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Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II

Portability
58
Imaging
72
Features
86
Overall
77
Pentax K-3 Mark III front
 
Sony Alpha A99 II front
Portability
57
Imaging
77
Features
92
Overall
83

Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II Key Specs

Pentax K-3 III
(Full Review)
  • 26MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3.2" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 1600000
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Pentax KAF2 Mount
  • 820g - 135 x 104 x 74mm
  • Launched March 2021
Sony A99 II
(Full Review)
  • 42MP - Full frame Sensor
  • 3" Fully Articulated Screen
  • ISO 100 - 25600 (Bump to 102400)
  • Sensor based 5-axis Image Stabilization
  • No Anti-Alias Filter
  • 1/8000s Maximum Shutter
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 849g - 143 x 104 x 76mm
  • Revealed September 2016
  • Succeeded the Sony A99
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Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II Overview

Let's look a bit more closely at the Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II, both Advanced DSLR digital cameras by brands Pentax and Sony. There is a large difference between the image resolutions of the K-3 III (26MP) and A99 II (42MP) and the K-3 III (APS-C) and A99 II (Full frame) come with totally different sensor measurements.

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The K-3 III was announced 4 years after the A99 II which is quite a serious difference as far as tech is concerned. Each of these cameras offer the identical body type (Mid-size SLR).

Before delving straight into a complete comparison, below is a short view of how the K-3 III matches up against the A99 II in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Pentax K-3 III over the Sony A99 II

 K-3 III A99 II 
RevealedMarch 2021September 2016Newer by 56 months
Screen sizing3.2"3"Bigger screen (+0.2")
Screen resolution1620k1229kClearer screen (+391k dot)
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Reasons to pick Sony A99 II over the Pentax K-3 III

 A99 II K-3 III 
Screen typeFully articulatedFixed Fully Articulating screen
Selfie screen Easy selfies

Common features in the Pentax K-3 III and Sony A99 II

 K-3 III A99 II 
Manually focus More accurate focus

Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II Physical Comparison

In case you're aiming to travel with your camera, you'll have to consider its weight and dimensions. The Pentax K-3 III has got outer dimensions of 135mm x 104mm x 74mm (5.3" x 4.1" x 2.9") along with a weight of 820 grams (1.81 lbs) while the Sony A99 II has dimensions of 143mm x 104mm x 76mm (5.6" x 4.1" x 3.0") along with a weight of 849 grams (1.87 lbs).

Look at the Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will differ dependant on the lens you choose during that time. The following is the front view over all size comparison of the K-3 III against the A99 II.

Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II size comparison

Looking at size and weight, the portability rating of the K-3 III and A99 II is 58 and 57 respectively.

Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II top view buttons comparison

Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II Sensor Comparison

Often, it's tough to see the difference between sensor dimensions only by going over specifications. The pic here might provide you a stronger sense of the sensor sizes in the K-3 III and A99 II.

To sum up, both of the cameras offer different megapixels and different sensor dimensions. The K-3 III with its tinier sensor will make shooting shallow DOF harder and the Sony A99 II will deliver greater detail with its extra 16 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also let you crop shots a little more aggressively. The younger K-3 III will have a benefit when it comes to sensor innovation.

Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II sensor size comparison

Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II Screen and ViewFinder

Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Portrait photography with Pentax K-3 III
Portrait photography with Sony A99 II
83
has manual focus
excellent MP (26MP)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
provides face detection focus
exports RAW formats
86
has manual focus
high resolution (42MP)
sensor size is great (Full frame)
includes face detect focusing
saves RAW files
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Street Comparison

Pentax K-3 III as a Street photography camera
Sony A99 II as a Street photography camera
71
image stabilization (Sensor based)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW formats
supports focus by touch
environment proofing
very good high ISO (1,600,000)
no moving screen
76
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
sensor size is great (Full frame)
saves RAW files
weather sealing
great ISO range (25,600)
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Sports Comparison

Pentax K-3 III Sports photography information
Sony A99 II Sports photography information
79
great max shutter speed (1/8,000s)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
excellent MP (26MP)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
provides tracking autofocus
environment proofing
supports phase detect auto focus
bad battery power (800 shots)
82
max shutter speed is good (1/8,000s)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
high resolution (42 megapixels)
sensor size is great (Full frame)
includes tracking focus
weather sealing
comes with phase detect AF
terrible battery (490 per charge)
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Travel Comparison

