Sony vs Fuji vs Canon vs Nikon shoot it out to find the APS-C mirrorless camera king
Jun 15, 2021
John Aldred
John Aldred is a photographer with over 25 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter – and occasional beta tester – of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.
Share:
Now that all of the major brands finally have APS-C mirrorless cameras. Or, well, now that Nikon’s finally caught up with everybody else and released an APS-C mirrorless camera, which is the best?
Well, Chris and Jordan at DPReview TV took the four best APS-C mirrorless cameras from each brand and put them all to the test to see where each one shines and where each one… Well, kinda sucks. In the running are the Sony A6600, Fujifilm X-T4, Canon EOS M6 Mark II and Nikon Z50.
All four cameras are well-liked by those who own them, so you’d think that picking a winner might not be easy. Obviously, though, there’s a big difference in price between each of these four cameras, with the Nikon Z50 coming in the least expensive at just under $800 and the Fujifilm X-T4 demanding more than double that, at $1,699 for the body only.
So, while these do represent the best APS-C mirrorless camera from each brand, and while those who own them generally like them, there are going to be some noticeable differences between them in terms of both performance and feature set when compared objectively and ignoring the price.
The pair scored the cameras on a number of factors including handling (Sony came last in that one), display (Sony last, again), autofocus (Sony wins this one, though, obviously), image quality, battery life and video capabilities. Some of the test results might surprise you, while others will very much be “Well, duh!” moments.
As for the final overall verdict… Well, it probably wasn’t unexpected, but the cameras are essentially ranked in order of purchase price. Personally, I think this is quite a satisfying correlation. It means that whichever brand you go for, you’re pretty much getting what you pay for.
Do you agree with their assessment?
Filed Under:
Tagged With:
- Camera
- |
- camera comparison
- |
- Canon
- |
- Fujifilm
- |
- gear comparison
- |
- Nikon
- |
- Sony
John Aldred
John Aldred is a photographer with over 25 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter – and occasional beta tester – of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.
Related Posts
Sony A7R IV vs Nikon Z7 vs Canon EOS R5 – Is Sony still the king of Eye autofocus?
Sony just announced new A6600 and A6100 APS-C mirrorless cameras and two new APS-C G lenses
Nikon expands its APS-C mirrorless lineup with the new vlogger-oriented Nikon Z30 entry level camera
Olympus overtakes Nikon, Fuji, Canon and Sony to top mirrorless sales in Japan
Join the Discussion
DIYP Comment Policy
Be nice, be on-topic, no personal information or flames.
15 responses to “Sony vs Fuji vs Canon vs Nikon shoot it out to find the APS-C mirrorless camera king”
For me – pentax k3 iii is the king.
Sony is Love
I get that they were going for the highest end option from each brand, but the Fuji XS-10 would’ve been a much more sensible comparison. Far closer in price, feature set and form factor to the others. It would’ve still held up well I think, but the X-T4 was kind of cheating (I say that as a loving owner of one! :P)
Totally agree…
By a happy owner of Fuji X-S10 ?
“I get that they were going for the highest end option from each brand”
If you did, you wouldn’t have made the rest of your comment. It’s to show the state of the brands and where they’re at in terms of capability with APS-C mirrorless cameras.
Why so aggressive? I understand the premise, and I don’t think Fuji should’ve been kneecapped just because they offer higher end bodies on APS-C than their competitors.
Butttt, the way they approach the video doesn’t make sense at a few spots. There’s little mention of the massive price difference until the very end of the video, and then no mention whatsoever that Fuji does offer the same X-Trans IV sensor in a $999 body with a more similar form factor to the others.
Someone could reasonably stumble upon the video and not realize that one of the cameras costs double what another does. With that in mind I think it would’ve made more sense to compare the $900-$1200 bodies like XS-10.
I still love DPReview and I still think the video was useful in many ways to prospective buyers.
I wasn’t being aggressive. I was simply stating a fact. If you read it that way, that’s on you.
Definitely the Fuji is another’s league. The comparison is therefore not really useful.
It really is nonsense to compare cameras with such wildly different prices. Most people take more-or-less for granted that if you spend more (in this case TWICE as much) you’ll get a better camera. The question folks REALLY want answered is best camera at a given price point +/- maybe at most a couple hundred dollars. Should have been XS10 and the A6400. Or wait til Nikon makes a more premium APS-C camera.
Really?
Why on Earth did you compare such an old Sony camera?
The a6500 would have been a closer comparison wouldn’t it?
Feel free to correct me if I’m wrong!
The A6600 (released in November 2019) is three years newer than the A6500 (released in October 2016). The A6500 has also recently been discontinued. How would that have been a closer comparison? :)
I use a Canon M50 for my “small” APS-C camera needs, video, v-logging, traveling light, decent resolution etc. It has a nice feel in the hands (except for those with huge hands), great auto-focus, articulating back-screen (to the side), EVF, and a nicer “look” than the M6…and it’s very economical!
As the rankings in the video seemed to be justified in terms of specifications that can be read in the interwebs, I was utterly disappointed. There is no real use case value, and hence validity and relevance to real photography are missing.
The relevance is to see how the only four brands making APS-C mirrorless cameras stack up against each other. If you’re looking to invest in an APS-C mirrorless system based on what they offer now, it’s very relevant to “real photography”.
Now throw the samsung nx500 in there lol. I dont know what to replace that thing with