Q3 43vs A6500
Leica
Q3 43 (2024)
Starting from £6995 new
Best for Documentary, portrait & reportage photography
View Q3 43
Sony
A6500 (2016)
Starting from £649 new
Best for Travel, street & versatile everyday photography
View A6500
GearScore™ Verdict — Which should you buy?
Documentary, Portrait & Reportage Photography — Q3 43 (2024): The Q3 with the most human lens — 43mm, 60MP, and Leica rendering at its most natural and versatile.
Travel, Street & Versatile Everyday Photography — A6500 (2016): 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
Q3 43 (2024)
- Portrait and documentary photographers who find 28mm too wide and 50mm too tight
- Q3 owners who prefer a natural 43mm perspective over the iconic 28mm Summilux
- Reportage photographers who want the discreet Q3 form factor with a more intimate focal length
- Leica system users who want a fixed-lens body that excels across multiple genres
A6500 (2016)
- 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
Quick take: The q3 43 has the highest resolution at 60mp; the a6500 is the most affordable. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.
Full specifications
| Specification | Q3 43 (2024) | A6500 (2016) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £6,995 | £649 |
| Sensor | 60MP full-frame BSI CMOS | 24.2MP APS-C Exmor CMOS |
| Resolution | 60.0MP | 24.2MP |
| Video | 8K/30p, 4K/60p 10-bit — L-Log | 4K/30p (full pixel readout), 1080p/120p |
| Autofocus | Phase-detect AF with face and eye detection | 425 phase-detect + 169 contrast-detect AF points, face/eye detection |
| Stabilisation | 8-stop IBIS (combined with OIS) | IBIS — 5-axis, up to 5 stops (first Sony APS-C with IBIS) |
| Burst Rate | 15fps electronic | 11fps |
| Battery Life | ~350 shots (CIPA) | ~310 shots (CIPA) |
| Weight | 743g body only | 453g (with battery and card) |
| Dimensions | 130.0 × 80.3 × 91.1mm | 120.0 × 66.9 × 53.3mm |
| Weather Sealed | Yes | Yes |
| Viewfinder | EVF 0.79× 5.76M-dot OLED | EVF, OLED 2.36M dots, 0.70× magnification |
| Screen | 3.0" fully articulating touchscreen, 1.84M dots | 3.0" fully articulating touchscreen |
| Mount | Fixed Summicron-M 43mm f/2 ASPH (43mm — closest to human field of view) | Sony E-mount |
| Memory Cards | Single UHS-II SD slot | Single SD UHS-I slot |
| Connectivity | USB-C 3.2 Gen 2, Wi-Fi 5GHz, Bluetooth 5.0 | USB, Wi-Fi, NFC, Bluetooth |
Suitability by genre
| Genre | Q3 43 | A6500 |
|---|---|---|
| Portrait | ||
| Street | ||
| Travel | ||
| Landscape | — | |
| Sports | — | |
| Wildlife | ||
| Vlogging & Video | — | |
| Sports & Action | — |
GearScore™ suitability scores are based on aggregated purchaser reviews weighted by photography genre. See how scores are calculated →
More comparisons with Q3 43
Camera family history