Skip to main content

iFixit tears apart Sony A7R II camera, calls it ‘mighty feat of engineering’

You wouldn’t find us breaking apart a $3,200 camera. Luckily, we have the folks at iFixit to do it for us, which tore apart Sony’s new A7R II. What it found was that the camera is indeed “chock full of drool-worthy tech.”

The A7R II uses a newly developed full-frame sensor, but the feature iFixit found most interesting is the five-axis image stabilization system. The sensor uses three electromagnets — which the sensor “floats” on — to compensate for camera shakes. The electromagnets offer “incredibly fine positioning,” iFixit says.

Related Videos

The A7R II is a revolutionary compact mirrorless camera, and Sony’s engineers have found ways to squeeze all the high-end parts into a small body (read our hands-on). The iFixit team recognizes this, and says “repair without a service manual is almost impossible.” Even after you get past removing the complex rear LCD panel, iFixit says, you still have to deal with the “intricately organized” internal components. To keep the electronic viewfinder cool, there’s a thick thermal pad.

Sony A7R Mark II
What the A7R Mark II looks like before disassembly. Les Shu/Digital Trends
Les Shu/Digital Trends

After iFixit disassembled the camera, it uncovered some of the components used: a Sony CXD90027GF system-on-chip, 4GB of DDR3L SDRAM, Sony CXD4236-1GG (iFixit says it’s likely a newer version, which Sony calls Bionz X), Fujitsu 32-bit ARM Cortex-M3 processor, and more — a mini computer inside a camera.

By step 15, iFixit says, “Hats off to you Sony! You’ve got our teardown engineer tired, but not beat.” Overall, the breakdown required 20 steps, and earned an iFixit rating of 4 out of 10 (10 being the easiest to repair). In summary, the battery, tripod mount, and viewfinder are the easier parts to repair, and don’t require a full breakdown. The rear LCD is also replaceable, but very difficult. Everything else: Don’t bother.

Our takeaway from iFixit’s findings: this is a complicated camera, so you may not want to do your own repairs — unless you’re a Sony engineer. Check out iFixit’s full details of its A7R II teardown.

Editors' Recommendations

Nikon Z 7 vs. Sony A7R III: High-res mirrorless cameras compared
best sony a7 series camera a7r iii

Previous

Next

Read more
DxOMark crowns a new mirrorless champion — the Sony a7R III
dxomark sony a7r iii top mirrorless review 6

Third-party sensor-testing giant DxOMark has named a new top mirrorless performer by giving the new Sony a7R III a score of 100, unseating the Mark II predecessor that previously held the spot with a score of 98. The tests, published on Tuesday, November 28, give the a7R III the same score as the Nikon D850, a competing DSLR with a similar mix of resolution and speed.

DxOMark has given very few cameras a score of 100 or more, including the D850 and a medium format camera. While the high score means the camera performed well in every category DxO tests for, the company said the stand-out feature is the sports score, which measures how well the camera handles low-light photos at high ISO.

Read more
Speed or resolution? 42-megapixel, 10 fps Sony a7R III mixes the best of both
Sony A7R III

The higher the resolution, the slower the camera — but Sony’s high-resolution a7R series is gaining a new shooter that defies that limitation by mixing a 42.4 megapixel full frame sensor with a 10 fps burst mode. Announced on Wednesday, October 25, the Sony a7R III has the same high resolution, but twice the burst speed, twice the autofocus speed, and even twice the battery life of its predecessor.

The Sony a7R III, like the A7R II, uses a 42.4-megapixel sensor without an optical low pass filter, but that sensor is upgraded with an improved on-chip lens design, anti-reflective coating, and new front-end microchip that works in conjunction with an upgraded Bionz X image processor to double processing speed. The new microlenses and coating improve light sensitivity, giving the A7R III a 15-stop dynamic range, according to Sony. The  camera also boasts a broad ISO range of 50-102,400 (expanded).

Read more