Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 vs. Pentax K-3 Mark III

Camera Comparison, Reviews and Tests

Side by side comparison and review of Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 and Pentax K-3 Mark III. Compare design, sensors, zoom functions, batteries and other key specifications and features to simplify the choice of your perfect digital camera. Our goal is to make it easier for you to decide on the camera that will best meet your expectations by revealing the main differences between the products.

Camera Specifications Comparison

Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 vs. Pentax K-3 Mark III Comparison Chart
DESIGN AND DIMENSIONS Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Product Type Digital camera - 4K - mirrorless system Digital camera - 4K - SLR with Live View mode, movie recording
Lens Included Body only Body only
Height 6.69 cm 10.35 cm
Width 12 cm 13.45 cm
Depth 5.33 cm 7.35 cm
Weight 453 g 735 g
Weight Details Camera with battery and memory card: 453 g Camera body only: 735 g
Camera with battery and memory card: 820 g
Body Material Magnesium alloy Magnesium alloy
Enclosure Colour - Black | Silver
Protection Dust-resistant, moisture-resistant Weatherproof, dust-resistant
Digital Zoom 4x -
Navigation - GPS receiver
SENSOR Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Sensor Resolution 24.2 Megapixel 25.73 Megapixel
Optical Sensor Type Exmor CMOS CMOS
Total Pixels 25,000,000 pixels 26,780,000 pixels
Effective Sensor Resolution 24,200,000 pixels 25,730,000 pixels
Optical Sensor Size APS-C (23.5 x 15.6 mm) APS-C (23.3 x 15.5 mm)
Frame Rate (Max Resolution) 30 fps 30 fps
Sensor Dust Reduction Yes -
Sensor Features Dust Reduction (image sensor vibration), Anti-Dust coating Dust Reduction (image sensor vibration), anti-aliasing simulator function
Image Stabiliser Optical (5-axis image sensor shift mechanism) Optical SR II (5-axis image sensor shift mechanism)
Built-in Optical Image Stabiliser Yes Yes
Sensors Digital level metre Digital level metre
PROCESSOR Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Image Processor BIONZ X -
LENS Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Lens Mounting Type Sony E-mount Pentax K
FOCUSING Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Auto Focus TTL contrast and phase detection TTL contrast and phase detection
Auto Focus Points (Zones) Qty 425 101
Auto Focus Features Focus Peaking function, Predictive Focus Control -
AE/AF Control - Auto-area AF, Zone AF, Expanded area AF
Face Detection Smile Shutter Yes
VIEWFINDER Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Viewfinder Type Electronic - OLED Optical - fixed eye-level pentaprism
Viewfinder Colour Support Colour -
Viewfinder Diagonal Size 0.39" -
Viewfinder Resolution 2,359,296 pixels -
Optical Viewfinder Field Coverage 100% 100%
Optical Viewfinder Magnification 1.07x 1.05x
Optical Viewfinder Dioptric Correction Range -4 to +3 -4 to +1
Field of View Crop Factor 1.5 -
Features Viewfinder brightness control, colour temperature control Auto eye sensor
EXPOSURE & WHITE BALANCE Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
ISO (Max) 51200 1600000
Native ISO 100-6400 -
Extended ISO (Max) 25600 -
Light Sensitivity ISO 51200, ISO auto (100-6400), ISO 100-25600 ISO auto, ISO 100-1600000
Exposure Metering Spot, average, highlight spot Multi-segment, centre-weighted, spot, highlight-weighted
Exposure Metering Zones 1200 -
Exposure Modes Programme, bulb, automatic, manual, aperture-priority, shutter-priority Programme, bulb, automatic, manual, aperture-priority, shutter-priority, ISO priority, shutter & aperture priority
Bracketing Modes Dynamic Range Bracketing, Flash Exposure Bracketing, white balance bracketing Depth of field bracketing, motion bracketing
Shooting Programs Landscape, portrait mode, macro, night portrait, night scene, sports mode, sunset, handheld twilight, anti-motion blur -
