SONY α NEX-C3

3 Series, 2nd generation compact mirrorless

A review and photo examples of the SONY NEX-C3 mirrorless digital camera.

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Gallery

The lens used in the photo examples is SONY E18-55mm

1．Overview

The NEX-C3 is a mirrorless camera manufactured by Sony and released in June 2011.

Detailed specifications of the camera are listed in the table below, but the main specifications include a 16.1 megapixel APS-C sensor (23.6mm x 15.8mm), a 3-inch 920,000-dot LCD on the back, and a size of 110 x 60 when viewed from the front, which is smaller than a small smartphone. Of course, since it is a camera, the grip has depth, and it becomes quite large when a lens is attached.

The LCD monitor can be adjusted up and down, up to about 80 degrees and down to about 45 degrees, but it cannot be rotated 180 degrees for selfies or be adjusted as flexibly as a vari-angle LCD.

The battery is an NP-FW50.

2．Usage

The NEX-C3 is the second model released after the NEX-3.

The 3 series is characterized by being more compact than the 5 series, and the C3 is the most compact and second lightest of the 3 series. The lightest is the NEX-3N.
The C3 has a separate battery compartment and memory card slot to reduce the depth of the camera. The other 3 series have the battery compartment and memory card slot in the same cover, making the depth a little thicker than the C3.

I bought this C3 used for a few thousand yen, and its compactness is quite good. However, the downside is that the buttons are cramped, and there is a risk of accidentally pressing the movie button.

With 16 million pixels, it is sufficient for snapshot photography, and the shutter shock is suppressed compared to the previous model, the NEX-3, making it less likely to cause camera shake. The shutter sound is also somewhat quieter.
The camera still has the drawback of being difficult to see the focus on the rear LCD when using MF lenses, but this can be avoided by enlarging the display.

The battery NP-FW50 has a voltage of 7.2V and 1020mAh, so it has a small capacity of 7.3Wh, so the battery life is not good.

Also, when I try to use it after about six months after charging it, the battery level is often 0. Sony lithium-ion batteries seem to discharge naturally regardless of the model I have used, so if I don’t charge it occasionally, I worry that it will over-discharge and become unusable.

The HVL-F20S flash is one of the few options that supports the Smart Accessory Terminal used by the NEX-C3, and the FDA-EV1S external EVF for NEX is compatible with the Smart Accessory Terminal 2, but cannot be used with the NEX-C3 introduced for cameras equipped with the same terminal, such as the NEX-F3.

The accessory port for attaching this flash and other accessories is a confusing part of the NEX series, and is classified as follows.

Name	Camera	Note
None	NEX-3N α5000 α5100	A camera that doesn’t require a shoe
Smart Accessory Terminal	NEX-3 NEX-C3 NEX-5	EVF FDA-EV1S cannot be attached Attachable accessories are quite limited
Smart Accessory Terminal 2	NEX-5N NEX-5R NEX-5T NEX-F3	The EVF FDA-EV1S can be attached.
Auto-lock accessory shoe	NEX-7 SLR α series (cameras older than the α99)	A traditional shoe that continues from the Minolta era
Multi-Interface Shoe	NEX-6 α99 α58 α77 II α99 II Mirrorless α6xxx series Mirrorless α7 series Mirrorless α1 series Mirrorless α9 series	The current mainstream shoe in 2024 ADP-MAA allows you to use the auto-lock accessory shoe flash

The NEX series released the flagship NEX-7 in 2011, its cheaper version NEX-6 in 2012, and the entry-level model NEX-3N in 2013, which marked the end of the NEX brand. Sony’s compact mirrorless cameras were then replaced by the α5xxx and α6xxx brands.

The E-mount has a relatively compact mount diameter (46mm), so no one thought it would fit a 35mm full-frame sensor, but they pulled it off with the α7, which has led to its current popularity.

3．Add Info.

The three series are the NEX-3, NEX-C3, NEX-F3, and NEX-3N, and the number 3 has been used for four generations. Since the series was renamed to four-digit names such as the α5000, the number 3 has not been used.

The three series are basically positioned as budget versions, and the concept has changed for each model.
In contrast to the NEX-5, the camera size and design change for each model, and although they are sold at low prices, they are expensive to develop.

The characteristics of the three series can be summarized as follows.

The NEX-3 is a budget version of the NEX-5.
The NEX-C3 redefines the series as a compact model.
The NEX-F3 has been updated in terms of functionality, such as support for an external EVF and improved selfie functions, and the camera has become larger.
The NEX-3N is a return to compact models.

Specification

Items	NEX-3	NEX-C3	NEX-F3	NEX-3N
Camera effective pixels	14.2-Megapixcels	16.1-Megapixels	16.1-Megapixels	16.1-Megapixels
Sensor Size	APS-C 23.7 x 15.6mm	APS-C 23.7 x 15.6mm	APS-C 23.7 x 15.6mm	APS-C 23.7 x 15.6mm
Rear LCD	3.0 inches 920,000 dots Top 80 degrees, bottom 45 degrees	3.0 inches 920,000 dots Top 80 degrees, bottom 45 degrees	3.0 inches 920,000 dots Top 180 degrees, bottom 13 degrees	3.0 inches 460,000 dots Top 180 degrees
EVF	–	–	FDA-EV1S	–
Accessory Shoe	Smart Accessory Terminal	Smart Accessory Terminal	Smart Accessory Terminal 2	–
Max Shutter speeds	1/4000	1/4000	1/4000	1/4000
Battery	NP-FW50	NP-FW50	NP-FW50	NP-FW50
Touch panel	×	×	×	×
WIFI	×	×	×	×
NFC	×	×	×	×
AF	Contrast Method	Contrast Method	Contrast Method	Contrast Method
Recorded Media	MS-Pro SDXC	MS-Pro SDXC	MS-Pro SDXC	MS-Pro SDXC
Release date	2010.6	2011.6	2012.6	2013.3
Size	111 x 59 x 38	110 x 60 x 33	117 x 67 x 41	110 x 62 x 35
Weight(g body only)	229	225	255	210
Color	Black White Pink Red	Black Silver Pink	Black White Pink	Black White Pink