The ZV-1F is Sony’s third and most affordable vlogging camera, designed for creators as a “step up” from smartphones. It’s $500, which puts it below the $700 ZV-1 compact and $750 mirrorless ZV-E10 (with a kit lens), and it has a Type-1 Exmor 20.1-megapixel sensor, 4K video, and features that help novice users get up and running quickly.
While it uses a Type-1 sensor similar to the ZV-1, it trades the 24-70mm zoom for a wide-angle, 20mm equivalent prime lens. Because of the larger field of view and fully-articulating display, it may be better for vlogging or selfies than the ZV-1, allowing people to better fit themselves into the frame.
However, it is less versatile for shooting products, other people, and so on, despite the fact that it has a digital zoom of 2x in 1080p and about 1.5x in 4K. It lacks in-body stabilization and instead relies on electronic stabilization, which results in a 1.23x crop, making the 20mm lens about 25mm.
You can shoot 4K at up to 30 frames per second, just like the ZV-1, and 1080p at up to 120 frames per second (with 8-bit video in all modes). The “slow and quick” setting, which also supports 60x hyper-lapse capture in HD, accomplishes this. Unlike most other Sony models, however, the ZV-1F only has contrast-detect autofocus, rather than phase detection, which is generally faster and more accurate.
The ZV-1F, like the other vlogging models, has a “product showcase” feature that allows you to position a product in front of the camera and quickly get focused. It also has the same bokeh switch, which allows you to defocus the background with a single click. The Shot Mark feature, a nod to TikTok or Snapchat creators, allows you to grab a 15-, 30-, or 60-second clip and send it to a smartphone via Sony’s app.
On the audio front, it has a directional microphone with forward bias that isolates your voice even when you’re outside. It also comes with a detachable “deadcat” to reduce wind noise.
A single UHS-1 slot, an ISO range of 125 to 12,800, vertical shooting, and a front-facing tally light that indicates when you’re recording are also included. Sony claims it weighs only 256 grams, which is slightly more than the 203-gram iPhone 14. It will be available for $500 on October 24th.
