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Sony A7S vs Sony NEX-7 Comparison

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Camera to replace
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Sony A7S

12 MP | Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) CMOS Sensor

Sony A7S
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Sony NEX-7

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

Sony NEX-7
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Sony A7S vs Sony NEX-7 Comparison Overview

Here we are comparing two Mirrorless cameras by Sony. Sony A7S was introduced to market in April 2014 and Sony NEX-7 was launched in December 2011. As you can see, NEX-7 is 3 years older than A7S. Let's see if this age difference between two cameras makes a big difference.

Sony A7S has a 12.0MP Full frame sensor whereas Sony NEX-7 has a 24.0MP APS-C sensor.

Here is a brief look at the main features of Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 before getting into our more detailed comparison.

Sony A7S Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2014-04-06
  • 12MP - Full frame CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 100 - 409600
  • Sony E Mount
  • 3 Tilting Screen
  • 2359k dot Electronic viewfinder
  • 5 fps continuous shooting
  • 4K (UHD) - 3840 x 2160 video resolution
  • 120 fps High-Speed Video
  • Built-in Wireless
  • 489g. 127 x 94 x 48 mm
  • Weather Sealed Body

Sony NEX-7 Key Specs

  • Announcement Date: 2011-12-13
  • 24MP - APS-C CMOS Sensor
  • ISO 100 - 16000
  • Sony E Mount
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • Electronic viewfinder
  • 10 fps continuous shooting
  • Full HD - 1920 x 1080 video resolution
  • 400g. 120 x 67 x 43 mm

Sony A7S was replaced by Sony Alpha 7S II. You may also be interested in these comparisons:
Sony Alpha 7S II vs Sony Alpha A7S
Sony Alpha 7S II vs Sony Alpha NEX-7

Let's read on the following sections in order to better understand in detail how Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one is better for you.

Reasons to choose Sony Alpha A7S over Sony Alpha NEX-7
Wireless Connection
Built-In vs Eye-Fi Connected Better connectivity
Max ISO
409.600 vs 16.000 2460% higher Max ISO
LCD Screen Resolution
1.230k dots vs 921k dots 33% higher resolution screen
Max Mech. Shutter
1/8000s vs 1/4000s faster mechanical shutter
Headphone Port
Yes vs No better video control
Environmental Sealing
Yes vs No shoot at tough conditions
Low Light ISO
3702 vs 1016 better High ISO performance
Sensor Pixel Area
71.24µm2 vs 15.28µm2 366% larger pixel area
Max Video Resolution
3840 x 2160 vs 1920 x 1080 Higher Resolution Video
NFC Connection
Yes vs No Easy wireless connectivity with compatible devices
Smartphone Remote
Yes vs No Remote control your camera with a smartphone


Reasons to choose Sony Alpha NEX-7 over Sony Alpha A7S
Built-in Flash
Yes vs No Useful in low-light
Viewfinder Magnification
0.73x vs 0.71x Larger Viewfinder
Max Sensor Resolution
24 MP vs 12 MP 100% more pixels
Continuous Shooting
10.0fps vs 5.0fps 5 fps faster
Battery Life
430 shots vs 360 shots 70 more frames with a single charge
Weight
400 g vs 489 g 89 g lighter
Color Depth
24.1 vs 23.9 higher color depth
Dynamic Range
13.4 vs 13.2 higher dynamic range

Common Strengths of Sony Alpha A7S and Sony Alpha NEX-7
Adjustable LCD Screen
Tilting vs Tilting Flexible shooting positions
External Flash Shoe
Yes vs Yes Better for flash photography
Viewfinder
Yes (Electronic) vs Yes (Electronic) Better framing and control
RAW Support
Yes vs Yes Better image quality
Face Detection Focus
Yes vs Yes very handy for portraits
Microphone Port
Yes vs Yes High quality audio recording option
AE Bracketing
Yes vs Yes Useful for tough lighting conditions and HDR
Common Weaknesses of Sony Alpha A7S and Sony Alpha NEX-7
In-body Image Stabilization
No vs No No Built-in stabilization
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Sony A7S vs Sony NEX-7: 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 Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Sony A7S has external dimensions of 127 x 94 x 48 mm (5 x 3.7 x 1.89″) and weighs 489 g (1.08 lb / 17.25 oz) (including batteries). Sony NEX-7 has external dimensions of 120 x 67 x 43 mm (4.72 x 2.64 x 1.69″) and weighs 400 g (0.88 lb / 14.11 oz) (including batteries).

