except one: Portability.
If small size and light body is a big priority for you, choose Nikon 1 J4. Otherwise, Sony A6600 is the better camera overall.

Sony A6600 vs Nikon 1 J4 Specs Table

Detailed comparison of specifications

General	Nikon 1 J4	Sony Alpha a6600
Brand	Nikon	Sony
Announced	2014-04-10	2019-08-28
Body Type	Rangefinder-style mirrorless	Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor
Type	CMOS	CMOS
Size	1"	APS-C
Dimensions	13.2 x 8.8 mm	23.5 x 15.6 mm
Area	116.16mm²	366.60mm²
Megapixels	18 megapixels	24 megapixels
Max Resolution	5232 x 3488	6000 x 4000
Max Native Light sensitivity	12,800 ISO	32,000 ISO
Max Boosted Light Sensitivity	-	102400 ISO
Min Native Light sensitivity	160 ISO	100 ISO
RAW Support
Autofocus
AF Touch
AF Continuous
AF Single
AF Tracking
AF Selective
AF Center
AF Multi Area
AF Live View
AF Face Detection
AF Contrast Detection
AF Phase Detection
Number of Focus Points	171	425
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount	Nikon 1	Sony E
Number of Available Lenses	13	128
Screen
Type	Fixed type	Tilting
Size	3"	3"
Resolution	1,037k dots	922k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder	None	Electronic
Viewfinder Resolution	no electronic viewfinder	2,359k dots
Viewfinder Coverage	n/a	100%
Viewfinder Magnification	n/a	0.71x
Photography Features
Max Mechanical Shutter	1/4000s	1/4000s
Max Electronic Shutter	1/16000s	n/a
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization	No	Sensor-shift
Built-in Flash
Flash Range	5.00 m (ISO 100)	no built-in flash
External Flash
Continuous Shooting	60.0 fps	11.0 fps
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Video Features
Max Video Resolution	1920 x 1080	3840 x 2160
Video Formats	MPEG-4, H.264	MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity	Built-In	Built-In
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight	232g	503g
Dimensions	100 x 60 x 29mm	120 x 67 x 69mm
Battery Life	300 shots	810 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording
GPS	None	None
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score	not tested	82
DxO Color Depth	not tested	23.8
DxO Dynamic Range	not tested	13.4
DxO Low Light ISO	not tested	1497
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