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Tested using Methodology v0.13.1
Updated Sep 01, 2026 02:39 PM
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Tested using Methodology v0.13.1
Updated Aug 28, 2026 08:56 PM
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Body Type
SLR-Style
Mirrorless
Yes
Sensor Size
Full Frame
Body Type
DSLR
Mirrorless
No
Sensor Size
Full Frame
Our Verdict
Sony α7 III
Nikon D850
The Sony α7 III and the Nikon D850 are suited to different uses. The Sony, being mirrorless, is much more portable and has better overall video features and performance. However, the Nikon is a fantastic option for high-level photography, with a higher-resolution sensor that gives you a bit more room to crop your images. It also has a longer battery life and a more robust build quality. So, if you prioritize speed and portability, get the Sony, but if you want a workhorse and prefer the battery life and optical viewfinder of a DSLR, get the Nikon.
Variants
- a7 III (Black (Body Only))
- a7 III (Black W/ 28-70mm Lens)
- D850 (Black (Body Only))
Check Price
Black (Body Only)
a7 III
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Sony
Black (Body Only)
D850
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BestBuy.com
Black W/ 28-70mm Lens
a7 III
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Amazon
Black (Body Only)
D850
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B&H
Black (Body Only)
D850
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Amazon
Black (Body Only)
D850
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Walmart.com
Black (Body Only)
D850
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Nikon
Main Differences for
Travel Photography
Travel Photography
Threshold
Travel Photography
7.8
7.5
Portability
4.1
1.7
Battery
9.4
7.2
Minimum Shutter Speed Achieved
1/20 s
1/8 s
Screen Max Brightness
665 cd/m²
1,070 cd/m²
Full Comparison
Design
Portability
4.1
1.7
Portability Picture
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Compare High-Res
Height
3.8" (9.6 cm)
5.1" (12.9 cm)
Width
5.4" (13.8 cm)
6.1" (15.4 cm)
Depth
3.1" (7.9 cm)
3.1" (7.9 cm)
Volume
63.9 in³ (1,046.6 cm³)
95.6 in³ (1,565.8 cm³)
Weight
1.43 lbs (0.65 kg)
2.19 lbs (0.99 kg)
Build Quality
8.0
8.5
Build Quality Picture
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Body
Body Picture
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Body Type
SLR-Style
DSLR
Water Resistance
No
Weather-Sealed
Mirrorless
Yes
No
Rugged
No
No
Hot Shoe
Yes
Yes
Customizable Button
Yes
Yes
Command Dial
3
2
Tripod Mount
Yes
Yes
Lens Mount
E-Mount
F Mount
Built-In Flash
No
No
Fastest Shutter Speed
1/8,000 s
1/8,000 s
In The Box
In The Box Picture
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Ergonomics & Comfort
8.5
8.5
Hand Grip Picture
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Hand Grip: Small Hand
Yes
No
Hand Grip: Medium Hand
Yes
Yes
Hand Grip: Large Hand
Yes
Yes
Hand Grip: Extra-Large Hand
No
Yes
Viewfinder
EVF Menu Picture
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Compare High-Res
Viewfinder Type
Electronic
Optical
Advertised Coverage
100%
100%
Advertised Resolution
