Very fast, excellent output - very poor to handle and use

[ibbz]

As a long time user of Minolta, Konica Minolta and Sony I bought this as I can use my lenses.

It's very small - in fact the same size more or less as the Konica Minolta A200.

It's also very quick - quick AF and a large-ish decent EVF and LCD. with excellent tracking and pluses like face detect

Photos are very good, good up to ISO 800

Downsides unfortunately. Horrible ergonomics. It's small but the grip is awful - the KM A200 is far nicer to handle

It's ok for children but full grown adult hands you'll be hindered by the grip which is too shallow, uncomfortable and starts to hurt as the sharp edges dig into the fingers.

The dial to control Aperture is too far forward and thin - the ON/OFF switch is in the wrong place and I found myself switching it off instead of dialing aperture many many times.

Plastic cheapish construction and looks feels like a toy.

 

[ishwanu]

Someone who finds the A55's small size uncomfortable should be looking at the A57/58/65/68/77/77II APS-C models.

 

[ibbz]

Someone who finds the A55's small size uncomfortable should be looking at the A57/58/65/68/77/77II APS-C models.

they should!

i only bought it as it cost me £50 and I needed it to shoot a party in a hall rather than outside. For that it performed well.

 

[ActionPhotoPassion]

Someone who finds the A55's small size uncomfortable should be looking at the A57/58/65/68/77/77II APS-C models.

they should!

i only bought it as it cost me £50 and I needed it to shoot a party in a hall rather than outside. For that it performed well.

That is something I noticed when I bought the A58 in 2013, it's incredibly capable to focus in low light situation... That's pretty surprising for an entry level camera like those.

I think those A5x were long underrated. They weren't "good" because of their lack of MFA feature which lead to a lot of hit/miss situations.

 

[tbcass]

For what it's worth I used an A55 for several years, have larger than average adult hands and found the handling and grip of the camera just fine.

 

[MikeInOr]

The A55 / A33 are small cameras which is one of the features, depending one who you are. The grips are definitely smaller and less ergonomic than an A77 but at the same time better than the first mirrorless A7 cameras. If you require better ergonomics buy an A77.

I still use my A55 frequently. I take it out to my woodworking shop to take pictures of projects in progress to post online. For this purpose the A55 is excellent. My first ILC digital camera was an A33. I have very large hands. In time I got used to the A33 size, controls, and form factor so pickup an A55 and shooting with it is natural to me.

Of all the digital cameras I have ever used none of them have been a pickup for the first time and experience an immediate synergy. All new cameras are shaded by the muscle memory developed for past cameras. Some cameras are easier to acclimate to than others but they all take time behind the viewfinder to become second nature to use. All new cameras, regardless of brand, have a learning curve... unless I have experience with a closely related camera... like the A55 is to the A33.

I do agree the Sony DSLR's bodies are considerably bigger and nicer to hang on to.

 

[Lensmate]

As a long time user of Minolta, Konica Minolta and Sony I bought this as I can use my lenses.

It's very small - in fact the same size more or less as the Konica Minolta A200.

It's also very quick - quick AF and a large-ish decent EVF and LCD. with excellent tracking and pluses like face detect

Photos are very good, good up to ISO 800

Downsides unfortunately. Horrible ergonomics. It's small but the grip is awful - the KM A200 is far nicer to handle

It's ok for children but full grown adult hands you'll be hindered by the grip which is too shallow, uncomfortable and starts to hurt as the sharp edges dig into the fingers.

The dial to control Aperture is too far forward and thin - the ON/OFF switch is in the wrong place and I found myself switching it off instead of dialing aperture many many times.

Plastic cheapish construction and looks feels like a toy.

Two and a half stars is way off the mark. A great travel camera and I used mine till it died.

-M

 

[ibbz]

As a long time user of Minolta, Konica Minolta and Sony I bought this as I can use my lenses.

It's very small - in fact the same size more or less as the Konica Minolta A200.

It's also very quick - quick AF and a large-ish decent EVF and LCD. with excellent tracking and pluses like face detect

Photos are very good, good up to ISO 800

Downsides unfortunately. Horrible ergonomics. It's small but the grip is awful - the KM A200 is far nicer to handle

It's ok for children but full grown adult hands you'll be hindered by the grip which is too shallow, uncomfortable and starts to hurt as the sharp edges dig into the fingers.

