Sony Alpha 6500

Sony Alpha 6500 was announced in 2016 and is an APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) Mirrorless camera with 24.2 Megapixel CMOS sensor. Its native ISO ranges from 100 to 25,600 and expands to 100 - 51,200 in boosted mode. The camera has a Tilting 3.0" screen with 922k dot resolution and built-in 0.39" Electronic viewfinder with 2,359k dot resolution. It has a built-in 5-Axis Sensor Shift in body image stabilization.

Sony Alpha 6500 can capture video up to 3840 x 2160 resolution.

Here is the Sony Alpha 6xxx series lineup, where you can view and compare the main specifications of the cameras within the same series.

Sony Alpha 6xxx series lineup

	Model	Date	Sensor	Native ISO	Screen	Price
	Sony a6700 Compare	July 2023	26.0 MP APS-C	100 - 32,000	Articulated 3.0" 1,037k dots Touchscreen	amazon B&H
	Sony a6100 Compare	August 2019	24.2 MP APS-C	100 - 32,000	Tilting 3.0" 922k dot Touchscreen	amazon B&H
	Sony a6600 Compare	August 2019	24.2 MP APS-C	100 - 32,000	Tilting 3.0" 922k dot Touchscreen	amazon B&H
	Sony a6400 Compare	January 2019	24.2 MP APS-C	100 - 32,000	Tilting 3.0" 922k dot Touchscreen	amazon B&H
	Sony a6500	October 2016	24.2 MP APS-C	100 - 25,600	Tilting 3.0" 922k dot Touchscreen	amazon B&H
	Sony a6300 Compare	February 2016	24.2 MP APS-C	100 - 25,600	Tilting 3.0" 922k dot	amazon B&H
	Sony a6000 Compare	April 2014	24.3 MP APS-C	100 - 25,600	Tilting 3.0" 922k dot	amazon B&H

You can view their side-by-side comparison here: Sony Alpha 6700 vs Alpha 6100 vs Alpha 6600 vs Alpha 6400 vs Alpha 6500 vs Alpha 6300.

In this section we present pros and cons of Sony Alpha 6500.

In 2019 Sony Alpha 6500 was replaced by Sony Alpha 6600. Let us now have a look at some important differences between Sony Alpha 6500 and its successor.

For more detailed comparison between the models please visit Sony Alpha 6500 vs Alpha 6600.

Tilting Touchscreen

Sony Alpha 6500 has a 3.0" Tilting touchscreen with 922k dot resolution. Tilting screen makes this camera very useful for photography purposes but not so useful for video shooting.

Electronic Viewfinder

Camera has a built-in 0.39" Electronic viewfinder with 2,359k dot resolution. It has a 100% coverage and 1.07x (0.71x 35mm equivalent) magnification.

Sony Alpha 6500 features a 24.2 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor with dimensions of 23.5 x 15.6 mm and a total area of 366.6 mm². Its native ISO range is 100 - 25,600 and expands to 100 - 51,200 in boosted mode.

Here is a sensor size comparison chart where you can see how Sony Alpha 6500's APS-C sensor compares with other types of sensors:

Sensor size chart

	Sensor	Dimensions	Area	Aspect Ratio	Crop Factor
	Medium Format	44 x 33 mm	1452 mm2	4:3	0.79x
	Full Frame	36 x 24 mm	864 mm2	3:2	1x
	APS-H	27 x 18 mm	486 mm2	3:2	1.3x
	APS-C	23.5 x 15.6 mm	366.6 mm2	3:2	1.5x
	APS-C (Canon)	22.3 x 14.9 mm	332.3 mm2	3:2	1.6x
	Micro Four Thirds	17.4 x 13 mm	226.2 mm2	4:3	2x
	1-inch	13.2 x 8.8 mm	116.2 mm2	3:2	2.7x
	1/1.7-inch	7.44 x 5.58 mm	41.5 mm2	4:3	4.7x
	1/2.3-inch	6.17 x 4.55 mm	28.1 mm2	4:3	5.6x

Camera is equipped with BIONZ X processor and can take pictures up to 6000 x 4000 resolution.

Lens Mount

Sony Alpha 6500 has Sony E lens mount. Due to APS-C sensor its crop factor (also called lens multiplier) is 1.5x. This means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length times 1.5.

In-Body Image Stabilization

The camera has a built-in 5-Axis Sensor Shift in-body image stabilization (IBIS). This means that you are still getting vibration reduction when camera is paired with non-image stabilizied lenses. It also works with lenses with optical image stabilization and in combination can achieve even better compensation.

Built-in Wi-Fi

Camera has a built-in Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n, 2.4 GHz) which allows to easily transfer photos and videos from the camera to other Wi-Fi-enabled devices, such as smartphones, tablets, printers, or computers. This eliminates the need for cables and allows for quick and convenient media sharing and social media integration. It gives you the ability to control your camera remotely using a smartphone or tablet. This is particularly useful for taking self-portraits, group shots, or capturing images in challenging conditions without having to touch the camera. Firmware updates can also be downloaded and installed wirelessly.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in WiFi.

Bluetooth

Camera has a built-in Bluetooth (version 4.1) which lets you to connect the camera to a smartphone or a dedicated remote control device. This allows you to remotely trigger the camera, adjust settings and controls remotely through a paired mobile app. While Wi-Fi is generally faster for transferring larger files, Bluetooth can be used for small, selective transfers, it can provide real-time information about your camera's battery status, memory card capacity, and other key settings directly on your paired smartphone or smartwatch.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in Bluetooth.

NFC

Sony Alpha 6500 has Near Field Communication (NFC) technology which simplifies the process of pairing it with other NFC-enabled devices like smartphones or tablets. It allows to quickly transfer photos and videos or remotely control the camera from compatible device. NFC can also be used for authentication and security purposes. It can verify your identity before accessing certain features or transferring sensitive data. It can be used with NFC-enabled accessories as well, such as lenses, flashes and GPS devices.

USB Input and HDMI Output

Sony Alpha 6500 has a USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) input for data transfer. There is a Micro HDMI connector for video signal output.

Battery

Sony Alpha 6500 comes with NP-FW50 battery pack with battery life of 350 shots.

External Storage Slots

The camera has a single SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Duo Hybrid (UHS-I) card slot.

Shutter

Sony Alpha 6500's shutter speed can go up to 1/4000 sec. Camera can shoot continuously up to 11.0 fps.

Focusing

Sony Alpha 6500 has Fast Hybrid AF (Phase-detection / Contrast-detection) system with 425 focusing points and from -1 to +20 EV detection range. Touch-to-Focus allows users to select a specific point on the screen where they want the camera to focus. This feature can be helpful for achieving precise focus in both photo and video recording. There is also face detection feature which automatically finds and focuses on faces.

Exposure

Camera's exposure metering ranges from -2 to +20 EV and you can set the exposure compensation within the ±5 EV range. You can also do exposure lock, exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment.

Flash

Sony Alpha 6500 has a built-in flash with maximum range of 6.00 m at ISO 100 and also accepts external flash which can be connected via Hot Shoe or Wireless connection. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/160 sec. Flash compensation can be set from -3 to +3 EV with 1/3 or 1/2 EV step increments.

Sony Alpha 6500 has dimensions of 120 x 67 x 53 mm (4.72 x 2.64 x 2.09"). It weighs 453 g (1.00 lb / 15.98 oz), so it is a lightweight camera.

120 mm (4.72")

67 mm (2.64")

67 mm (2.64")

53 mm (2.09")