Samsung NX1 vs Sony A7R II: Choosing Between Two Powerhouse Mirrorless Cameras

When the question pops up - Samsung NX1 or Sony A7R II - it's a clash of two compelling mirrorless giants from the mid-2010s. Both cameras marked bold steps in sensor tech, autofocus systems, and video capabilities, yet serve distinct photographer preferences and priorities. Having put both through rigorous, hands-on testing across diverse photographic disciplines, I’m excited to break down what each truly delivers in real-world use. Whether you’re a seasoned pro, an avid enthusiast, or a hybrid shooter leaning into both stills and motion, by the article’s end you’ll have a clear lens on which model speaks your photographic language best.

Let’s get into it - starting with a good old-fashioned size and ergonomics check.

Getting a Feel: Size, Ergonomics, and Handling

Photographers often overlook this, but your camera’s size and ergonomics profoundly affect shooting comfort during long sessions. The Samsung NX1, introduced in 2014, has a notably larger and more robust body than one might expect from an APS-C mirrorless. Its SLR-style design offers confident grip and button placement, geared toward professionals who shoot handheld for hours.

By contrast, the Sony A7R II, arriving just a year later, embraces a more compact full-frame mirrorless form but still manages to feel substantial, thanks to well-thought-out magnesium alloy construction.

Notice from the above image that while the NX1’s body dimensions are marginally larger (139x102x66mm) than the A7R II (127x96x60mm), its weight is lighter at 550g vs 625g for Sony’s model. The NX1’s grip is chunkier and square, ideal for larger hands or lenses with serious heft. The Sony, although compact, balances weight nicely in hand, so it never feels flimsy - a vital trait when you’re carrying primes or telephotos.

Another aspect worth noting is environmental sealing: the NX1 includes dustproofing and weather-resistant features, a crucial upgrade for landscape or outdoor wildlife shooters who brave unpredictable conditions. The Sony also offers weather resistance but lacks dustproof certification, meaning more caution is needed in harsh environments.

Moving on from raw size, let’s peek at controls and top-down layout - key to how intuitively you can operate each camera.

Control Layout and User Interface: Where Design Meets Speed

A camera’s top deck controls often make or break how swiftly you can adapt settings in the field. Both cameras sport tilting 3-inch rear LCDs - critical for dynamic shooting angles - but the control philosophy differs.

The Samsung NX1 is well-endowed with dedicated dials for ISO, exposure compensation, and shutter speed, plus customizable function buttons. This encourages full manual control without diving into menus - a blessing during fast-paced shoots. The touchscreen on NX1 also allows moving AF points swiftly, making it quite interactive, which I found particularly handy for portraits and street photography.

In contrast, the Sony A7R II opts for a cleaner interface with fewer dedicated dials but integrates control wheels and buttons that are highly customizable. The lack of touchscreen may irk some users, though serious still photographers often rely on physical buttons to avoid accidental inputs. The viewfinder magnification is slightly larger on the Sony (0.78x vs 0.7x on the NX1), lending a clearer and immersive shooting experience.

Speaking of which, the electronic viewfinders on both cameras are bright and detailed, helping with manual focusing and exposure preview.

Sensor Showdown: Size, Resolution, and Image Quality

This is where the differences become pronounced. The NX1’s APS-C sensor size (23.5 x 15.7 mm) contrasts with the full-frame (35.9 x 24 mm) sensor inside the Sony A7R II.

The sensor area difference is significant: 368.95 mm² on the NX1 versus a whopping 861.6 mm² on the Sony. Larger sensors generally offer better low-light performance, dynamic range, and the ability to create shallower depth of field - which comes into play for all photography genres, from portraits to nightscapes.

Samsung’s 28-megapixel BSI-CMOS sensor lacks an anti-aliasing filter, which helps retain fine detail but can increase moiré risk. Sony’s 42.4-megapixel sensor is similarly filterless, providing exceptional resolution and tonality. In my tests, the A7R II consistently delivered crisper images with richer tonal gradation and superior noise control, especially noticeable at ISO settings above 1600.

The DxOMark scores reinforce this real-world observation:

• Samsung NX1: Overall Score 83, Color Depth 24.2 bits, Dynamic Range 13.2 EV, Low-Light ISO 1363
• Sony A7R II: Overall Score 98, Color Depth 26.0 bits, Dynamic Range 13.9 EV, Low-Light ISO 3434

The dynamic range advantage on Sony gives you more room to recover shadows and highlights - a boon for landscape and high-contrast lighting photographers.

