• APS-C 332.3mm2
  • 18.0 megapixels
  • ISO 100 - 6400
  • 35mm 855.6mm2
  • 24.3 megapixels
  • ISO 100 - 25,600

Buy From

Differences

Canon T3i advantages over Sony A7 II

  • Lens selection
    Excellent vs Good
    Better lens selection gives you more options
  • Tilt-swivel screen
    Tilt-swivel vs tilt-only
    Tilt and swivel the screen for maximum shooting flexibility
  • Longer stills battery life
    More info 440 vs 350 shots
    Capture more photos
  • More telephoto lens reach
    216 mm vs 70 mm
    Capture objects farther away with the kit lens
  • Internal flash
    Internal flash vs None
    Useful in a pinch for fill flash

Sony A7 II advantages over Canon T3i

  • Focus peaking
    Peaker vs Non-peaker
    Your camera will highlight what's in focus
  • Larger sensor
    35mm vs APS-C
    More sensor area. Bigger is (generally) better.
  • In-Camera Image Stabilization
    Yes vs No
    Reduces the effects of camera shake at slower shutter speeds
  • Bigger pixels
    ~ 5.97 vs 4.30 microns
    Better low-light and dynamic range (all else equal)
  • In-camera panoramas
    Yes vs No
    Stitches multiple shots into a panoramic photo
  • Built-in Wi-Fi
    Wi-Fi vs None
    Share your photos wirelessly
  • NFC
    Yes vs No
    Simplifies pairing your camera with supported phones
  • Better color depth
    24.9 vs 22.1 bits
    Capture richer, more accurate colors
  • Higher effective ISO
    2,449 vs 793 iso
    Take photos in low light with less noise
  • More dynamic range
    13.6 vs 11.5 evs
    Retain detail in highlight and shadows
  • On-sensor phase detect
    Yes vs No
    Usually improves live view and video AF performance
  • Thinner
    59 mm vs 79 mm
    Thinner
  • More viewfinder magnification
    0.71x vs 0.53x
    Get a bigger view of the scene through the eye-level viewfinder
  • More pixels
    24.3 vs 18.0 megapixels
    Higher resolution photos
  • Headphone jack
    Yes vs No
    Monitor audio recording while you shoot video
  • Faster JPEG shooting
    5.0 fps vs 3.6 fps
    Faster JPEG shooting (burst mode)
  • Bigger JPEG buffer
    52 vs 9 shots
    Take more JPEG shots before waiting (burst mode)
  • Faster RAW shooting
    5.0 fps vs 3.6 fps
    Faster RAW shooting in burst mode
  • Bigger RAW buffer
    28 vs 5 shots
    Larger buffer for RAW shots (burst mode)
  • Faster shutter
    1/8000 vs 1/4000 sec
    Shoot wide open in bright light
  • Higher extended ISO
    51200 vs 12800 ISO
    Higher extended ISO can give more low-light flexibility

Similarities

Common Strengths

  • Eye-level viewfinder
    Both provide
    You'll be able to frame photos even when the sun is out
  • External Mic Jack
    Both provide
    Improved sound fidelity when shooting video
  • HDMI out
    Both provide
    Use HDMI output to monitor or review video
  • Hot shoe
    Both provide
    Off-camera flashes open new possibilities
  • Bulb shutter
    Both provide
    Hold the shutter open manually for long exposures

Common Weaknesses

  • Touchscreen
    Neither provide
    Interact with your camera just like your smartphone
  • Built-in Bluetooth
    Neither provide
    Always-on wireless connectivity
  • Built-in GPS
    Neither provide
    Geotag your photos
  • Top deck display
    Neither provide
    Check settings with a screen on top of the camera
  • Dual card slots
    Neither provide
    Gives you more storage flexibility
  • Slow-motion videos
    Neither provide
    Shoot slow-motion videos

User reviews

Buy From

Review Excerpt

  • Excellent image quality; Good grip; Full HD video recording; Swiveling LCD; Very fast autofocus; HDMI output.

  • Slow frame rate for sports shooting; Tendency to overexpose in bright sunlight; Live View AF is slow; No microfocus adjustment.

  • Excellent 5-axis sensor-shift image stabilization; Sensor-shift IS brings stabilization to nearly any lens; Much-improved ergonomics and top-deck control layout; 'Mark II' maintains same impressive image quality, dynamic range and high ISO performance; XAVC S 50Mbps video format; Faster start-up time; Hybrid AF performs well with good continuous AF.

  • (Similar to A7): Loud shutter (but electronic first-curtain helps); Battery life could be better; Low-light AF still not as good as most DSLRs; High ISO JPEGs look over-processed; Slow buffer clearing; Limited selection of native Sony FE lenses (but it's getting better).

The Competition

Compared to Nikon D7000

Canon T3i
Nikon D7000
  • $549
  • APS-C
  • Less expensive
  • Tilt-swivel screen
  • $699
  • APS-C
  • Larger sensor
  • Fast startup
Sony A7 II
Nikon D7000
  • $1148
  • 35mm
  • Focus peaking
  • Larger sensor
  • $699
  • APS-C
  • Lens selection
  • Fast startup

Compared to Pentax K-5

Canon T3i
Pentax K-5
  • $549
  • APS-C
  • Less expensive
  • Tilt-swivel screen
  • $800
  • APS-C
  • Larger sensor
  • In-Camera Image Stabilization
Sony A7 II
Pentax K-5
  • $1148
  • 35mm
  • Focus peaking
  • Larger sensor
  • $800
  • APS-C
  • Lens selection
  • Fast startup

Compared to Canon T4i

Canon T3i
Canon T4i
  • $549
  • APS-C
  • $579
  • APS-C
  • Touchscreen
  • Fast startup
Sony A7 II
Canon T4i
  • $1148
  • 35mm
  • Focus peaking
  • Larger sensor
  • $579
  • APS-C
  • Lens selection
  • Less expensive

Compared to Sony A7

Canon T3i
Sony A7
  • $549
  • APS-C
  • Lens selection
  • Tilt-swivel screen
  • $748
  • 35mm
  • Focus peaking
  • Larger sensor
Sony A7 II
Sony A7
  • $1148
  • 35mm
  • In-Camera Image Stabilization
  • $748
  • 35mm
  • Less expensive

Compared to Sony A7 III

Canon T3i
Sony A7 III
  • $549
  • APS-C
  • Lens selection
  • Tilt-swivel screen
  • $1531
  • 35mm
  • Focus peaking
  • Larger sensor
Sony A7 II
Sony A7 III
  • $1148
  • 35mm
  • In-camera panoramas
  • $1531
  • 35mm
  • Shoot 4K video
  • Touchscreen
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