Sony Alpha 6600 Sony - Review 🏆

The Sony Alpha 6600 is a mid-range APS-C mirrorless camera that was announced in August 2019. It features a 24.2 megapixel Exmor CMOS sensor and the latest BIONZ X image processor. The Alpha 6600 sits near the top of Sony's APS-C lineup and is designed for enthusiasts and semi-professionals looking for an advanced camera with strong video features.

Some of the highlights of the Alpha 6600 include excellent autofocus, in-body 5-axis image stabilization, UHD 4K 30p video, and an OLED electronic viewfinder. The camera has a compact but sturdy magnesium alloy body that is dust and moisture resistant. It also has a high-capacity battery for extended shooting. Overall, the Alpha 6600 provides an excellent balance of image quality, performance, and portability.

Build Quality

The Sony Alpha 6600 has a compact but sturdy build quality, making it well-suited for travel and everyday use. The body is constructed from magnesium alloy which provides rigidity while remaining lightweight. The camera is not fully weather sealed but does have some sealing around buttons and dials to provide splash resistance.

The handgrip is a good size and coated in a textured rubber material that allows for a secure hold on the camera. The mode dial, control dials, and custom buttons are also textured and have a nice level of resistance so settings are not changed accidentally.

Overall the build quality is very good for a camera of this class. While not fully weather sealed, it should hold up well to general use and light splashes. The materials used give it a nice heft while keeping the weight manageable for extended handheld use.

In comparison, the Sony RX100 VI offers a similarly solid build, designed for portability with a refined feel. Its compact design makes it ideal for daily carry, and while it also lacks complete weather sealing, it’s made to withstand casual outdoor conditions. With a responsive grip and intuitive controls, the RX100 VI ensures ease of use for photographers on the go, making it a fantastic choice for those who prioritize quality in a portable format.

Image Sensor

The Sony Alpha 6600 features a 24.2MP APS-C Exmor CMOS image sensor. This sensor provides excellent resolution, capturing intricate details in both stills and video. Despite the high megapixel count, noise levels are kept low thanks to the sensor's design and Sony's image processing.

The APS-C size sensor offers a 1.5x crop factor compared to full frame. This allows the use of smaller, lighter lenses while still providing enough image circle for wide angle shots. The sensor size hits a sweet spot between resolution/low light performance and compact system size.

Some key tech inside the sensor includes:

• BIONZ X image processor, providing fast readout speeds and Sony's advanced processing for low noise and impressive dynamic range even at high ISOs.

• Copper wiring for quicker data transfer. This improves overall image quality.

• Anti-reflective coating on the sensor surface to improve light capture.

Overall, the sensor inside the Alpha 6600 delivers excellent image quality in a range of conditions while keeping the camera body portable. It's a versatile imaging tool.

In contrast, the Sony ZV-1F Vlog camera is specifically designed for content creators, featuring a 20.1MP 1-inch stacked Exmor RS CMOS sensor that excels in video production. Its compact design and user-friendly features make it ideal for vlogging. With advanced autofocus systems and a built-in ND filter, it allows for greater flexibility in various lighting conditions. This makes the ZV-1F a superb choice for dynamic storytelling while maintaining superb image quality.

Autofocus

The Sony Alpha 6600 features a fast and accurate autofocus system with 425 phase detection AF points covering approximately 84% of the image area. This allows for wide coverage and flexible composition.

The 6600 has excellent subject tracking and real-time Eye AF for photographing people and animals. It can detect and maintain focus on eyes, even if the subject is moving around the frame. Face and eye detection works for both humans and animals.

The AF system leverages Sony's 4D FOCUS system and features advanced subject recognition and tracking algorithms. It can lock onto a subject and track it around the scene with high precision. This produces sharp results even with fast moving subjects.

For photographing action and sports, the 6600 has a continuous shooting speed of 11fps with continuous autofocus and auto exposure. This allows you to capture sequences of sharp images of moving subjects. The buffer depth when shooting JPEG images is large enough to capture over 100 shots in a burst.

Overall, the autofocus system is fast, accurate and intelligent. It makes capturing tack-sharp images of subjects - whether static or in motion - easy and reliable. This makes the 6600 well-suited for shooting a wide variety of subjects including portraits, action/sports, and wildlife.

Image Stabilization

The Sony Alpha 6600 features 5-axis in-body image stabilization, allowing you to capture sharp images even when shooting handheld at slower shutter speeds. Sony claims the stabilization system provides up to 5.0 stops of compensation, reducing shake for both stills and video shooting.

In real-world testing, the in-body stabilization performs admirably well. When shooting handheld video, footage remains smooth and steady without any jarring shakes. For still photos, you can comfortably shoot at shutter speeds 4-5 stops slower than the general 1/focal length rule before blur from camera shake becomes apparent. This allows you to shoot in lower light situations without needing to bump up the ISO sensitivity.

