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Sony’s A7C is the smallest interchangeable-lens full-frame camera on the market, but there’s nothing lightweight about its performance

£1899 / stuff.tv/A7C

■ Despite its 24.2MP full-frame sensor, the A7C isn’t much bigger than Sony’s APS-C models. That’s quite the feat, and it’s been pulled off without losing key features: you still get weather-sealing, in-body image stabilisation, a vari-angle LCD touchscreen and an OLED viewfinder.

■ The screen swings sideways to face fully forward, making it ideal for self-shooting and, along with the camera’s low weight and stabilisation, making this Sony’s best full-frame lens-swapper for vloggers. But there’s no HDMI output, leaving a USB-C port to handle data transfer and charging, alongside a single SD card socket.

■ With 10fps continuous shooting and Sony’s fast autofocus system, it’s quite the speed demon. You can rattle off shots at a brisk pace, and capturing fast-moving subjects is relatively painless.

■ In-body 5-axis stabilisation gives plenty of help when shooting handheld, but the A7C also comes with a built-in gyroscope that embeds motion metadata for stabilising in post-production with Sony’s Catalyst Browse software.

■ Sony claims 200 minutes of video or 700 photos on a charge. That’s best-in-class level – and our field testing suggests it’s broadly accurate. It’s just a pity Sony hasn’t used the A7S III’s much-improved menu system.

Shoe me what you got The A7C comes with a multi-interface hot shoe up top for flashes and other attachments, including digital microphones.

Tech specs

Sensor 24.2MP full-frame Exmor R CMOS ISO 100-51,200 (50-204,800 exp) Video 4K @ 30fps Screen 3in 921k-dot LCD Connectivity Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB-C, 3.5mm mic, 3.5mm aux Dimensions 124x71x60mm, 503g ■ Return to sensor

The benefits of full-frame – like better low-light results, dynamic range, noise control and bokeh effects – are all on display here. With help from Sony’s in-camera processing, the 24.2MP sensor delivers fantastic stills. ■ King of the mode

Filming 1080p at up to 120fps and 4K at 30fps produces incredible results, but you also get profile modes such as S-Log2, S-Log3, Cinema and HLG that will appeal to videographers who want to grade and tweak footage later.

STUFF SAYS Superb quality and full-frame goodness from a half-pint camera HHHHH

A big sensor in a small chassis spells ace results on the road

Sam Kieldsen Putting full-frame sensors in small bodies is one of Sony’s greatest strengths, and the A7C minimises things even further. There’s a lot of imaging power here in a compact package with plenty of battery life. For photographers and video makers who want to carry everything with them in a modest bag (or hanging around their neck), the A7C fits the bill better than any other interchangeable-lens camera.