Below you can see the front view size comparison of Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7. Sony NEX-7 is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 7mm narrower, 27mm shorter and 5mm thinner than Sony A7S.

Sony A7S vs Sony NEX-7 Camera Size Comparison - Front View
Comparison image of Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View

Here is the back view size comparison of Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7.

Sony A7S vs Sony NEX-7 Camera Size Comparison - Back View
Comparison image of Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 Size and Weight - Back View

Now lets look at the top view comparison of Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7.
Sony A7S vs Sony NEX-7 Camera Size Comparison - Top View
Top View Comparison image of Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 Size

Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day. Sony NEX-7 is significantly lighter (89g ) than the Sony A7S 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 A7S has a Full frame sensor and Sony NEX-7 has a smaller APS-C sensor, Sony NEX-7's lenses for a similar focal length and aperture will generally be lighter and smaller than the Sony A7S lenses.

Weight Comparison

Mirrorless Cameras

A7S
NEX-7
Min
Average
Max
Thickness Comparison

Mirrorless Cameras

A7S
NEX-7
Min
Average
Max

Weather Sealing

With its weather sealed body, we believe that A7S has a big advantage over NEX-7 which doesn't provide any kind of environmental sealing.

LCD Screen Size and Features

Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7's LCD screens has the same diagonal size of 3.

Both cameras feature Tilting screens where you can change the angle of the screen to make it easier to shoot from waist or over the head levels.
Sony A7S vs Sony NEX-7: Sensor Comparison

Sony A7S has a 12.0MP Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Bionz X processor. On the other hand, Sony NEX-7 has a 24.0MP APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Bionz processor.

Sony NEX-7's sensor provides 12MP more than Sony A7S'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 A7S and NEX-7 sensor size comparison.

Sony A7S vs Sony NEX-7 Sensor Size Comparison
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 Cameras


As seen above, Sony A7S has a 2.3x Larger sensor area than Sony NEX-7. 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.

DxOMark Sensor Scores

Both Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 sensors have been tested by DxoMark. DxoMark scores camera sensors for color depth (DXO Portrait), dynamic range (DXO Landscape) and low-light sensitivity (DXO Sports), and also gives them an overall score. Of the two cameras that we are comparing, A7S has scored 87, 6 points higher than NEX-7.

Model Overall Color Depth Dynamic Range Low-light ISO
Sony A7S 87 23.9 bits 13.2 Evs 3702 ISO
Sony NEX-7 81 24.1 bits 13.4 Evs 1016 ISO
Sony A7S vs Sony NEX-7 Comparison of Available Lenses
Which camera has more lenses?

Number of available lenses is a big decision factor while choosing your interchangeable lens camera. Both Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 have 128 native lenses available but be careful that since Sony A7S has a full frame sensor, only 81 of these lenses can cover the full frame sensor of A7S.

Another important factor is the availability of image stabilization. None of these bodies have sensor based image stabilization so you have to buy lenses with Optical stabilization feature. Currently there are 31 lenses with Image stabilization for Sony E mount.

Lens Type # of Sony A7S Lenses # of Sony NEX-7 Lenses
Standard Zoom 12 (9 Full Frame) 12
Standard Prime 18 (9 Full Frame) 18
Wideangle Zoom 7 (6 Full Frame) 7
Wideangle Prime 42 (26 Full Frame) 42
Telephoto Zoom 9 (7 Full Frame) 9
Telephoto Prime 18 (14 Full Frame) 18
SuperZoom 8 (1 Full Frame) 8
Wideangle Fisheye Prime 2 (0 Full Frame) 2
Macro Prime 8 (7 Full Frame) 8
Perspective Control Prime 2 (2 Full Frame) 2
Telephoto Mirror Prime n/a n/a
TOTAL 128 (81 Full Frame) 128