The in-body stabilization works in conjunction with OSS (optical stabilization) lenses to further enhance steadiness. With an OSS lens attached, the Alpha 6600 can deliver an impressive 5.5 stops of shake correction. This hybrid stabilization brings handheld shooting close to tripod-like stability under many conditions.

Overall, the 5-axis in-body stabilization gives you tremendous versatility when shooting handheld. It expands your possibilities for sharp imagery in low light, slow shutter speed, and video settings. This is a hugely beneficial feature for travel and everyday shooting.

Video Capabilities

The Sony Alpha 6600 can shoot high-quality 4K video up to 30fps with full pixel readout and no pixel binning. This results in very detailed, sharp footage. For slow motion, the camera can shoot Full HD 1080p video at up to 120fps.

The 6600 records video in the advanced XAVC S codec, which is based on the professional XAVC but at a higher compression rate for reduced file sizes. Footage is recorded at up to 100Mbps for 4K video and 50Mbps for Full HD. This allows you to capture excellent quality video without taking up huge amounts of storage space.

Some key video features of the 6600 include S-Log2 and S-Log3 gamma profiles for increased dynamic range and post-processing flexibility. There is also 5-axis in-body image stabilization to help smooth out handheld footage. The autofocus system does a great job at smoothly tracking and locking focus on subjects during video recording. Overall, the 6600 provides impressive video capabilities in a compact mirrorless camera body.

Viewfinder/LCD

The Sony Alpha 6600 features both an electronic viewfinder (EVF) and rear LCD screen for composing and reviewing images.

The EVF is a 0.39-inch OLED with 2,359k dots resolution and 0.70x magnification. This provides a bright, clear view when framing shots. The resolution is high enough to ensure images appear sharp.

For reviewing images and shooting from high or low angles, the rear 3-inch tilting touchscreen LCD comes in handy. With 921k dots resolution, it provides a crisp preview of shots. The vari-angle design lets you tilt the screen up 180 degrees to face forward or down 74 degrees. This flexibility makes it easy to compose shots from challenging positions.

The touch capabilities allow intuitive control over focus point selection, menu navigation, and image playback. Both the EVF and LCD deliver a satisfying viewing experience when shooting or reviewing photos.

Connectivity

The Sony Alpha 6600 has excellent connectivity options, making it easy to transfer photos and videos as well as control the camera remotely. For wired connections, it has a micro USB 2.0 and a micro HDMI port. The micro USB allows you to charge the battery as well as transfer files to your computer. The micro HDMI lets you output video to an external monitor or recorder.

For wireless, the Alpha 6600 has both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capabilities. The Wi-Fi allows you to wirelessly transfer photos to your smartphone or tablet using the free Sony Imaging Edge app. You can also use this app as a remote control for the camera. The Bluetooth functionality enables a constant connection between the camera and your mobile device, allowing for quick image transfer or remote triggering. The camera also supports NFC one-touch connectivity for quick pairing with NFC-enabled devices.

Overall, the abundant wired and wireless connectivity options give you lots of flexibility for getting your photos/videos off the camera and also controlling the camera remotely. The constant Bluetooth connection and NFC make establishing connections especially seamless.

Battery Life

The Sony Alpha 6600 is powered by an NP-FZ100 rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack. This battery has a rating of 2280 mAh and CIPA rates the 6600 at delivering approximately 720 shots per charge. Real world results may vary depending on usage, but you can generally expect to get a full day or more of shooting from a single battery charge.

Factors like use of the rear LCD, flash, and WiFi/Bluetooth connectivity can impact battery life. The 6600 does have improved energy efficiency over previous models which helps maximize shots per charge. Overall the NP-FZ100 battery provides respectable battery life that should meet the needs of most photographers. Having a spare battery is recommended for all-day shoots or travel. But the 6600 delivers solid endurance from a single charge for a mirrorless camera.

Pros and Cons

The Sony Alpha 6600 mirrorless camera has many strengths as well as a few areas that could be improved.

Pros

• Excellent image quality thanks to the 24MP APS-C sensor and Bionz X processor
• Fast, accurate autofocus with 425 phase/contrast detection points covering 84% of the image area
• Capable Eye AF for portraits
• 5-axis in-body image stabilization provides up to 5 stops of compensation
• Good dynamic range and high ISO performance
• Shoots up to 11fps with continuous autofocus
• High-quality 4K video with full pixel readout and no crop
• Fully articulating touchscreen LCD
• Extensive range of compatible E-mount lenses

Cons

• No in-body stabilization in video mode, only digital stabilization
• Buffer fills quickly during continuous shooting bursts
• No headphone jack for audio monitoring while filming video
• Touchscreen not as responsive as some competitors
• No built-in flash (external flash included in kit)
• Menu system could be more intuitive

Overall the Alpha 6600 is an excellent choice for enthusiasts and pros looking for a high-quality, compact mirrorless camera with strong stills and video capabilities. While not perfect, the performance and image quality make it stand out in its class.