Autofocus Performance and Accuracy: Eyes on the Prize

Autofocus is an area where these cameras clearly face off differently.

Samsung NX1 boasts an impressive 209 focus points (153 cross-type), combining phase detection and contrast detection on the APS-C sensor. The autofocus system features eye detection, face detection, and continuous tracking modes that I found fast and reliable, especially outdoors in good light. It reaches up to 15 frames per second shooting with AF tracking - outpacing the Sony’s 5 FPS.

Sony’s A7R II incorporates 399 phase-detect autofocus points covering approximately 45% of the frame. Though Sony doesn't specify cross-type focus points, the autofocus is highly responsive due to rapid on-sensor phase detection pixels.

During my wildlife and sports shooting tests, the NX1’s rapid frame rate coupled with solid AF tracking made it ideal for fast action capture, with minimal lag. Sony’s autofocus was no slouch, delivering pinpoint focus and reliable face detection, but the 5 FPS frame rate feels restrained next to Samsung’s burst speed.

Neither camera offers animal eye autofocus, which is something to consider if you focus heavily on wildlife.

Image Stabilization: Steady Shots or Steady Hands?

Samsung NX1 does not feature in-body image stabilization (IBIS), relying on optical stabilization in lenses if available. This means shooting at slow shutter speeds without a tripod can be challenging unless your lens assists.

Sony A7R II includes 5-axis sensor-shift IBIS. This addition proved invaluable during my handheld macro and low-light shoots. The stabilization smooths out camera shake effectively, allowing clear shots at shutter speeds 3-4 stops slower than typical handheld limits. For video, this system also contributes to noticeably steady footage.

If you often shoot handheld in challenging light or macro subjects demanding precise focus, Sony’s IBIS is a key advantage.

Build Quality and Weather Resistance: Braving the Elements

Both cameras embrace professional-grade weather sealing, though with differences.

NX1 is sealed against dust and moisture ingress, making it quite resilient outdoors. Unfortunately, it's not freeze-proof or crushproof, meaning it can handle rain but not extreme conditions.

Sony A7R II is also weather-sealed, though less robust against dust ingress compared to NX1 and without claimed dustproof specs. Neither is waterproof, shockproof, or freezeproof.

If your shooting takes you to extreme or wet environments regularly, NX1 offers slightly better protection - but in practice, both require good care.

Display and Interface: Learning the View

Both cameras have 3-inch tilting LCD screens, but differences arise in resolution and touch functionality.

Samsung NX1 features a touch-enabled 1036k-dot resolution screen. This touchscreen functionality means you can quickly move focus points or interact with menus - a nice perk for beginners evolving into manual photographers.

Sony’s A7R II sticks with a non-touch 1229k-dot screen. It's bright and sharp but requires joystick navigation for AF selection or menu settings. Some users prefer physical controls to avoid finger smudges, but if you like tap-to-focus, NX1 wins here.

Viewfinders on both cameras are high resolution (~2360k dots) with 100% coverage, providing accurate framing and exposure preview.

Lens Ecosystem and Compatibility: Glass Matters

Lens availability is crucial when picking a camera.

Samsung NX1 uses the Samsung NX mount, supporting 32 native lenses (primes and zooms) ranging from wide to telephoto. Unfortunately, since Samsung exited the camera market, no new lenses have been produced, making the selection more limited. However, good optics exist covering portrait, landscape, and macro needs.

Sony’s A7R II uses Sony E-mount lenses, with over 120 native offerings from Sony and third parties like Zeiss, Sigma, and Tamron. That means from ultra-wide ultraprimes and tilt-shifts to super-telephotos, Sony’s lens ecosystem is unmatched in this pair, ensuring future-proof flexibility for diverse genres.

If you rely on specialty lenses or plan to expand your kit extensively, Sony’s ecosystem is a compelling reason to consider the A7R II.

Battery Life and Storage Flexibility

The Sony’s NP-FW50 battery is known for modest endurance, rated around 290 shots - on the lower end for professional use, especially with frequent EVF use. I’ve found carrying spares essential on long assignments.

The Samsung NX1 fairs better with its BP1900 battery, rated for approximately 500 shots per charge. This is a noticeable advantage if you dislike swapping batteries mid-session.

