Following the A9 firmware, Sony has released subsequent firmware updates for the A7 mark II series (A7s II, A7r II and A7 II) as well as the a6300 and a6500. Let’s have a closer look.
The A7 II (version 4.0) gets:
- improvements concerning the operability of the camera when the AF area is set to flexible spot
- addition of Live View Display as an option for custom buttons
- addition of the Set File Name function
- support for visible LED light with external flash when using autofocus (for the HVL-F45RM External Flash)
- improvements concerning the release time lag when using wireless flash
- overall improvements concerning the stability of the camera
In addition to the list above, the A7r II (version 4.0) and A7s II (version 3.0) also get:
- the Auto Pwr OFF Temp option to control overheating when recording in 4K
- image quality improvement when Long Exposure NR is set to OFF
The A7r II (version 4.0) has an additional fix for itself:
- optimization of exposure algorithm during focusing when Live View Display is set to Setting Effect OFF
Moving onto the APS-C cameras, the a6500 (version 1.03) gets:
- support for the 100-400mm G Master lens
- optimization of image stabilization performance in movie mode
The a6300 (version 2.00) also gets the support for the 100-400mm and 3 extra features:
- Adds the Auto Pwr OFF Temp function
- Modifies the aspect of the guide frame display in the LCD (2.35:1 mode)
- Improves overall stability of the camera
Out of all these improvements, two stand out: the Auto Pwr OFF Temp setting could improve the overheating issue experienced by a6300 users when recording in 4K. It is the same setting found on the a6500 which has improved this very aspect so fingers crossed! Then we have the improvement for long exposures which – as noted by Sonyalpharumors – seem to fix the “star eating” problem that some Sony cameras have had after last year’s update. It was also reported by astrophotography master Ian Norman of Lonely Speck.
