I noticed the Good Guys had dropped the price to $497, and checked JB Hifi ($599) and HN, and found that Harvey Norman are doing it for $497 with 'BONUS 200 6"x4" prints'.
I've borrowed this camera, and found it amazingly better than standard digital cameras, and good phone cameras (S6 and LG G4). Personally, I haven't had the guts to buy it because it's a 3 year old camera and I'm sure a better deal will come up the day after I buy it. aka "The Ozbargainers curse."
There is already the a6300 and a6500.
Yep, and there is already the A5100 (and A5300? or something). They're not really replacements, despite what some comparison sites say. They just add extra features (e.g. optical image stabilisation).
I nearly bought the A6000 in a recent Ozbargain deal for around $600, but it's just that little extra bit bigger than the A5000, and portability is important for me. And $600 is a bit much - I'm trying to only spend closer to $400.
True! Didn't even realise the A6300 ($1300) and A6500 ($2300) are out … completely happy with the A6000 $650, and at half the cost and quarter the cost …
EDIT: it would be rare for a company to not discontinue/replace the A6000 model after 1 year? Or at least stop selling/manufacturing (esp with cameras)? The A6300 and A6500 are not really replacements are they, considering they are 2x and 4x the cost of A6000?
What would this be like as a travel camera? We're heading overseas next month and have been looking for something decent. Already have a small "waterproof" camera but wanting something decent for image quality.
IMO a little bulky, but manageable. was very happy last trip with my mirrorless and a cheap prime lens. never found myself in a position where i wanted to change lenses.
Won't fit into a jeans pocket but would into a jacket pocket. It is a pretty small setup all things considered. The biggest issue is the lens isn't the greatest.
Could go for a Sony RX100 III, Canon G7X II, Panasonic LX10 or TZ110 which does use a smaller sensor and hence smaller setup with comparable image quality as the a5000 but you are paying around $800.
Thanks guys. Will consider those others too. Wasn't wanting to spend a whole lot more than this but if it'll making travelling with it a bit easier might be worth it.
I use the A6000 as a travel camera. As I already have a phone, wallet and keys. available pocket space is non existent and in reality I have a small bag for everything as it is more comfortable and convenient. I have left my 50mm prime on for the last few outings and it compliments my phone camera well.
Went to one of my local HN stores, no A6000 to look at but they had 2 A5000's out the back. Unfortunately the one he brought out had a completely dead battery so it wouldn't turn on at all. Was hoping to at least have a bit of a play with one before I bought it so I might give this sale a miss. :(
Can someone give me a quick rundown between the benefits of a mirrorless compared to a standard DSLR? (besides size)
Photo quality wise, is an SLR a better camera or are they pretty much the same as a mirrorless?
Honestly unless you're really pixel peeping the image quality isn't that different.
DSLR has much better battery life. Optical viewfinder is way better than (most) electronic ones, cheap mirrorless don't have one at all (Compose using the screen on the back. ) Amazing range of lenses
Mirrorless is smaller, lighter, often have better video capabilities. May have new tech like in body stabilisation, touchscreen etc.
Thanks for the info!
Are older lenses not compatable with mirrorless cameras?
I guess you can get adapters that let you use Nikon / Canon / Pentax etc lenses on mirrorless bodies, but it adds bulk / cost. M43 has lots of great native lenses anyway imo
In general they are not compatible.
Sony do make adapters for the old A-mount lenses (including Minolta lenses). As far as I know they the only manufacturer who makes an official adapter.
@trongy: Olympus make an adapter as well but M43 have so many good lenses that unless you have a really good existing lens, I wouldn't bother.
Agree with battery life.
Disagree about viewfinder, I've used a bunch of Nikon DSLR and a bunch of Sony, Panasonic and Olympus mirrorless and I prefer electronic ones. Moot point for the a5000 as it doesn't have one anyway. Also liveview (composing on the screen) for DSLR is terrible at least on Nikons.
Olympus and Panasonic have a pretty good range of lenses too. Have heard good things about fujifilm lenses also. Sony IMO has the worst range of lenses. Still DSLR do have a large range of lenses.
Agree with the rest.
There are nuances with the "image quality".
In general, an APS-C sensor in mirrorless (as the A5000, A6000, etc) when using equivalent ISO, shutter speed and aperture, will perform equivalent to an APS-C sensor in a DSLR.
Where the mirrorless cameras can be let down, and it affects image quality, is focus speed and exposure metering - e.g. I found that auto mode the A6000 tends to under-expose a bit, which makes the image look grainy. Adjust for that, and you can pixel-peep the images to your hearts content - its razor-fricking sharp.
The focus speed also affects image quality with moving images - if focus doesn't lock (and low light focusing is bit of a fail on the A7, A5000, A5100 and A6000), then you get blurry images.
Micro four-thirds (e.g. Olympus and Panasonic) are a different matter - smaller sensor means less light captured => need more light or better processing for better images.
Full frame mirrorless (e.g. the A7 series) will crap all over the image quality of any contemporary APS-C DSLR - again, except for focusing speed.
I honestly don't see much of a size advantage of APS-C mirrorless over APS-C DSLR - I've got the A6000, and once you add a couple of lenses the body size difference kind of gets washed away. I've also used a couple of the entry level DSLRs (canon 700D, nikon 3300), and my arm didn't drop off.
What attracted me to mirrorless, was the surrounding tech - e.g. the viewfinder has useful stuff overlaid, such as the histogram, zebra stripes to highlight blown out areas of the image, focus peaking, focus magnification. I use that stuff everytime I shoot.
Also other stuff like eye-autofocus (so it focuses on the subjet's eye), focus following the subject is pretty cool.
But … don't get the A5000 - its really old, has none of the cool stuff I mentioned, focus is super slow, and the menu system is terrible. Spend the extra and get a A6000, A6300, A6500 or something from Olympus or Panasonic.
Edit: wrong reply section.
I think this is $480 (after $80 discount) @ Costco atm with an 8gb2 sd card.
8GB card isn't exactly adding a huge amount of value.
You can throw the sd card in the bin if you want, but $480 is still cheaper than $497.
Hmmm that math checks out.
A6000 is nearly always on special plus cashback if you can wait a few weeks
same price at the good guys: https://www.thegoodguys.com.au/sony-a5000-single-lens-kit-16… and $50 store credit: https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/295512
edit: ends today 06/03/17
Seeing this A6000 deal from 2+ years ago has completely put me off.. Damn OZB! https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/176459
The A6000 a better camera, it's also 3 years old. Sony haven't replaced the A6000 in 3 years.
Got my A6000 3 years ago because I know it's worth it … and it's only $150 more than the A5000 now.
http://www.harveynorman.com.au/sony-a6000-mirrorless-camera-…
Having used both the A5000 and the A6000, I know the A6000 is worth the bit extra. My 2c.
I also thought I would only use one lens, but have bought a combination and use 16-50mm zoom, 55-200 zoom, F1.8 50mm prime and the newest edition is the F2.8 20 mm prime.
Worth every cent … or even 15,000 cents.