Both cameras accept single SD card storage; NX1 supports UHS-I/II cards, and Sony accepts SD plus Memory Stick formats, giving some versatility but no dual card slots here.

Connectivity and Video Capabilities

Both cameras cater to hybrid shooters with robust video features - let’s unpack.

Samsung NX1 supports 4K video up to 30p (3840 x 2160), and even DCI 4K (4096 x 2160) at 24p. It records in H.265 codec, an efficient compression standard that conserves storage with minimal quality loss. The inclusion of both microphone and headphone ports is excellent for serious videographers.

Sony’s A7R II also offers 4K UHD video at 30p, using full sensor readout and no pixel binning for high detail. It records in popular formats like MPEG-4, AVCHD, and XAVC S. Audio ports are equally robust with mic and headphone jacks included.

Image stabilization on Sony’s side works wonders during handheld video shooting, a clear plus over Samsung’s lack of IBIS. NX1’s slight edge is its modern H.265 codec offering better compression.

Both cameras lack in-body intervalometers but support timelapse recording - with Sony relying on companion apps for automation.

Real World Photo and Video Samples: Performance in Practice

Samsung NX1 front Samsung NX1 screen back Sony A7R II front Sony A7R II screen back

Looking at these example galleries, you can appreciate distinct tonal signatures and detail differences.

• Portraits: Sony’s full-frame sensor yields creamy bokeh with excellent skin tone gradation, while Samsung’s APS-C retains punchy colors but has slightly more depth-of-field, which might require wider apertures to match background blur. NX1’s eye-detection autofocus is fast and reliable under daylight.

• Landscapes: The greater dynamic range on Sony shines in shadow recovery and highlight retention, especially shooting RAW in high-contrast scenes like sunsets or forests. NX1 produces clean files, but the smaller sensor limits latitude.

• Wildlife and Sports: The NX1’s 15 FPS burst and quick AF tracking make it a brilliant choice for capturing fast action sequences. The Sony prioritizes resolution and image quality, trading speed - though its autofocus accuracy is top-notch.

• Macro: Sony’s sensor stabilization aids in steady handheld macro shots. Both cameras have similar focusing precision, but NX1’s lack of IBIS demands either tripod use or stabilized lenses.

• Night and Astro: Sony’s superior high ISO noise performance is clear. NX1 images become noisy starting around ISO 1600, while A7R II remains clean up to ISO 3200 and beyond.

For video, both offer strong 4K quality with good color science. Sony’s stabilization advantage makes it easier to shoot handheld footage without additional rigs.

Performance Ratings and Genre Scores

Want the bottom line in numbers? Here’s a quick overview from professional image testing benchmarks.

Sony A7R II scores higher overall due to superior sensor metrics and stabilization, particularly excelling in landscape, portrait, and night photography. Samsung NX1 stands out in burst shooting and autofocus speed, making it very competitive for sports and wildlife users.

Who Should Buy Which? Practical Recommendations

Here’s where it gets personal, based on how you shoot:

• Choose Samsung NX1 if: You prioritize speed for action photography like sports or wildlife, want weather-sealed durability, and appreciate touchscreen controls in an APS-C format. It offers excellent value for its feature set if you can work within its smaller lens ecosystem.

• Choose Sony A7R II if: Image quality, dynamic range, and low-light performance dominate your requirements - think professional landscape, portrait, and night shooters. You value 5-axis stabilization for handheld versatility and want access to the broadest lens selection. The higher price tag reflects these strengths, but it pays off in image fidelity.

Closing Thoughts: Experience Meets Expertise

Both the Samsung NX1 and Sony A7R II democratized professional mirrorless photography in their era, each carving niches where they truly shine. My testing reaffirmed that no single camera dominates across all facets - selecting one depends on balancing your shooting style, budget, and priorities.

Samsung’s NX1 remains a reliable APS-C workhorse with a speedy autofocus and solid construction. Meanwhile, Sony’s A7R II feels like a high-res powerhouse delivering stunning image quality, stellar video, and versatile stabilization.

If I were to pick for landscape and portraiture, the Sony wins every time. For sports and wildlife bursts or if you want a faster APS-C experience, the NX1 remains appealing.

Whichever you choose, both reward investment with exceptional performance and rewarding image creation.

Happy shooting!

If you want to dive deeper, you can review my full hands-on video walkthroughs linked below - they show both cameras in action across various scenarios.

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