Here are some of the most popular Sony E Mount Lenses on Camera Decision:

Popular Sony E Mount Lenses for A7S and NEX-7
Model Coverage Weight Focusing Street Price
Sony FE 24-240mm F3.5-6.3 OSS Lens Sony FE 24-240mm F3.5-6.3 OSS
35mm FF 780gr AF Amazon B&H Photo
Sony FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS Carl Zeiss Vario Tessar T Lens Sony FE 24-70mm F4 ZA OSS Carl Zeiss Vario Tessar T
35mm FF 426gr AF Amazon B&H Photo
Sony E 55-210mm F4.5-6.3 OSS Lens Sony E 55-210mm F4.5-6.3 OSS
APS-C / DX 345gr AF Amazon B&H Photo
Sony FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS Lens Sony FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS
35mm FF 840gr AF Amazon B&H Photo
Sony FE 35mm F2.8 ZA Carl Zeiss Sonnar T Lens Sony FE 35mm F2.8 ZA Carl Zeiss Sonnar T
35mm FF 120gr AF Amazon B&H Photo
Sony FE 70-300mm F4.5-5.6 G OSS Lens Sony FE 70-300mm F4.5-5.6 G OSS
35mm FF 854gr AF Amazon B&H Photo
Sony FE 50mm F1.8 Lens Sony FE 50mm F1.8
35mm FF 186gr AF Amazon B&H Photo
Sony E 16-50mm F3.5-5.6 PZ OSS Lens Sony E 16-50mm F3.5-5.6 PZ OSS
APS-C / DX 116gr AF Amazon B&H Photo

Now let's compare some sample lenses from each mount with typical Focal ranges for Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 to see how these lenses compares:

Fast Standard Zoom Lenses
Model FF Equiv. Weight Weight w/ Cam Length Street Price
Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM
24 - 70mm 886gr 1375gr 136mm Amazon B&H Photo
Sony E 16-55mm F2.8 G Lens Sony E 16-55mm F2.8 G
24 - 82.5mm 494gr 894gr 100mm Amazon B&H Photo
Fast Tele Zoom Equivalent Lenses
Model FF Equiv. Weight Weight w/ Cam Length Street Price
Sony FE 70-200mm F2.8 GM OSS Lens Sony FE 70-200mm F2.8 GM OSS
70 - 200mm 1480gr 1969gr 200mm Amazon B&H Photo
Sony E 55-210mm F4.5-6.3 OSS Lens Sony E 55-210mm F4.5-6.3 OSS
82.5 - 315mm 345gr 745gr 108mm Amazon B&H Photo
Fast Normal Prime Equivalent Lenses
Model FF Equiv. Weight Weight w/ Cam Length Street Price
Sony FE 50mm F1.4 Lens Sony FE 50mm F1.4
50mm 778gr 1267gr 108mm Amazon B&H Photo
Sony E 35mm F1.8 OSS Lens Sony E 35mm F1.8 OSS
52.5mm 155gr 555gr 45mm Amazon B&H Photo
Fast Wideangle Zoom Equivalent Lenses
Model FF Equiv. Weight Weight w/ Cam Length Street Price
Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM
16 - 35mm 680gr 1169gr 122mm Amazon B&H Photo
Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS Lens Sony E 10-18mm F4 OSS
15 - 27mm 225gr 625gr 64mm Amazon B&H Photo
24-105mm f4 Equivalent Lenses
Model FF Equiv. Weight Weight w/ Cam Length Street Price
Sony FE 24-105mm F4 G OSS Lens Sony FE 24-105mm F4 G OSS
24 - 105mm 663gr 1152gr 113mm Amazon B&H Photo
Sony E 16-70mm F4 ZA OSS Lens Sony E 16-70mm F4 ZA OSS
24 - 105mm 308gr 708gr 75mm Amazon B&H Photo
Super-Tele Zoom Equivalent Lenses
Model FF Equiv. Weight Weight w/ Cam Length Street Price
Sony FE 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 GM OSS Lens Sony FE 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 GM OSS
100 - 400mm 1395gr 1884gr 205mm Amazon B&H Photo
Sony E 70-350mm F4.5-6.3 G OSS Lens Sony E 70-350mm F4.5-6.3 G OSS
105 - 525mm 625gr 1025gr 142mm Amazon B&H Photo
What types of Photography are Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 Good for?
In this section, we rank and compare Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 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.