2.36 million dots
N/A
Advertised Magnification
0.78
0.75
Screen
6.7
8.0
Screen Picture
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Screen Articulation Type
Tilting
Tilting
Screen Max Brightness
665 cd/m²
1,070 cd/m²
Advertised Resolution
0.92 million dots
2.40 million dots
Size
3.0" (7.5 cm)
3.1" (8.0 cm)
Touchscreen
Limited
Yes
Menu System
6.5
9.0
Screen Menu Picture
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Guide Mode
Yes
Yes
App Name
Imaging Edge Mobile
Nikon SnapBridge
Built-In Lens
0.0
0.0
Aperture Vs Focal Length
Maximum Aperture
No built-in lens
No built-in lens
Max Aperture (Full-Frame Equivalent)
N/A
N/A
Minimum Focal Length
N/A
N/A
Maximum Focal Length
N/A
N/A
Max Focal Length (Full-Frame Equivalent)
N/A
N/A
Optical Image Stabilization
No
No
Light Falloff Picture
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Luminance
N/A
N/A
Light Falloff
N/A
N/A
Sensor
Sensor Type
BSI CMOS
BSI CMOS
Advertised Effective Pixels
24.2 MP
45.7 MP
Processor
BIONZ X
EXPEED 5
Sensor Size
Full Frame
Full Frame
Extended ISO Minimum
50
32
Native ISO Minimum (Base ISO)
100
64
Native ISO Maximum
51,200
25,600
Tested Firmware
Version 3.10
1.31
Battery
9.4
7.2
Battery Type
Sony NP-FZ100
Nikon EN-EL15C
USB Charging
Yes
No
Power Delivery While Recording
Yes
No
Advertised Battery Life In Photo
610 photos
1,840 photos
Tested Battery Life In Video
137 min
92 min
Photo General
Photo Shooting Speed
7.3
6.7
Low Speed Continuous
4 fps
1 fps
High Speed Continuous
10 fps
7 fps
Silent Shooting Continuous
9 fps
6 fps
Raw Buffer Size
40 Photos
65 Photos
JPEG Buffer Size
164 Photos
200 Photos
Buffer Empty Time
10 s
2.81 s
Photo AF-C Tracking
6.8
8.0
Autofocus Tracking Shots
Run 01
AF-C Tracking 01
Run 01
AF-C Tracking 01
Perfect Focus Hit Rate
50%
68%
Usable Focus Hit Rate
85%
86%
Photo AF-C Center Point
10
10
Autofocus Center Point Shots
Run 01
AF-C Center Point 01
Run 01
AF-C Center Point 01
Perfect Focus Hit Rate
100%
100%
Usable Focus Hit Rate
100%
100%
Photo Image Stabilization
7.3
8.3
Stabilization Slideshow
Minimum Shutter Speed Achieved
1/20 s
1/8 s
In-Body Image Stabilization
Yes
No
Photo Image Quality
Photo RAW Dynamic Range
9.0
9.1
Dynamic Range Scene
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Compare High-Res
Dynamic Range At Base ISO
11.2 f-stops
11.5 f-stops
Dynamic Range At 1/500s Exposure Time
9.8 f-stops
9.9 f-stops
Dynamic Range At 1/2000s Exposure Time
8.0 f-stops
8.1 f-stops
Dynamic Range At 1/4000s Exposure Time
7.3 f-stops
7.3 f-stops
Photo RAW Sharpness
8.9
8.6
Sharpness Scene Crop
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Compare High-Res
MTF Graph
Preview Graph
Preview Graph
Vertical Edge MTF50 At Base ISO
1,993 LW/PH
2,047 LW/PH
Horizontal Edge MTF50 At Base ISO
2,541 LW/PH
2,014 LW/PH
Photo RAW Noise
7.9
7.5
Noise Scene Crop
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Compare High-Res
Noise Vs Exposure Time
Preview Graph
Preview Graph
SNR 18% At 1/8 Exposure Time (125 ms)
34.5 dB
33.6 dB
SNR 18% At 1/30 Exposure Time (33 ms)
32.6 dB
31.5 dB
SNR 18% At 1/125 Exposure Time (8 ms)
28.7 dB
27.4 dB
SNR 18% At 1/500 Exposure Time (2 ms)
23.4 dB
22.0 dB
