I was ready to purchase a new camera earlier this year, upgrading from my Sony a6500/a6000 setup that I’ve been running for several years. I chose to “upgrade” to a seven-year-old camera, but why?
Can a 2018 Camera Still Be Good in 2025?
While, in the world of tech, seven years can be like a lifetime, the world of cameras isn’t quite that way. Have there been advancements in camera technology since 2018? Absolutely. Are these advancements ground-breaking and earth-shattering when it comes to photo or video quality? Not quite.
The Sony A7 III was launched in April 2018, almost seven years ago now. It was a pretty fantastic camera for the time and still is today. With a 24.2MP full-frame sensor and the ability to record 4K30 video, it still holds its own in 2025 quite well.
The A7 III Isn’t as Good as Newer APS-C Cameras, Though, Right?
This was a decision I had to make, and I feel I made the right one after plenty of research and looking around.
There are a lot of cameras on the market. I had two Sony cameras previously, both APS-C: the a6500 and the a6000. The a6500 is basically the APS-C version of the A7 III, while the a6000 was quite a bit older. Either way, when looking for a new camera, I was presented with lots of options, including things like the a6700.
Really, the a6700 and the A7 III are the two cameras I’m going to compare here, and I’ll explain why I decided to go with the A7 III over the a6700.
The a6700 is a great camera, for sure. It’s around the same price as the A7 III, with both being in the $1,000 to $1,500 range depending on the sale or if you’re going to use it.
I have been on the APS-C train for some time (I purchased my a6500 back in 2018.) APS-C is great for the form factor, but the sensors can sometimes leave a lot to be desired in certain areas. Sony APS-C sensors have a 1.5x crop factor, which means a 50mm lens is really the equivalent of a 75mm lens.
This can be good or bad. For me, it was bad because when I was trying to get wide lenses to capture more of a scene, I had to go really wide. While 28mm should be wide enough for talking head shots, on an APS-C sensor, 28mm is really 42mm, which is getting into the range of telephoto. Because of this, I had to buy a 16mm lens just to get the equivalent field of view to a 24mm lens.
So, the crop factor was a huge driving force for me to go full-frame this time around. Another driving factor is how much better full-frame sensors are in low light. APS-C cameras are not known for their great low-light performance, while cameras like the A7 III are fantastic in low-light, and you can drive the ISO up a good bit before it starts to get really noisy.
“But, the a6700 can shoot 4K60 10-bit 4:2:2 video, and the A7 III is limited to 4K30 8-bit 4:2:0 video, so the a6700 is better!” I can hear it already. The fact of the matter is the average person won’t notice a difference between 4K30 8-bit or 4K60 10-bit. Most social media platforms want 30 FPS footage anyway, and Instagram specifically asks for 1080×1920 vertical video at 30 FPS, so whether your camera does 4K30 or 4K60, whether it’s 8- or 10-bit, whether it’s 4:2:0 or 4:2:2, Instagram (and by extension, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube shorts) doesn’t really care.
On the photo side of things, the A7 III actually captures way more data than you get with the APS-C lineup of cameras. The APS-C cameras, including the a6700, capture what’s called “compressed RAW” photos. These aren’t true RAW sensor readouts. While they’re still RAW photos, there are compression algorithms at play here and it’s not quite the same. On the other hand, with the A7 III, you can choose whether to capture compressed RAW or uncompressed, 14-bit RAW photos. Personally, I go for the 14-bit uncompressed, so I have as much information to work with in post as possible, and I’ve absolutely loved the upgrade from compressed to uncompressed RAW.
Way more important than the raw specs of a camera is the lens you have and how you use it. With the A7 III, I have a full-frame sensor, which means I can use full-frame lenses and enjoy the wider field of view. It also lets me record 4K30 or 1080p120, which is plenty for my (and most people’s) use cases.
Ultimately, you’ll have to be the one to decide whether you need 4K60 10-bit footage or if 4K30 8-bit is enough for you and whether you want to be able to capture 14-bit uncompressed RAW or compressed RAW. For me, the pros of the full-frame sensor outweigh the cons, hands down.
Full-Frame Features and Image Quality Make the A7 III a Great Choice Still
In 2025, the A7 III is still a fantastic camera, I think. It has a great sensor, solid video recording options, and even features like USB-C output as a webcam (or clean HDMI output for use with a capture card.)
The image quality on the A7 III is unmatched in its price range, I believe. Full-price, the A7 III runs $1,800 while the newer A7 IV costs $2,500. There are often sales on the A7 III that bring it down to $1,500 new, and you can typically find it on the used market for $1,000 to $1,200 all day, even with lenses included.
I found a kit that included the A7 III, two batteries, a Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 lens, and several other filters and such for $1,000 locally. It was a great deal, and you likely won’t find the exact deal I did. But I see A7 III systems all the time for $1,000 to $1,200 around the Nashville area where I live.
At that price, the A7 III is unbeatable, I think. It gives you professional-quality results in a full-frame body at a relatively affordable price compared to other cameras in its class.
If you can live without all the new bells and whistles that the a6700 or A7 IV comes with, then I think the A7 III is a fantastic choice for a camera for most people. That’s why I chose it in 2025. I wanted a great camera to bring with me on vacation, to take product photos with, and to record YouTube videos on. And the A7 III checked every single box I needed to, including price.
Sony a7 III Mirrorless Camera
$1398 $1800 Save
$402
The Sony A7 III mirrorless DSLR camera features a 24.2MP full-frame sensor capable of capturing 14-bit uncompressed RAW images or recording 4K30 8-bit 4:2:0 video, as well as 1080p120 video. Launched in 2018, the Sony A7 III quickly became one of the best-selling Sony cameras of all-time and still holds its place as one of the best cameras around, even several years later.