Special Effects Black & White, Sepia, Neutral, Vivid, sunset, soft focus, illustration, landscape, portrait, Water Colour, miniature, clear, deep, light, autumn leaves, Retro, partial colour, Toy camera, Posterisation, High contrast monochrome, Pop Colour, HDR Painting, Rich-tone monochrome, Soft High-key, Night Scene, Standard, Style Box Soft, Slim, fisheye, natural, bright, Vibrant, monochrome, Muted, Flat, landscape, portrait, miniature, Cross Process, Retro, Colour Extract, Toy camera, High contrast, Colour Invert, Bleach Bypass, Radiant, Reversal Film, Shading, Tone Expansion, Bold Monochrome, Unicolour Bold, Colour replace, Grainy Monochrome
White Balance Custom, automatic, presets Custom, automatic, presets
White Balance Presets Incandescent, cloudy, Flash, daylight, shade, fluorescent light (cool white), fluorescent light (daylight), fluorescent light (warm white), Underwater, 2500K - 9900K, fluorescent light (daylight white) Cloudy, tungsten light, daylight, shade, fluorescent light (cool white), fluorescent light (daylight), fluorescent light (warm white), Color Temperature Enhancement (CTE), fluorescent light (daylight white)
Shutter Type Mechanical electronically-controlled Electronic, mechanical electronically-controlled
Max Shutter Speed 1/4000 sec 1/8000 sec
Min Shutter Speed 30 sec 30 sec
Exposure Compensation ±5 EV range, in 1/2 or 1/3 EV steps ±5 EV range, in 1/2 or 1/3 EV steps
Auto Exposure Bracketing 3, 5, 9 steps in 1/3, 1/2, 2/3, 1, 2 or 3 EV steps -
White Balance Bracketing Yes -
X-sync Speed 1/160 sec 1/200sec
Exposure Range EV -2-20 (ISO 100) EV -3-20 (ISO 100)
DISPLAY Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Type 3" LCD display 3.2" LCD display
Touch Screen Yes Yes
Display Format 921,600 pixels 1,620,000 pixels
Display Form Factor Built-in Built-in
Display Features Display brightness control Colour control, contrast control, display brightness control, night vision LCD display
FLASH Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Camera Flash Pop-up flash -
Guide Number (m / ISO 100) 6 -
Flash Modes Fill-in mode, rear curtain sync, auto mode, flash OFF mode, red-eye reduction, slow sync -
Red-Eye Reduction Yes -
Features AF illuminator, flash +/- compensation, wireless off-camera control, high-speed synchronization (HSS) -
VIDEOGRAPHY / CAMCORDER Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Digital Video Format AVCHD, H.264, XAVC S H.264, MOV
Image Recording Format JPEG, RAW, RAW + JPEG JPEG, DNG (RAW), PEF (RAW)
Max Video Resolution 3840 x 2160 3840 x 2160
Audio Signal Format Dolby Digital AC-3 (2 channel), Linear PCM, AAC -
Surround Sound Dolby Digital AC-3 (2 channel) recording -
Microphone Operation Mode Stereo Stereo
Microphone Features - Wind noise reduction, sensitivity control
MEMORY Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Memory Card Slot Memory Stick PRO Duo card, SD card Dual SD card
Supported Memory Cards SD Memory Card, Memory Stick PRO Duo, SDXC Memory Card, SDHC Memory Card, Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo, SDHC UHS-I Memory Card, SDXC UHS-I Memory Card SD Memory Card, SDXC Memory Card, SDHC Memory Card, SDHC UHS-I Memory Card, SDXC UHS-I Memory Card, SDHC UHS-II Memory Card, SDXC UHS-II Memory Card
Memory Card Included No No
Image Storage 6000 x 4000
4240 x 2832
3008 x 2000
6000 x 3376
4240 x 2400
3008 x 1688
RAW 6192 x 4128
JPEG 6192 x 4128
JPEG 4752 x 3168
JPEG 3648 x 2432
JPEG 1920 x 1280
Video Capture XAVC S - 3840 x 2160 p - 30 fps - 100Mbps
XAVC S - 3840 x 2160 p - 24 fps - 100Mbps
XAVC S - 3840 x 2160 p - 30 fps - 60Mbps
XAVC S - 3840 x 2160 p - 24 fps - 60Mbps
XAVC S HD - 1920 x 1080 p - 60 fps - 50Mbps
XAVC S HD - 1920 x 1080 p - 30 fps - 50Mbps
XAVC S HD - 1920 x 1080 p - 24 fps - 50Mbps
XAVC S HD - 1920 x 1080 p - 120 fps - 100Mbps
XAVC S HD - 1920 x 1080 p - 120 fps - 60Mbps
AVCHD - 1920 x 1080 p - 60 fps - 28Mbps
AVCHD - 1920 x 1080 i - 60 fps - 24Mbps
AVCHD - 1920 x 1080 i - 60 fps - 17Mbps
AVCHD - 1920 x 1080 p - 24 fps - 24Mbps
AVCHD - 1920 x 1080 p - 24 fps - 17Mbps
H.264 - 1920 x 1080 p - 60 fps - 28Mbps
H.264 - 1920 x 1080 p - 30 fps - 16Mbps
H.264 - 1280 x 720 p - 30 fps - 6Mbps
XAVC S - 3840 x 2160 p - 25 fps - 100Mbps
XAVC S - 3840 x 2160 p - 25 fps - 60Mbps
