Sony a9 II Overview
Sony a9 II is the newest version of Sony’s flagship mirrorless camera – the a9 – coming in after only two-and-half years. Sony’s target users for the a9 II are very clearly the pro shooters like sports photographers & photojournalists.
What’s New (Sony a9 II vs a9 I)
The a9 II’s upgrades are mostly incremental, both inside & outside, and are made to meet the needs of the working professionals and improve their workflows. Here’s a list of notable changes against the original a9.
- Sony a9 II has an improved BIONZ X image processor.
- It has an enhanced AF performance & accuracy due to optimized autofocus algorithms.
- The a9 II can use Real-time Eye AF for humans while shooting movies.
- Continuous shooting speed with mechanical shutter is up to 10 fps (vs a9’s max of up to 5 fps).
- The a9 II has a new “anti-flicker” mode that auto-adjusts for the presence of artificial lights that mess with the image quality.
- It has a new “Voice Memos” feature wherein the photos can be tagged with a short spoken voice clip.
- The a9 II is slightly bigger with a deeper grip like the Sony a7R IV.
- It is also a bit heavier at 678 g (vs a9’s 588 g).
- It has improved weather sealing for better dust & moisture resistance.
- Refined control buttons.
- Improved In body image stabilization now rated at 5.5 stops (vs 5.0 stops for the a9).
- a9 II has an additional USB Type-C port (vs only USB 2.0).
- The Wi-Fi supports a faster 5 GHz ac band (vs a9 supports only 2.4 GHz n-wireless).
- The LAN port now supports gigabit speeds (vs 100 Mbps LAN on the a9).
- Both the memory card slots are now UHS-II compatible (vs a9’s slot-2 is only UHS-I compatible).
- Improved battery life rated at approx. 690 shots (vs 650 shots).
Things to Remember
These are a few things to note when considering the a9 II.
- Touch-sensitivity doesn’t work for menus & navigation.
- Tilting LCD tilts vertically, not sideways. It tilts up 107° & down 41˚.
Camera Details
Date
Pixels
Buy From
Make / Model
- Sony
- a9 II
Sensor Size
Camera Type
Key Specs / Features
Proprietary
- Processor: BIONZ X
- Lens: Sony E-mount
Sensor
- Pixels: 24.2 Megapixels
- Type: BSI CMOS
ISO Range
- Auto ISO: 100 - 12800
- Native ISO: 100 - 51200
- Extended ISO: 50 - 204800
Shutter Speed
- Fastest: 1/8000 Sec
- Slowest: 30 Sec
Focus
- AF Points: 693
Continuous
- Speed: Up to 20 FPS
Video
- 4K UHD: Up to 30 FPS
- Full HD: Up to 120 FPS
Battery Life
- Images: Up to 690 Shots *
- Video: Up to 200 mins *
Displays
- Screen: 3.0" with 1.44 m-dot Tilting Touchscreen LCD
- Viewfinder: 0.5" with 3.69 m-dot Quad-VGA OLED EVF
Features
- IBIS: 5-Axis Stabilization
- Wireless: WiFi / Bluetooth / NFC
Interface
- HDMI (micro)
- USB (Micro-B)
- Headphone (Stereo Mini)
- Microphone (Stereo Mini)
Sony a9 II: Product Feature
Sony a9 II: Pro sports photographers
Sony a9 II: First Look - New FeaturesSony A9 II review
The Sony A9 II is the fastest, most ferocious full-frame sports camera we’ve ever used. Its blistering speed and autofocus performance are matched only by its phenomenal connectivity, which promises to be a game changer for pro shooters. We would love to have seen Sony implement something akin to Olympus’ Pro Capture feature, so that you never miss the critical moment. However, if our most damning criticism is that the A9 II is too fast for us to keep up with, surely that’s nothing but mission accomplished for Sony!
Sony A9 II Review
The new Sony Alpha A9 II is faster, more refined, more durable and more versatile than the two-year-old A9 camera that it succeeds, making it simply a better tool for the professional sports photographers and photojournalists that it’s even more clearly aimed at.
B&H Photo VideoSony a9II"First Look with Nick Didlick"
B&H Photo VideoSony a9II"An Introduction"
Jared PolinSony a9 II Preview"Major Disappointment… or not?"
Tony & Chelsea NorthrupSony a9 II"$4,500 Full-frame Mirrorless with 20 FPS"
Dan WatsonSony A9II"First Impressions, Specs, & Misses"