SONY ALPHA A6400
Sony’s portable powerhouse mixes great image quality with pro-level video
Sony’s accurate Real Time Eye AF feature can even track animal movements
Sony’s professional full-frame mirrorless cameras often steal the limelight, but the company’s smaller-sensor APS-C mirrorless options still deserve attention. The a6400 offers many of the features of the top-of-the-range a6500, but it lacks in-body image stablisation. It’s a surprising omission given the cheaper Olympus E-M10 III does have this feature, and it means you’ll need to rely on lens-based stabilisation to help ensure sharp shots.
Where the a6400 beats both the Olympus and Fujifilm cameras is ergonomics. It’s comfortable in the hand, and the 3-inch rear screen can hinge through 180 degrees to face forward for easy selfie framing. It’s not perfect, however: the screen resolution is relatively low, and Sony’s dated menu interface hasn’t been designed to make the most of touchscreen control.
Compared to the others, the Sony’s more utilitarian body design is also starting to look dated. That said, the a6400 does feel chunky and well made thanks to its pro-spec magnesium alloy construction and weather sealing. Its more streamlined array of physical controls aren’t as comprehensive as those on the Fujifilm and Olympus cameras, but you get buttons and dials for the most essential settings, with plenty of custom buttons to assign to your most-used functions.
Inside, Sony’s 24.2-megapixel image sensor provides decent image quality, but dynamic range is no match for the X-T30, and the a6400 generates noticeably more grain. The latter isn’t really noticeable at low ISO sensitivities, but dim the lights and the a6400’s shots are grainier than equivalent images from both the Fujifilm and Olympus cameras.
There’s 4K video recording, which, though capped at 30fps like in the X-T30, can be captured at high bitrates with advanced colour grading profiles and expanded dynamic range to help you produce pro-looking footage in a wide variety of lighting conditions.
Autofocus performance is equally impressive. The a6400 uses an advanced AF system with 425 phasedetection points for increased speed, and while this and the 84% frame coverage still trails the X-T30, autofocus speed and accuracy are every bit as accomplished in everyday shooting. We’re also fans of Sony’s clever Real Time Eye AF feature. It’s uncannily accurate at facial detection and can even track animal movements.