In addition to revealing a trio of full-frame firsts earlier today, Sony has also shown APS-C sensors a bit of love with the NEX-6 compact system camera. The NEX-6 (as the name would suggest) sits between the NEX-5R and NEX-7 in the Sony line-up of mirror-less interchangeable lens cameras and borrows several features from its NEX range brethren, including Fast Hybrid AF and an OLED viewfinder.
Sony says the NEX-6 is designed to appeal to DSLR users who want to travel light, but don't want to give up features they have become accustomed to. As such, the camera boasts an OLED viewfinder like that in the NEX-7, which offers 100 percent field coverage with a 2,359k dot resolution. There's also DSLR standards like a physical mode dial for cycling through shooting modes, a control dial for fine adjustments of things like exposure and ISO, and a function button which can be used to call up pre-selected menus quickly.
The Sony NEX-6 uses the same large 16-megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor as the NEX-5R, which combined with the BIONZ image processor is capable of continuous burst shooting at a none-too-shabby 10 frames per second. The ISO range goes from 100 to 25600, promising good low-light performance while Fast Hybrid AF – which combines phase and contrast-detection – should ensure speedy focusing in most situations.
Measuring 119.9 × 66.9 × 42.6 mm (4.7 x 2.6 x 1.7 inches) the new camera again fits between the NEX-5R and NEX-7 and has a 3-inch 921k dot resolution LCD on the rear which can be angled up to 90° up or 45° down. Alongside a pop-up flash, there’s a new Multi Interface Shoe which allows the camera to "intelligently" link with various accessories.
The Quick Navi interface – which has previously featured high-end A-mount cameras from Sony – means that users can easily make settings adjustments without taking the viewfinder away from their eye. Coming from the NEX-5R, PlayMemories Camera Apps gives users the chance to virtually upgrade their NEX-6 with new features, such as Smart Remote Control, Direct Upload and Time-Lapse. This can but done via USB or Wi-Fi.
Movie shooting is offered at 1920 x 1080 50p, and an Auto Slow Shutter feature detects low-light situations and automatically switches to a slower shutter speed.
The Sony NEX-6 will be available from October for US$850 body-only, or $1,000 with a new (and smaller) kit lens – a 16-50mm F3.5-5.6 OSS power zoom with Optical SteadyShot image stabilization.
The following video from the SGNL by Sony team offers a look at the NEX-6.
Source: Sony