Sony A7S for Portrait Photography

GOOD

Sony NEX-7 for Portrait Photography

AVERAGE
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 24.0MP
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Average Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
Read the details

Sony A7S for Street Photography

GOOD

Sony NEX-7 for Street Photography

GOOD
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Tilting LCD Screen
Medium sized Body
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Tilting LCD Screen
Medium sized Body
No Image Stabilization
Read the details

Sony A7S for Sports Photography

GOOD

Sony NEX-7 for Sports Photography

GOOD
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/8000s
25 Focus Points
Good Low Light ISO
Wireless Connection
Average Continuous Shooting: 5.0fps
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Fast Continuous Shooting: 10.0fps
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
25 Focus Points
Good Low Light ISO
Average Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Sony A7S for Daily Photography

EXCELLENT

Sony NEX-7 for Daily Photography

GOOD
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Environmental Sealings
Medium size Body
489g
Body Thickness 48mm
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Medium size Body
400g
Body Thickness 43mm
Read the details

Sony A7S for Landscape Photography

AVERAGE

Sony NEX-7 for Landscape Photography

AVERAGE
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Environmental Sealings
Live-view
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Read the details
Large APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 24.0MP
Live-view
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details

Sony A7S vs Sony NEX-7: 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 Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7, 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 Sony A7S and Sony NEX-7 scores compare:

Sony A7S
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #39 out of 86 in SLR-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked #71 out of 1220 in all Cameras
Sony NEX-7
Imaging
Features
Value
Portability
Overall
Ranked #38 out of 126 in Rangefinder-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked #213 out of 1220 in all Cameras

Sony A7S is the overall winner of this comparison. It has a higher Overall Score and beats Sony NEX-7 in all criteria except one: Portability. But the size difference between these cameras are negligible in real world so it is not a big disadvantage for Sony A7S.

Sony A7S
Sony A7S
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Sony NEX-7
Sony NEX-7
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Sony NEX-7 vs Sony A7S Specs Table
Detailed comparison of specifications
General Sony Alpha A7S Sony Alpha NEX-7
Brand Sony Sony
Announced 2014-04-06 2011-12-13
Body Type SLR-style mirrorless Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor
Type CMOS CMOS
Size Full frame APS-C
Dimensions 35.8 x 23.9 mm 23.5 x 15.6 mm
Area 855.62mm2 366.60mm2
Megapixels 12 megapixels 24 megapixels
Max Resolution 4240 x 2832 6000 x 4000
Max Native Light sensitivity 409,600 ISO 16,000 ISO
Min Native Light sensitivity 100 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 25 25
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount Sony E Sony E
Number of Available Lenses 128 128
Screen
Type Tilting Tilting
Size 3 3"
Resolution 1,230k dots 921k dots
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder Electronic Electronic
Viewfinder Resolution 2,359k dots n/a
Viewfinder Coverage 100% 100%
Viewfinder Magnification 0.71x 0.73x
Photography Features
Max Mechanical Shutter 1/8000s 1/4000s
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization No No
Built-in Flash
Flash Range no built-in flash 6.00 m
Max Flash Sync n/a 1/160s
External Flash
Continuous Shooting 5.0 fps 10.0 fps
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Video Features
Max Video Resolution 3840 x 2160 1920 x 1080
Video Formats MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC MPEG-4, AVCHD
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity Built-In Eye-Fi Connected
HDMI
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Weight 489g 400g
Dimensions 127 x 94 x 48mm 120 x 67 x 43mm
Battery Life 360 shots 430 shots
Other Features
Timelapse Recording With Downloadable App
GPS None None
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score 87 81
DxO Color Depth 23.9 24.1
DxO Dynamic Range 13.2 13.4
DxO Low Light ISO 3702 1016
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