If you aren’t hopelessly addicted to Nikon or Canon, and don’t need the massive array of lenses and accessories they offer, then Sony is giving you one more big reason to dump your DSLR and go mirrorless. The Alpha a9 Mirrorless Digital Camera is a spectacular performance machine, capable of 20fps shooting with Autofocus, for example. I’ll be writing more about it (and perhaps giving one a field test) in the coming weeks and months, but wanted to make sure eager beavers got in on the first pre-orders. You can put your order in for a Sony Alpha a9 for $4500 at B&H – with shipments expected to start May 25th.

PRODUCT HIGHLIGHTS:

• 24.2MP Full-Frame Stacked CMOS Sensor
• BIONZ X Image Processor & Front-End LSI
• 693-Point AF System & 20 fps Shooting
• Blackout-Free Quad-VGA 3.7m-Dot OLED EVF
• Internal UHD 4K Video Recording
• 5-Axis SteadyShot INSIDE Stabilization
• 3.0" 1.44m-Dot Tilting Touchscreen LCD
• ISO 204,800, Silent Electronic Shutter
• Built-In Wi-Fi/Bluetooth, Dual SD Slots
• Integrated LAN and PC Sync Terminals

Full Specifications:

Imaging

Lens Mount
Sony E-Mount

Camera Format
Full-Frame

Pixels
Actual: 28.3 Megapixel
Effective: 24.2 Megapixel

Max Resolution
24 MP: 6000 x 4000

Aspect Ratio
3:2, 16:9

Sensor Type / Size
CMOS, 35.6 x 23.8 mm

File Formats
Still Images: JPEG, RAW
Movies: AVCHD Ver. 2.0, MP4, MPEG-4 AVC/H.264, XAVC S
Audio: AAC LC, AC3, Dolby Digital 2ch, Linear PCM

Bit Depth
14-Bit

Dust Reduction System
Yes

Memory Card Type
SD
SDHC
SDXC
Memory Stick Duo

Image Stabilization
Sensor-Shift, 5-Way

AV Recording

Video Recording
Yes, NTSC/PAL

Video Format
3840 x 2160p at 24, 25, 30 fps (100 Mbps XAVC S)
3840 x 2160p at 24, 25, 30 fps (60 Mbps XAVC S)
1920 x 1080p at 100, 120 fps (100 Mbps XAVC S)
1920 x 1080p at 100, 120 fps (60 Mbps XAVC S)
1920 x 1080p at 24, 25, 30, 50, 60 fps (50 Mbps XAVC S)
1920 x 1080p at 50, 60 fps (28 Mbps AVCHD)
1920 x 1080i at 50, 60 fps (24 Mbps AVCHD)
1920 x 1080i at 50, 60 fps (17 Mbps AVCHD)
1920 x 1080p at 24, 25 fps (24 Mbps AVCHD)
1920 x 1080p at 24, 25 fps (17 Mbps AVCHD)
1920 x 1080p at 50, 60 fps (28 Mbps MP4)
1920 x 1080p at 25, 30 fps (16 Mbps MP4)
1280 x 720p at 25, 30 fps (6 Mbps MP4)

Aspect Ratio
16:9

Video Clip Length
Not specified by manufacturer

Audio Recording
Built-In Mic: With Video (Stereo)
Optional External Mic: With Video)

Focus Control

Focus Type
Auto & Manual

Focus Mode
Continuous-Servo AF (C), Direct Manual Focus (DMF), Manual Focus (M), Single-servo AF (S)

Autofocus Points
Phase Detection: 693
Contrast Detection: 25

Viewfinder/Display

Viewfinder Type
Electronic

Viewfinder Size
0.5"

Viewfinder Pixel Count
3,686,400

Viewfinder Eye Point
23.00 mm

Viewfinder Coverage
100%

Viewfinder Magnification
Approx. 0.78x

Diopter Adjustment
-4 to +3 m

Display Screen
3" Rear Touchscreen Tilting LCD (1,440,000)

Screen Coverage
100%

Exposure Control

ISO Sensitivity
Auto, 100-51200 (Extended Mode: 50-204800)

Shutter
Type: Mechanical
Speed: 30 - 1/8000 Second , Bulb Mode
Type: Electronic
Speed: 30 - 1/32000 Second in Bulb Mode

Metering Method
Center-Weighted Average Metering, Multi-Zone Metering, Spot Metering, Highlight Weighted

Exposure Modes
Modes: Aperture Priority, Auto, Manual, Program, Shutter Priority
Metering Range: EV -3.0 - EV 20.0
Compensation: -5 EV to +5 EV (in 1/3 or 1/2 EV Steps)

White Balance Modes
Auto, Cloudy, Color Temperature, Custom, Daylight, Flash, Fluorescent (Cool White), Fluorescent (Day White), Fluorescent (Daylight), Fluorescent (Warm White), Incandescent, Shade, Underwater

Continuous Shooting
Up to 20 fps at 24.2 MP for up to 362 frames in JPEG format
Up to 20 fps at 24.2 MP for up to 241 frames in raw format
Up to 10 fps at 24.2 MP
Up to 5 fps at 24.2 MP
Up to 2.5 fps at 24.2 MP

Flash

Built-in Flash
No

Max Sync Speed
1 / 250 Second

Flash Compensation
-3 EV to +3 EV (in 1/3 or 1/2 EV steps)

Dedicated Flash System
P-TTL

External Flash Connection
Hot Shoe, PC Terminal

Performance

Self Timer
10 Seconds, 5 Seconds, 2 Seconds

Connectivity
1/8" Headphone, 1/8" Microphone, HDMI D (Micro), Micro-USB, X-Sync Socket

Wi-Fi Capable
Yes

Power

Battery
1 x NP-FZ100 Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery Pack, 7.2 VDC, 2280 mAh

Operating/Storage Temperature
Operating
32 to 104°F (0 to 40°C)

Physical

Dimensions (WxHxD)
5.0 x 3.8 x 2.5" / 126.9 x 95.6 x 63.0 mm

Weight
1.48 lb / 673 g