Sony A850

Sony A850 is Sony's Advanced DSLR digital camera initially revealed on April of 2010. The camera includes a 25MP, CMOS Full frame size sensor with a maximum resolution of 6048 x 4032.

The A850 is scored #42 out of 92 in Advanced DSLR cameras and all round #253 out of 1465 for cameras in our database. Remember to use our Advanced camera search to see camera ratings based on your custom factors.

The following is a chart of various criteria used in the scoring system.

The Sony A850 comes with a history of related cameras. Listed below, you can look at all older and the latest models along with important features.

You can look at the A850 from different angles in the gallery below.

Here is a selection of advantages and drawbacks of the Sony A850 based on features that are often viewed as crucial in a digital camera.

The Sony A850 is powered by the Bionz processor. The size of the sensor in the Sony A850 is 35.9mm x 24mm (Full frame). The 862 mm² sensor has the capability to resolve 6048 x 4032 pixels using aspect ratios of 3:2 and 16:9. The camera has got Image Stabilization (Sensor based). Optical stabilization is superior than digital stabilization as the latter can easily lead to cropping.

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The CMOS sensor boasts 25MP and features a standard ISO range of 200 - 3200. The ISO can also be increased digitally to a maximum of 6400. RAW files are supported therefore the user has more room to maneuver in post.

The picture below illustrates the A850's sensor size when compared to other popular sizes. The A850 sensor comes with a crop factor of 1 and is highlighted in green.

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To get an understanding of different aspect ratios, you should refer to the graphic below.

Sony A850 has a weight of 1.97 pounds (895 gr / 31.57 ounces) and features outer dimensions of 156mm x 117mm x 82mm (6.1" x 4.6" x 3.2"). The weight of normal Advanced DSLR camera is 776 gr so the Sony A850 is weightier as compared with other competitors.

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The following is a visual of the Sony A850 next to a soda so you're able to have a sense of its size.

The top view below will show the button design on the A850.

The A850 fits the Sony/Minolta Alpha mount and has 145 lenses available in the market. Here is some of the lenses we have in our collection that will work with the A850.

ModelVisualizeFocal LengthApertureStabilizedWeight

Tamron AF 28-200mm F3.8-5.6 XR Di Aspherical IF Macro28-200mmf/3.8-5.6 354g

Sony DT 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 SAM18-135mmf/3.5-5.6 398g

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Sony 16-35mm F2.8 ZA SSM Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T16-35mmf/2.8 900g

Sigma 18-125mm F3.8-5.6 DC HSM18-125mmf/3.8-5.6 490g

Sigma 10-20mm F4-5.6 EX DC HSM10-20mmf/4.0-5.6 470g

Samyang 100mm F2.8 Macro100mmf/2.8720g

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Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 DC HSM18-35mmf/1.8 810g

The A850 has the following connectivity:

• USB Yes
• HDMI Yes

Cameras that include NFC or Bluetooth compatibility can be controlled wirelessly through smartphones. You are able to transfer files and at times adjust settings without connecting physically with the camera.

Certain apps also allow a Liveview and click the shutter whenever you aren't near the camera. If the camera has a HDMI out, it can be connected to an external screen. Many cameras will allow you to recharge the battery using the USB port.

Sony A850 does not capture video. In case you are searching for a digital camera to shoot just images, it might not be a concern.

Sony A850 has got environment sealing which makes it a fantastic option to use in challenging places. This is especially beneficial whenever you are unsure about the conditions you may encounter in outdoor photography.

The Sony A850 includes a 3 inch fixed display having a resolution of 922 thousand dots.

Please be aware that the display screen offers no touch support. The A850 also includes a Top screen so its possible to quickly look at the camera's settings.

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The ViewFinder details regarding Sony A850 are the following:

• ViewFinder Optical (pentaprism)
• Coverage 98%
• Magnification 0.74x

Viewfinders can be quite helpful in bright outdoor conditions which will make the camera screen washed out and hard to view.

Sony A850 has the capability to shoot continuously at 3.0 frames/s. The highest shutter speed is 1/8000 sec.

Sony A850 has got external flash ability but is lacking integrated flash. The max flash sync speed is 1/250 sec.

Sony A850 has got both Phase Detect Autofocus along with Contrast Based Autofocus. Phase Detection focusing is a lot faster & accurate as compared with Contrast Based focusing.

The AF system includes 9 focus points to choose from. Sony A850 supports manual focusing when needed in low light scenarios or you need more precise focusing control.

The battery (NP-FM500H) on the Sony A850 is built to last for 880 photos according to the CIPA benchmarks making it about the same as its competitors. The general Advanced DSLR camera battery life is 909. Nikon D780 features the highest possible (2260) battery life in this range of cameras.

Listed below is a list of Advanced DSLR cameras that come with the strongest battery life:

ModelVisualizeBattery LifeRAWNFCBluetooth

Nikon D780
A850 vs D7802260 yesnoyes

Nikon D850
A850 vs D8501840 yesyesyes

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Nikon Df
A850 vs Df1400 yesnono

Canon 90D
A850 vs 90D1300 yesnoyes

Nikon D500
A850 vs D5001240 yesyesyes

The following chart indicates a summation of the Sony A850 for various kinds of photography. To view more, visit the specific paragraph below.

The Sony A850 has a points tally of 72 which is above average, meaning that it is a respectable choice for portrait images. Photographing portraits favors heavily to sensor dimension, support for RAW files along with the flexibility to use external flash.

Having a above average points tally of 66, the Sony A850 is a very decent pick for street photography. A decent street photography camera comes with a perfect balance of picture quality and portability.

A nice sports photography score of 71 indicates the Sony A850 is a good option for taking pictures of sports. A camera needs to have fantastic tracking plus fast continuous shooting for sports photography.

Size is super critical in picking a travel camera. Overall, the Sony A850 gets a decent 55 for a travel camera which makes it reasonably suited to purchase for your vacations.

If you're planning to choose a camera for landscape photographs, the most important aspect will be image quality. The Sony A850 at it's very good rating of 73 as a landscape camera is a very decent fit in the current market.

A camera for vlogging ought to come with a moving display, mic port and preferably IBIS. Taking all things into account, the Sony A850 is not really good as a vlog camera as it comes to a horrible rating of 9.

If you are interested in replacements to the A850, here is a number of the top placed cameras that fall under the family of Advanced DSLR.

The graph down below shows you a bird's eye view of the A850 vs it's highest rated rivals mentioned previously.

Here are a handful of other cameras you may see as alternate options. To check out a detailed comparison, visit the "compare" link.