Pentax K-3 III as a Travel photography camera
Sony A99 II as a Travel photography camera
64
environment proofing
has bluetooth
supports focus by touch
excellent MP (26 megapixels)
bad battery power (800 shots)
display is not selfie friendly
70
weather sealing
supports bluetooth
high resolution (42 megapixels)
display is selfie friendly
terrible battery (490 CIPA)
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Landscape Comparison

Pentax K-3 III as a Landscape photography camera
Sony A99 II as a Landscape photography camera
80
has manual focus
switch lenses (Pentax KAF2 mount)
screen size is good (3.2 inch)
image stabilization (Sensor based)
excellent MP (26 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
no anti-alias filter
very good high ISO (1,600,000)
exports RAW formats
environment proofing
has double storage slots
bad battery power (800 CIPA)
82
has manual focus
switch lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
good sized screen (3 inch)
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
high resolution (42 megapixels)
sensor size is great (Full frame)
does not have anti aliasing filter
great ISO range (25,600)
saves RAW files
weather sealing
2 card slots
terrible battery (490 shots)
Photography Glossary

Vlogging Comparison

Pentax K-3 III Vlogging highlights
Sony A99 II Vlogging highlights
35
built-in touchscreen
image stabilization (Sensor based)
provides face detection focus
video resolution high (3840 x 2160 pixels)
comes with external mic port
display is not selfie friendly
78
display is selfie friendly
image stabilization (Sensor based 5-axis)
includes face detect focusing
great video quality (3840 x 2160 resolution)
does have microphone support
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Pentax K-3 III vs Sony A99 II Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Pentax K-3 III and Sony A99 II
 Pentax K-3 Mark IIISony Alpha A99 II
General Information
Brand Name Pentax Sony
Model Pentax K-3 Mark III Sony Alpha A99 II
Category Advanced DSLR Advanced DSLR
Launched 2021-03-31 2016-09-19
Physical type Mid-size SLR Mid-size SLR
Sensor Information
Processor Chip - Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS BSI-CMOS
Sensor size APS-C Full frame
Sensor measurements 23 x 15.5mm 35.9 x 24mm
Sensor surface area 356.5mm² 861.6mm²
Sensor resolution 26 megapixel 42 megapixel
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 6192 x 4128 7952 x 5304
Max native ISO 1600000 25600
Max boosted ISO - 102400
Lowest native ISO 100 100
RAW pictures
Lowest boosted ISO - 50
Autofocusing
Focus manually
Touch to focus
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 101 399
Cross focus points 25 79
Lens
Lens mounting type Pentax KAF2 Sony/Minolta Alpha
Total lenses 156 143
Crop factor 1.6 1
Screen
Type of display Fixed Type Fully articulated
Display size 3.2 inch 3 inch
Resolution of display 1,620k dots 1,229k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (pentaprism) Electronic
Viewfinder resolution - 2,359k dots
Viewfinder coverage 100 percent 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification 0.7x 0.78x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 30s 30s
Maximum shutter speed 1/8000s 1/8000s
Continuous shooting rate 12.0fps 12.0fps
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range no built-in flash no built-in flash
Flash options Auto, Auto + Red-eye Reduction, Flash On, Flash On + Red-eye Reduction, Slow- speed Sync, Slow-speed Sync + Red-eye, P-TTL, Contrast-control-sync, High-speed sync, Wireless sync Off, auto, fill, slow sync, redeye reduction, rear sync, high-speed sync, wireless
External flash
AE bracketing
WB bracketing
Maximum flash synchronize 1/200s 1/250s
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Supported video resolutions 3840 x 2160 @ 30p, MOV, H.264, Linear PCM3840 x 2160 @ 24p, MOV, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 60p, MOV, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 30p, MOV, H.264, Linear PCM1920 x 1080 @ 24p, MOV, H.264, Linear PCM -
Max video resolution 3840x2160 3840x2160
Video data format MPEG-4, H.264 MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 GBit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 820g (1.81 lb) 849g (1.87 lb)
Dimensions 135 x 104 x 74mm (5.3" x 4.1" x 2.9") 143 x 104 x 76mm (5.6" x 4.1" x 3.0")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested 92
DXO Color Depth score not tested 25.4
DXO Dynamic range score not tested 13.4
DXO Low light score not tested 2317
Other
Battery life 800 photographs 490 photographs
Form of battery Battery Pack NP-FM500H lithium-ion battery & charger
Battery model D-LI90 -
Self timer Yes Yes (2, 5, 10 secs)
Time lapse shooting
Storage type Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC slots (UHS-II supported in slot 1) Dual SD/SDHC/SDXC/MS Duo slots
Card slots Two Two
Retail pricing $1,999 $3,198