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EOS-1D X Mark IIIvs A1

GearFrame · Updated March 2026

Canon EOS-1D X Mark III Canon EOS-1D X Mark III (2020) Starting from £3500 new Best for Professional Sports, Wildlife & Press Photography View EOS-1D X Mark III
VS
Sony A1 Sony A1 (2021) Starting from £5999 new Best for Professional sport, wildlife, portrait & hybrid shooting View A1

GearScore™ Verdict — Which should you buy?

Professional Sports, Wildlife & Press Photography — EOS-1D X Mark III (2020): Canon's DSLR masterpiece — 20fps live view, 5.5K RAW, 191 cross-type AF points, and dual CFexpress. Almost certainly the finest optical viewfinder camera ever made.

Professional Sport, Wildlife, Portrait & Hybrid Shooting — A1 (2021): 50MP, 30fps, 8K — the Sony A1 is the most complete professional camera ever made.

↓ Full specifications below

EOS-1D X Mark III (2020)

  • Sports and wildlife photographers with a Canon EF lens collection
  • Professionals who prefer the optical viewfinder experience
  • Press photographers who need 20fps, weather sealing, and Ethernet
  • Canon historians who want to mark the end of the EOS-1D DSLR era

A1 (2021)

  • Professional photographers who need resolution and speed without compromise
  • Sports and wildlife photographers demanding the absolute fastest Sony
  • Studio and fashion photographers who also shoot sport or events
  • A9 III or A7R V owners who want a single body that does everything

Quick take: The a1 has the highest resolution at 50mp; the eos-1d x mark iii is the most affordable. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.

Full specifications

Specification EOS-1D X Mark III (2020)A1 (2021)
Price £3,500 £5,999
Sensor 20.1MP full-frame CMOS 50.1MP Full-Frame Stacked BSI CMOS Exmor RS
Resolution 20.1MP 50.1MP
Video 5.5K RAW, 4K 60fps (crop), 4K 60fps (full-frame via firmware) 8K/30p, 4K/120p, 1080p/240p
Autofocus 191-point all cross-type OVF AF; 525-point Dual Pixel CMOS AF (Live View) Real-time Tracking, AI subject recognition — 759 phase-detect points
Stabilisation IBIS — up to 5.5 stops
Burst Rate 16fps mechanical, 20fps live view 30fps electronic with full AF/AE
Battery Life ~2850 shots (CIPA) ~430 shots (CIPA)
Weight 1250g (body only) 737g (with battery)
Dimensions 158 × 167.6 × 82.6mm 128.9 × 96.9 × 80.8mm
Weather Sealed Yes Yes
Viewfinder OVF 0.76× magnification, 100% coverage EVF, 9.44M dots, 0.90× magnification, 240fps
Screen 3.2" fully articulating touchscreen, 4.15M dots 3.0" fully tilting touchscreen
Mount Canon EF Sony FE mount (full-frame E-mount)
Memory Cards Dual CFexpress Type B slots Dual CFexpress Type A / SD UHS-II
Connectivity Wi-Fi 5GHz, Bluetooth 4.2, USB-C 3.1 Gen 2, Ethernet USB-C, Wi-Fi 5GHz, Bluetooth, Ethernet, HDMI
Genre EOS-1D X Mark IIIA1
Sports & Action
10.0
Wildlife
9.0
9.0
Wedding & Events
9.0
Portrait
8.0
9.0
Vlogging & Video
7.0
9.0
Street
7.0
Landscape
7.0
9.0
Sports
9.0
Wedding
9.0

GearScore™ suitability scores are based on aggregated purchaser reviews weighted by photography genre. See how scores are calculated →

⚡ Compare specs side by side EOS-1D X Mark III prices → A1 prices →

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