Sony α6400

The Sony α6400 (model ILCE-6400) is a digital camera announced on January 15, 2019. It is an APS-C mirrorless interchangeable lens camera (MILC) designed to be a mid-range mirrorless camera and acts as the successor to the α6300. Intended to target the vlogging community, the α6400 features a flip-up screen and aggressive pricing. It features the same 24 megapixel sensor seen in the α6500. At the time of release, the two most capable cameras in the α6000 series of cameras were the α6400 and the α6500. The α6500 features in-body image stabilization and a larger image buffer, but the α6400 is arguably more advanced as the newer model. This is largely due to its increased processing power, real-time eye AF, and real-time tracking. These features, for example, can not be added to the α6300 via a firmware update, as it would be too demanding on the processor.

At its announcement, the Sony α6400 is advertised as featuring the "world's fastest autofocus" with lag of 0.02 second and 11 fps continuous shooting with continuous AF and 8 fps with the silent shutter. Its MSRP is $899 for the body and $999 with a 16–50 mm power-zoom kit lens f/3.5-5.6.

Sony's α6400 also saw a much-needed upgrade to the photo sharing apps and the reintroduction of time-lapse videos via the menu system.

For videographers, a welcome change for the α6400 was the removal of the 30-minute record limit. This artificial limit was placed on many cameras possibly to avoid import taxes in the EU, but also to reduce the risk of damage from overheating. The α6400 is also a vast improvement for Sony with regards to overheating (most likely to occur whilst recording 4K due to the processing demands). Tests released online showed that in normal ambient temperatures, the battery will be discharged completely or the memory card will reach capacity before reaching abnormally high temperatures.

Firmware 2.0 was released for the α6400 on June 13, 2019, introducing animal-eye AF, the ability to use the wireless remote commander RMT-P1BT, as well as claimed stability improvements.

Features

 * 24.2-megapixel Exmor CMOS sensor
 * 425-point phase detection AF
 * Real-time Eye AF; Real-time Tracking
 * Super 35 mm format, 4K movie recording with full pixel readout and no pixel binning
 * LCD touchscreen (2.95 inch) with 180-degree tilt up functionality
 * 1.0 cm (0.39-inch) electronic viewfinder
 * 1200-zone evaluative light metering
 * Built-in Wi-Fi, NFC and Bluetooth
 * LED-auto focus illuminator
 * Continuous shooting: Hi+: 11 fps, Hi: 8 fps, Mid: 6 fps, Lo: 3 fps
 * My Menu system
 * Single memory card slot (UHS-1 compatible)
 * Electronic shutter for silent shooting
 * Interval Shooting (time-lapse)
 * Animal Eye AF (With firmware v2.00)
 * Compatibility with the wireless remote commander RMT-P1BT (Firmware v2.0)

Reception
After its announcement, numerous first impressions were released from popular YouTube vloggers and camera-focused channels. Full reviews are not out yet but the general consensus is Sony priced it correctly, but for some the lack of the new Zbattery and the fact the flip-up screen blocks the hot shoe mount are odd choices.