GoPro
Hero 12 Black 2023
Best for Adventure, sports & travel video
£300
list price · used from £150 at eBay
Decision tools · Compare
Hero 12 Black vs A6500
Quick take: The Hero 12 Black has the highest resolution at 27MP; the Hero 12 Black is the most affordable.
16 specs side by side·16 genres scored·UK prices from Wex Photo Video and Clifton Cameras
How to read this page. Highlighted cells win that row on the spec alone. Genre scores are the engine's base scores (enthusiast, photo and video); Camera Match re-weights them for your level and priorities. Price buttons are affiliate links; the price you pay is the same.
Sony
A6500 2016
Best for Travel, street & versatile everyday photography
£649
list price · used from £359 at eBay
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Verdictwhich should you buy?
Hero 12 Black — Adventure, Sports & Travel Video: GoPro's best all-round action camera — better battery, 10-bit colour, and HyperSmooth 6.0 make it a genuine step forward.
A6500 — Travel, Street & Versatile Everyday Photography: The first Sony APS-C with IBIS — the A6500 added in-body stabilisation, touch AF, and a far deeper buffer to the A6300's already strong formula.
Who should buy what
Hero 12 Black (2023)
is the right camera for you if…
- Action and sports photographers who want the best stabilisation available
- Travellers who need a rugged waterproof camera for any conditions
- Cyclists, surfers, and skiers wanting helmet or handlebar footage
- Hero 11 owners considering an upgrade — notably better battery life
A6500 (2016)
is the right camera for you if…
- Travel photographers who want IBIS in a compact weather-sealed E-mount body
- A6300 owners who need the stabilisation or touch AF the A6300 lacked
- Street and documentary photographers who want a capable compact with weather sealing
- Sony E-mount shooters looking for a capable used body at an accessible price
Full specificationsthe better value in each row is highlighted
| Specification | Hero 12 BlackGoPro · 2023 | A6500Sony · 2016 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £300Best | £649 |
| Sensor | 1/1.9-inch CMOS | 24.2MP APS-C Exmor CMOS |
| Resolution | 27.0MPBest | 24.2MP |
| Video | 5.3K/60p, 4K/120p, 2.7K/240p slow-mo | 4K/30p (full pixel readout), 1080p/120p |
| Autofocus | Fixed focus (wide) | 425 phase-detect + 169 contrast-detect AF points, face/eye detection |
| Stabilisation | HyperSmooth 6.0 (in-camera EIS) | IBIS — 5-axis, up to 5 stops (first Sony APS-C with IBIS) |
| Burst Rate | 27MP RAW burstBest | 11fps |
| Battery Life | ~70 min at 5.3K/30p (Enduro battery) | ~310 shots (CIPA)Best |
| Weight | 154gBest | 453g (with battery and card) |
| Dimensions | 71.8 × 50.8 × 33.6mm | 120.0 × 66.9 × 53.3mm |
| Weather Sealed | Yes | Yes |
| Viewfinder | 2.27" rear touchscreen + 1.4" front display | EVF, OLED 2.36M dots, 0.70× magnification |
| Screen | 2.27" rear touchscreen; 1.4" front colour display | 3.0" tilting touchscreen |
| Mount | GoPro mounting ecosystem (fingers, adhesive, magnetic) | Sony E-mount |
| Memory Cards | microSD up to 1TB (V30 minimum) | Single SD UHS-I slot |
| Connectivity | USB-C, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS | USB, Wi-Fi, NFC, Bluetooth |
Wins the row — price, resolution, burst, battery, weight and sealing are compared; text specs aren't ranked.
How they score by genreengine base scores out of 10
Genre
Hero 12 Black
A6500
Sports & Action
9.0/10
6.6/10
Vlogging & Video
9.0/10
—
Travel
9.0/10
6.6/10
Underwater
9.0/10
—
Casual
9.0/10
4.8/10
Portrait
—
6.6/10
Street
—
7.1/10
Wedding & Events
—
5.2/10
Filmmaking
—
5.1/10
Documentary
—
5.8/10
Landscape
—
5.5/10
Wildlife
—
7.3/10
Food
—
6.3/10
Macro
—
5.7/10
Architecture
—
5.4/10
Astrophotography
—
5.3/10
Scores come from the same engine as Camera Match: verified specifications weighted by what each genre needs, with documented adjustments. The product page and this table show the enthusiast base score. See how scores are calculated →
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