First Camera / Beginner Photography — EOS R100 (2023): The R100 does the basics well at the lowest possible price point. Its main value is as a gateway into the Canon RF ecosystem — the lenses you buy now will work on any Canon body you upgrade to later. Modest ambitions, reliably met.
Professional Sports & Wildlife — Nikon Z9 (2021): The Z9 redefined what professional mirrorless could be — no mechanical shutter, 45MP stacked BSI, and 8K RAW in the most rugged Z body.
Content Creation & Vlogging — A6400 (2019): The best value APS-C Sony you can buy — especially used. Real-time Eye AF at this price point was transformative when it launched and still makes it one of the most reliable autofocus systems in the lineup.
Who should buy what
EOS R100 (2023)
Nikon Z9 (2021)
A6400 (2019)
Quick take: The nikon z9 has the highest resolution at 46mp; the eos r100 is the most affordable; only the nikon z9 is weather sealed. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.
Full specifications
| Specification | EOS R100 (2023) | Nikon Z9 (2021) | A6400 (2019) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £529 | £5,499 | £899 |
| Sensor | 24.1MP APS-C CMOS | 45.7MP full-frame BSI stacked CMOS | 24.2MP APS-C Exmor CMOS BSI |
| Resolution | 24.1MP | 45.7MP | 24.2MP |
| Video | 4K/30p (slight crop), 1080p/60p | 8K/30p RAW, 4K/120p, ProRes RAW | 4K/30p (6K oversampled, no crop), 1080p/120p slow-motion |
| Autofocus | Dual Pixel CMOS AF, face detection, subject tracking | Subject detection AF, 493-point phase-detect | Phase-detect, 425 points, real-time Eye AF & animal AF |
| Stabilisation | None (no IBIS) | 6-stop IBIS | None (no IBIS) |
| Burst Rate | 6.5fps mechanical | 20fps RAW / 120fps JPEG | 11fps mechanical, 8fps with AF tracking |
| Battery Life | ~270 shots (CIPA) | 740 shots (CIPA) | ~410 shots (CIPA) |
| Weight | 356g (body, battery, card) | 1340g body only | 403g (body, battery, card) |
| Dimensions | 116.3 × 85.5 × 68.8mm | 149.0 × 149.5 × 90.5mm | 120.0 × 66.9 × 59.7mm |
| Weather Sealed | No | Yes | No |
| Viewfinder | EVF, 2.36M dots, 0.59× magnification | 0.5" Quad-VGA OLED EVF, 3.69M dots, 120fps | EVF, 2.36M dots, 0.70× magnification |
| Screen | 3.0" fixed touchscreen, 1.04M dots | 3.2" tilting touchscreen | 3.0" tilting touchscreen, 180° flip for selfie/vlog, 921k dots |
| Mount | Canon RF-mount | Nikon Z-mount | Sony E-mount |
| Memory Cards | Single SD UHS-II | Dual CFexpress Type B / XQD | Single SD UHS-I |
| Connectivity | USB-C, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth | USB-C 3.2, HDMI full-size, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth, LAN | Micro-USB, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC |
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