The dial to control Aperture is too far forward and thin - the ON/OFF switch is in the wrong place and I found myself switching it off instead of dialing aperture many many times.

Plastic cheapish construction and looks feels like a toy.

Two and a half stars is way off the mark. A great travel camera and I used mine till it died.

-M

My review is subjective so we all differ in our opinions.

I thought it was rubbish.

 

[MikeInOr]

As a long time user of Minolta, Konica Minolta and Sony I bought this as I can use my lenses.

It's very small - in fact the same size more or less as the Konica Minolta A200.

It's also very quick - quick AF and a large-ish decent EVF and LCD. with excellent tracking and pluses like face detect

Photos are very good, good up to ISO 800

Downsides unfortunately. Horrible ergonomics. It's small but the grip is awful - the KM A200 is far nicer to handle

It's ok for children but full grown adult hands you'll be hindered by the grip which is too shallow, uncomfortable and starts to hurt as the sharp edges dig into the fingers.

The dial to control Aperture is too far forward and thin - the ON/OFF switch is in the wrong place and I found myself switching it off instead of dialing aperture many many times.

Plastic cheapish construction and looks feels like a toy.

Two and a half stars is way off the mark. A great travel camera and I used mine till it died.

-M

My review is subjective so we all differ in our opinions.

I thought it was rubbish.

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion!

 

[toughluck]

The A55 / A33 are small cameras which is one of the features, depending one who you are. The grips are definitely smaller and less ergonomic than an A77 but at the same time better than the first mirrorless A7 cameras. If you require better ergonomics buy an A77.

Totally. But I need to chime in because later A7 bodies got much better ergonomics and some people still hang on to the first A7 (and to some extent, A7ii) when they comment on whether or not the mirrorless bodies are ergonomically sound.

Compact Camera Meter

Compare unlimited number of cameras with lenses, see how compact or bulky a camera is and sort by height, width, depth and weight.

camerasize.com

(It should be A7, A7ii, A7iii, A7iv, A99ii, A900 and A700, but for some reason, camerasize scrambles the above order).

A7iii is about the same as A99ii. A7iv, however, is significantly better, with a much deeper grip. I lamented Sony's decision to move away from the offset vertical grip but I realized they made a very good decision after I realized that with how compact DSLRs and SLTs got, the offset vertical grip is simply too short.

I still use my A55 frequently. I take it out to my woodworking shop to take pictures of projects in progress to post online. For this purpose the A55 is excellent. My first ILC digital camera was an A33. I have very large hands. In time I got used to the A33 size, controls, and form factor so pickup an A55 and shooting with it is natural to me.

Of all the digital cameras I have ever used none of them have been a pickup for the first time and experience an immediate synergy. All new cameras are shaded by the muscle memory developed for past cameras. Some cameras are easier to acclimate to than others but they all take time behind the viewfinder to become second nature to use. All new cameras, regardless of brand, have a learning curve... unless I have experience with a closely related camera... like the A55 is to the A33.

I do agree the Sony DSLR's bodies are considerably bigger and nicer to hang on to.

A700 and to a lesser degree, A900, were the best DSLRs for me. I could easily use either of them without taking my eye away from the viewfinder.

However, when I had the Minolta A1, I found it even better than any of the DSLRs. It had an immensely deep grip, especially considering how small it was overall.

But ease of use is based on how often you use the camera. If you use it a lot, it will eventually become natural to use it without looking. Otherwise using any new camera will feel like a chore.

 

[ibbz]

I’ve had the Sony A900 and have a Minolta a-9. Though if similar shape and size the Minolta is nicer and more comfortable in the hand.

the A1/A2 and the A200 are of a marvelous design - considering the size the A200 which I have and have compared to the Sony I reviewed here is head and shoulders better in terms of build, comfort and handling than the Sony

and a shame they’re no more

 

[tbcass]

I’ve had the Sony A900 and have a Minolta a-9. Though if similar shape and size the Minolta is nicer and more comfortable in the hand.

the A1/A2 and the A200 are of a marvelous design - considering the size the A200 which I have and have compared to the Sony I reviewed here is head and shoulders better in terms of build, comfort and handling than the Sony

and a shame they’re no more

Since build, comfort and handling are so subjective it's impossible to design a camera that pleases everybody in that regard. What you find good may not be for someone else. The best Sony can do is strike a happy medium.