Pictures Sample Gallery
Video General
Video Features
Full HD Video
Yes
Yes
4k Video
Yes
Yes
6k Video
No
No
Clean HDMI Output
Yes
Yes
Advertised Max Chroma Sampling Over HDMI
4:2:2
4:2:2
Advertised Max Bit Depth Over HDMI
8 bits
8 bits
Log Picture Profile
Yes
No
Recording Light
No
No
Audio
Audio Test Sample
Audio Recording
Stereo
Stereo
Microphone Level Display
Yes
Yes
Video File Format And Compression
MP4 H.264 / MPEG-4 AVC
No
Yes
MP4 H.265 / HEVC
No
No
MOV H.264 / MPEG-4 AVC
No
Yes
MOV H.265 / HEVC
No
No
AVCHD H.264 / MPEG-4 AVC
Yes
No
All-I Compression
No
No
4k Video
4k Video Frame Rate
7.2
8.5
240 fps In 4k
No
No
120 fps In 4k
No
No
60 fps In 4k
No
No
30 fps In 4k
Yes, with a Crop
Yes
24 fps In 4k
Yes
Yes
4k Crop At Max Available fps
1.165 x
1 x
4k Video Internal Recording
7.8
7.8
Bitrate Maximum In 4k
100 Mbps
117 Mbps
Bitrate Minimum In 4k
60 Mbps
114 Mbps
Chroma Sampling In 4k
4:2:0
4:2:0
Bit Depth In 4k
8 Bit
8 Bit
Record Time Limit In 4k
30 min
30 min
Overheat Recording Interruptions in 4k
0
0
4k Video Autofocus Performance
8.9
5.4
4k Object Tracking Video
Object Tracking In 4k
9.7
6.0
4k Face Tracking Video
Face Tracking In 4k
9.5
5.0
Face Detection In 4k
Yes
Yes
Eye Detection In 4k
No
No
4k Video Rolling Shutter Effect
6.4
5.3
Rolling Shutter Video in 4k
4k Rolling Shutter
5.7°
7.7°
Full HD Video
FHD Video Frame Rate
9.5
9.2
240 fps In FHD
No
No
120 fps In FHD
Yes
Yes, with a Crop
60 fps In FHD
Yes
Yes
30 fps In FHD
Yes
Yes
24 fps In FHD
Yes
Yes
FHD Crop At Max Available fps
1 x
1.5 x
FHD Video Internal Recording
7.7
7.5
Bitrate Maximum In FHD
100 Mbps
43 Mbps
Bitrate Minimum In FHD
16 Mbps
21 Mbps
Chroma Sampling In FHD
4:2:0
4:2:0
Bit Depth In FHD
8 Bit
8 Bit
Record Time Limit in FHD
30 min
30 min
FHD Video Autofocus Performance
9.0
5.4
Object Tracking Video
Object Tracking In FHD
10
6.0
FHD Face Tracking Video
Face Tracking In FHD
9.5
5.0
Face Detection In FHD
Yes
Yes
Eye Detection In FHD
No
No
FHD Video Rolling Shutter Effect
7.5
6.8
Rolling Shutter Video in FHD
FHD Rolling Shutter
3.0°
4.7°
Video Image Quality
Video Dynamic Range
8.3
6.1
Base ISO Video Dynamic Range Waveform
Strict SNR Video Dynamic Range At Base ISO
7.20 stops
8.16 stops
Lenient SNR Video Dynamic Range At Base ISO
10.51 stops
8.82 stops
Background Floor Video Dynamic Range At Base ISO
13.92 stops
9.33 stops
Storage And Connectivity
Storage
Card Slot Picture
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Card 1 Slot
SD Card UHS-II
CFexpress
Card 2 Slot
SD Card UHS-I
SD Card UHS-II
Inputs / Outputs
9.5
8.3
Input Picture
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Compare High-Res
USB
USB-C
Micro-B USB 3.0
HDMI
Micro (Type D)
Mini (Type C)
Headphones
Yes
Yes
Microphone
Stereo
Stereo
Wi-Fi
Yes
Yes
Bluetooth
Yes
Yes
Check Price
Black (Body Only)
a7 III
SEE PRICE
Sony
Black (Body Only)
D850
SEE PRICE
BestBuy.com
Black W/ 28-70mm Lens
a7 III
SEE PRICE
Amazon
Black (Body Only)
D850
SEE PRICE
B&H
Black (Body Only)
D850
SEE PRICE
Amazon
Black (Body Only)
D850
SEE PRICE
Walmart.com
Black (Body Only)
D850
SEARCH
Nikon
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Sony α7 III
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