 When I first heard about Sony's newest addition to the Alpha lineup, the A1, there was one spec that really caught my eye. Fifteen megapixel photos at 30 frames per second burst with continuous autofocus and auto exposure. In this body? What? Man, I live in a very, very fast city, so I was quite excited to put that spec to the test. A 50.1 megapixel stacked CMOS sensor, 8K filming at 30 frames per second, 120 autofocus calculations per second, an OLED viewfinder capable of 240 frames per second refresh rate, a mechanical shutter flash sync up to 1 four thousandth of a second, all in a body that doesn't feel that much bigger than my A7C. To say that I've been excited to get my hands on this $6,400 Sony A1 is completely an understatement, but now that it's here, man oh man have I been putting that burst mode to the test. I've shot birds, fountains, fireworks, you name it, I pointed this camera at it, but there is one really fast thing I knew I had to pair this camera with. This is Terry Berenson, he runs a YouTube channel all about biking, and more specifically, biking very quickly. Hey! Ow! For well over three hours I made him bomb down all sorts of hills in midtown Manhattan, and I am very happy to report the A1 had no trouble keeping up. I shot Terry with the A1 paired with the 100-400mm Sony G Master lens with autofocus continuous sensitivity set to the most responsive settings. In order to reach that 30 frames per second with continuous autofocus, you have to have your camera above 1-250th shutter speed, using the electronic shutter mode, and only shooting in either RAW compressed or JPEG format. I shot Terry in RAW compressed, and honestly I was pretty impressed with how much dynamic range that still offered me, but back to that in a minute, let's talk about this autofocus. This burst mode performs best when paired with the latest XD linear motor lenses that can very quickly move the focusing elements within the lens. Now Sony claims the A1 can perform up to 120 autofocus calculations per second, and I had no problem finding Terry well over a block away and holding tight to him despite my shaking hands, moving cars, and Terry's fast pace. It really felt like cheating when my only job was to stomp down on the shutter and just keep Terry in frame. There were very few autofocus shots even when Terry was coming directly at the camera, and I was able to take over 100 consecutive shots before buffering slowed me down. And because the OLED EVF can perform at up to 240 frames per second, my view was never interrupted or lagged. And when using the electronic shutter, a white box comes up on the frame and flashes every time a shot is captured in lieu of the sound of the shutter. Also I had to come clean. I've never shot a cyclist before, so I felt really out of my element kneeling in the middle of 42nd Street trying to catch a biker who was racing straight at me. Yet the A1 made my job pretty easy, and it kind of made it look like I knew what I was doing. Now back in the edit, the image quality is sharp, it's full of contrast, and true to life. I do wish I had shot a bit wider though, now knowing just how much I could punch in before losing quality. What surprised me the most though was the range I still had, even with compressed RAW files. The A1 claims to have 15 stops of dynamic range, and when attempting to bring a shadowed figure back, even in the compressed RAW files, I was able to do so with ease. But outside of action photography, the A1 still shines. That 50.1 megapixel sensor captures an incredible amount of detail. I had a blast pairing it with that really long 100-400mm lens and taking photos of the city, but I had just as much fun hopping on the 85, stopping down to like a 1.4, maybe a 2, and taking portraits, where that eye focus is super accurate, and it just captures loads and loads of detail. Alright, but physically, the A1 is nothing new, and that's a good thing. It's compact, slight weight, feels great in my hands. If you've used any of Sony's alpha cameras, it will feel very familiar in your hands, and it also gives me enough physical buttons and dials to lessen the need for jumping into the menu, which although better, is still a behemoth. It also uses the same Sony NP-FZ100 batteries that much of the latter half of the alpha line uses. With my A7C, I can get well through a day of shooting both photo and video with one of these batteries, but with the A1, I was really only averaging about half a day of use, and that's with mostly just photo use. There are a plethora of ports on the left side of the camera, including an ethernet port and a full-sized HDMI. They are all covered by solid-feeling plastic doors that close with a very nice click, and on the right side is a dual SD card slot that both supports either SD or CFexpress Type A cards. Alright Sony, I like totally see the monopoly that you have over CFexpress Type A cards, but it would have been really nice to get those Type B cards here. I mean, not only is there way more buying options for those, but they're also twice as fast. I was also disappointed by the articulating screen that doesn't flip out to face the front of the camera. While great for vlogging, it's also very helpful for tight angles, or setting up self-portraiture, or even flying this camera on a gimbal. Instead, I wound up using Sony's Image Edge Mobile app that, while basic in design, does work well for remote shooting and image transfer. This app could use a refresh though, the design hasn't changed in years, and every time you close out of the app or open another app, you have to repair your camera when you want to use it again. It's a pain in the ass. Video on the A1 tops out at the very impressive 8K 30 frames per second at 10-bit 420 H.265, and while Canon's R5 beat the A1 to that spec, the A1 does a better job at not overheating. Alright, yeah, this camera's getting a little toasty to the touch. 82 degrees in New York City, direct sunlight. Toasty to the touch. While the camera certainly got warm to the touch, especially during these hot days New York City has been experiencing, it never stopped recording due to overheating. Gerald Undone did wonderful testing of those long-run 8K video recording sessions, and in short, it just doesn't have those overheating problems that the Canon R5 had. Instead, it has quick recovery times, and with a dummy battery, you can record for seemingly ever. Or at least many hours. Sony has also made some improvements to the rolling shutter problem of mirrorless cameras past, cars no longer appear as jello cars, though at high speeds I did still see this unwanted effect on trains. Sony has also added a variable shutter option for fine-tuning your shutter speed to avoid flickering lights or, in my case, flickering phone screens, and flash photography users will be very happy with this camera's mechanical shutter's ability to sync with flashes at 1 400th of a second. Now I am not a big flash user, but industry standard for sync speeds is around 1 250th of a second, and this is a whole two-thirds stop faster than that. And that's a big deal. Other reviewers have been pointing out the EVF blackout problems that occur with the A1, and it definitely happened to me, but just once. I was in direct sunlight, as most reviewers have noted, and I went to put my eye to the sensor and nothing came up. When I brought the camera down, there was nothing to see there either. I ended up having to turn the camera on and off, and then it seemed the problem was resolved. Also I've noticed that the menu sometimes chugs along, or is just a little bit slow. For $6,500, this is unexcusable, and Sony really should be addressing this problem more seriously. The A1 is $6,500, and that is certainly not inexpensive, especially when you compare it to the $4,000 Canon R5 rival, but I don't think it's unfairly priced. It has a massive sensor, high-spec video, all the dials and buttons one could need, an outstanding autofocus system, and it is truly a speed demon when photographing action sports or animals. It can work across many disciplines with all of these features, from professional video work to studio strobe work, and even action photography. And if you are able to get that much use out of this camera, then that price is more than justified. Although I think most people will buy a cheaper body in the Alpha line, and maybe buy two lenses with that extra money instead. Sony took everything it has learned from the mirrorless world and made an incredibly capable, yet compact 50.1 megapixel camera. The A1 has something new for everyone, in a body that won't feel foreign. Sony didn't reinvent the wheel with the A1. It simply took all of the features we've come to love, and a bit more, and put it into one. Buds, thank you so much for joining me on another Full Frame. I know it's been a minute. I haven't seen you all in a while. I hope that you're well, and I hope that everyone you love is well. What camera were you reviewing next? Drop it down below. Talk soon. That's a wrap.