Mirrorless Full-Frame Camera Comparison: Nikon Z7 Vs Sony Alpha A7R Mark III

After drip-feeding us teaser information for what seemed like an eternity, Nikon has finally released its Z7 full-frame mirrorless camera. 

Nikon is excited and it would seem that the rest of the photography world is, too, but how does this new full-frame mirrorless camera stand-up against the already well-established Sony Alpha A7R III? To find out, we've compared the specs of each camera side-by-side to see how different/similar they are. 

There's also been some chat about how the Z7/Z6 compare with the Nikon D850 so if you want to find out, we've got a comparison for you to take a look at. 

Camera Body Weight, Size & Design 

The Sony Alpha A7R III is lighter and smaller than the Nikon Z7 but they do look similar in design. They both have a decent grip, with the one on the Z7 looking to be a little deeper, but the soft rubberised texture surrounding the grip extends further around the Nikon Z7 than it does on the Sony Alpha A7R Mark III. 

Both cameras are weather-sealed and are made from magnesium alloy. 

Image Sensor & Resolution 

The Nikon Z7 offers a slightly better resolution at 45.7Mp compared with 42.4MP on the Sony Alpha A7R Mark III. The overall pixel size on the Nikon Z7 is slightly bigger, too. Having said that, there's not much in it and if the Nikon D850's performance is anything to go by (it shares the same resolution as the Nikon Z7), the picture quality from the Nikon Z7 should be excellent and on-par with the Sony Alpha A7R Mark III. 

Image Stabilisation 

Again, there's not much in this as there's 5-axis sensor-based image stabilisation built into both cameras which give around 5 stops of compensation (5.5 to be precise on the Sony Alpha A7R Mark III). 

ISO and Noise

The Nikon Z7 has an extended ISO range that starts at 32 and finishes at 102400 which is similar to the Sony Alpha A7R Mark III which ranges from 50-102400. 

Nikon Z 7 ISO test images

Sony Alpha 7R Mark III ISO test images

Continuous Shooting

On paper, this is another close contest with only 1 frame per second separating the two cameras as the Sony Alpha A7R Mark III can shoot 10fps and the Nikon Z7 is said to be able to capture shots at 9fps. 

Screen & Electronic Viewfinder

The LCD monitor on the Nikon Z7 is .2 of an inch bigger than the one on the Sony Alpha A7R Mark III (so, nothing really) but its resolution is quite a bit better (2100k dots over 1440k dots). Both are touchscreens, though, and they both tilt. However, you can do more using the touchscreen on the Nikon N7 than you can with the Alpha 7R III. 

As well as similar screens, both cameras also have similar electronic viewfinders which measure 0.5-inch and feature 3.6 million dots. The Nikon Z7 does have a slightly better magnification but not by much (0.80x compared with 0.78x). 

Video

Both cameras capture video in 4K or FullHD with stereo sound and optical zoom can be used. There are also ports for attaching headphones and a microphone. 

Memory 

An annoying point about the Nikon Z7 quite a few photographers are mentioning is that it only has one XQD memory card slot which some will find restricting. In comparison, the Sony Alpha A7R Mark III has dual SD slots - one supports UHS-II, the other UHS-I or Sony Memory Sticks.

Battery 

The Nikon Z7 will take the same EN-EL15 battery as previous Nikon DSLRs which previous Nikon camera owners will be happy to hear. However, if you want to use the USB charging feature, then you'll need to use the EN-EL15B battery provided with the camera. A CIPA test rating of 330 shots might be a little disappointing, especially for those who have used the Nikon D850 with its 1840 shots (extendable to 5140 shots using the optional battery grip). 

The Sony Alpha A7R Mark III uses the NP-FZ100 battery and we captured 650 shots with it before the battery needed charging again so it beats the Nikon Z7 here. Although, on test, the Nikon Z7 may fair a little better - we'll have to wait and see.   

Price

The Nikon Z7, body only, is priced at £3399 which is almost £200 more than the Sony Alpha A7R Mark III was at launch. The Sony Alpha A7R Mark III is now available for around £2685. The Nikon Z7 will be available late September and as soon review units are available, we'll be putting it to the test to find out how it compares in a real-life test with the Sony Alpha A7R Mark III.

For now, take a look at the specs table below to compare more of the features of both cameras and head over to our news section where you'll find more information on the Nikon Full-Frame Mirrorless Cameras and accompanying lenses. There's also a lens roadmap that charts the planning for the Nikon Z series in 2019 and 2020.