Pentax 17vs A7 III
Pentax
Pentax 17 (2024)
Starting from £400 new
Best for Film photography enthusiasts & diptych storytelling
View Pentax 17
GearScore™ Verdict — Which should you buy?
Film Photography Enthusiasts & Diptych Storytelling — Pentax 17 (2024): The best new film camera of the decade — manual controls, a sharp lens, and a half-frame format that doubles your roll and forces a new way of seeing.
All-Round Photography & Video — A7 III (2018): Still one of the best all-round cameras money can buy — particularly strong used. The A7 III proved that full-frame doesn't have to mean compromises, and nothing at this price point has meaningfully beaten it.
Who should buy what
A7 III (2018)
- Enthusiast photographers upgrading from APS-C for the first time
- Working photographers who need reliable AF and weather sealing
- Anyone who shoots in low light regularly
- Hybrid shooters needing both stills and video performance
Quick take: The pentax 17 is the most affordable; only the a7 iii is weather sealed. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.
Full specifications
| Specification | Pentax 17 (2024) | A7 III (2018) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £400 | £1,699 |
| Sensor | 35mm half-frame (18 × 24mm) | 24.2MP Full-Frame Exmor R BSI CMOS |
| Resolution | — | 24.2MP |
| Video | N/A — film camera | 4K/30p (6K oversampled), 1080p/120p slow-motion |
| Autofocus | Zone focus (0.35m / 1m / 3m / ∞) | Phase-detect, 693 points, real-time Eye AF & animal AF |
| Stabilisation | N/A — film camera | 5-axis IBIS, 5 stops |
| Burst Rate | Manual wind-on | 10fps with AF/AE tracking |
| Battery Life | 2× CR2 lithium batteries | ~710 shots (CIPA) |
| Weight | ~165g (without batteries) | 565g (body, battery, card) |
| Dimensions | 113 × 66 × 44mm | 126.9 × 95.6 × 73.7mm |
| Weather Sealed | No | Yes |
| Viewfinder | Optical viewfinder with half-frame framelines | EVF, 2.36M dots, 0.78× magnification |
| Screen | N/A | 3.0" tilting touchscreen, 921k dots |
| Mount | 35mm film (ISO 25–3200 via DX coding + manual dial) | Sony E-mount |
| Memory Cards | 35mm 135-format film cartridge | Dual SD (UHS-II slot 1, UHS-I slot 2) |
| Connectivity | N/A | USB-C (USB 3.2), Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC |
Suitability by genre
| Genre | Pentax 17 | A7 III |
|---|---|---|
| Street | ||
| Travel | ||
| Portrait | ||
| Everyday | — | |
| Landscape | — | |
| Low Light | — | |
| Wildlife | — | |
| Video | — |
More comparisons with Pentax 17
Camera family history