XAVC S HD - 1920 x 1080 p - 50 fps - 50Mbps
XAVC S HD - 1920 x 1080 p - 25 fps - 50Mbps
XAVC S HD - 1920 x 1080 p - 100 fps - 100Mbps
XAVC S HD - 1920 x 1080 p - 100 fps - 60Mbps
AVCHD - 1920 x 1080 p - 50 fps - 28Mbps
AVCHD - 1920 x 1080 i - 50 fps - 24Mbps
AVCHD - 1920 x 1080 i - 50 fps - 17Mbps
AVCHD - 1920 x 1080 p - 25 fps - 24Mbps
AVCHD - 1920 x 1080 p - 25 fps - 17Mbps
H.264 - 1920 x 1080 p - 50 fps - 28Mbps
H.264 - 1920 x 1080 p - 25 fps - 16Mbps
H.264 - 1280 x 720 p - 25 fps - 6Mbps
H.264 - 3840 x 2160 p - 30 fps
H.264 - 3840 x 2160 p - 24 fps
H.264 - 1920 x 1080 p - 60 fps
H.264 - 1920 x 1080 p - 30 fps
H.264 - 1920 x 1080 p - 24 fps
BATTERY AND CHARGING Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Battery Type Sony NP-FW50 Lithium Ion Pentax D-Li90 Lithium Ion
Details Sony NP-FW50 Li-ion rechargeable battery - 1080 mAh (included) Pentax D-Li90 Li-ion rechargeable battery (included)
Battery Life Photo shooting - 310 shots (EVF on)
Photo shooting - 350 shots (LCD Monitor on)
Video recording - 1.08 hours (EVF on)
Video recording - 1.17 hours (LCD Monitor on)
Photo shooting - 800 shots
Playback - 250 minutes
CONNECTIONS Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Interface HDMI, USB 2.0, IEEE 802.11b/g/n, NFC (Near Field Communication), Bluetooth 4.1 HDMI, USB-C, IEEE 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.2
Connectivity Features - Remote control via mobile devices, remote live view, Wireless Image Transfer
Print Standard DPOF support, Exif Print support, PRINT Image Matching Exif Print support
Computer Connectivity - Mac, Windows
Flash Terminal Hot shoe Hot shoe, PC terminal
Connector Type USB 2.0
HDMI output (19 pin micro HDMI Type D)
Microphone (mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm)
Remote control
USB 3.2 Gen 1 (USB Type-C)
HDMI output (19 pin micro HDMI Type D)
Microphone (mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm)
Headphones (mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm)
Remote control (sub-mini phone 2.5 mm)
FEATURES Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Self-Timer Delay 10 sec, 2sec, 5 sec 2sec, 12sec
Continuous Shooting Speed 8 frames per second, 3 frames per second, 6 frames per second, 11 frames per second 2.5 frames per second, 12 frames per second, 7 frames per second
HDR Mode Auto HDR mode Auto HDR mode
Additional Features Built-in speaker, sharpness control, camera orientation detection, histogram display, saturation control, Sweep Panorama technology, shadow point display, highlight point display, contrast control, Dynamic Range Optimizer, built-in help guide, Dolby Digital Stereo Creator, Chromatic Aberration Compensation (CAC), x.v.Colour technology, Multi-Frame Noise Reduction, Eye-Fi Card Ready, noise reduction over long exposures, high ISO speed noise reduction, PlayMemories Camera Apps support, silent shooting, distortion correction function, Clear Image Zoom 2.0x, peripheral shading correction Audio recording, date/time stamp, digital image rotation, camera orientation detection, histogram display, AE lock, AF lock, cropping an image, resizing an image, interval shooting mode, in-camera film editing, in-camera RAW processing, peripheral illumination correction, horizon correction, NR Slow Shutter, High ISO NR, Lens Distortion Correction, primary colour filter, Automatic composition correction function, colour moire correction, Lateral Chromatic Aberration Correction, diffraction correction, Pixel Shift Resolution technology, colour fringe correction, multiple exposure capture, GPS stamp, D-range correction
OTHERS Sony Alpha6500 ILCE-6500 Pentax K-3 Mark III
Included Accessories Eyepiece cover, body cap, shoulder strap, AC power adaptor, micro-USB cable, hot shoe cap Eyepiece cover, carrying strap, battery charger, body cap, USB cable, eyecup, shoe cap, sync terminal cover
Software - Digital Camera Utility 5
Max Operating Temperature 40 °C 40 °C
Min Operating Temperature 0 °C -10 °C
Service & Support - Limited warranty - 1 year
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