Sony ZV-E10 II Review

Sony's original ZV-E10 found an audience the company barely had to look for: vloggers who had outgrown their phones but had no appetite for a traditional camera's complexity. The second generation arrives with a new sensor, 4K at 60 frames per second and a markedly higher launch price than its predecessor carried — which is precisely the question the lab test set out to answer. The verdict lands at a solid but unspectacular "good" (2.4), currently 28th of 39 system cameras tested in its class.

The control concept is untouched: the buttons, their functions and their layout are identical to the first ZV-E10. That means the vlogging-first philosophy survives intact — there is still no viewfinder, and the 3.0-inch touchscreen still swings out sideways and rotates to face forward, so you keep yourself framed during vlogs and selfies. The panel's resolution rises modestly from 921,000 to 1,036,800 subpixels, and the display now optimises its layout for portrait-orientation recording — a nod to where much of this footage actually ends up.

A slider on the top plate switches between photo, video and slow-motion modes, and the dedicated Product Showcase and Background Defocus buttons return, as does the zoom rocker above the grip, which delivers smooth, professional-looking zooms with compatible power-zoom lenses. Sound capture again relies on the integrated three-capsule microphone on the top plate, with a 3.5 mm socket for an external upgrade.

One genuinely practical change: the card slot has moved from the battery compartment to the camera's left side, and now supports the faster UHS-II standard.

The new back-illuminated APS-C Exmor R sensor lifts resolution from 24 to 25.6 megapixels, extends the boosted ISO range to 102,400, adds HEIF support and shortens the minimum shutter speed from 1/4,000 to 1/8,000 second.

The lab numbers show what that buys. Resolution measured 1,868 line pairs at minimum ISO, easing to 1,730 at ISO 6,400 and 1,681 at ISO 12,800. Detail retention is the sensor's strongest suit: 100 per cent at minimum ISO, 93 per cent at ISO 6,400 and 88 per cent at ISO 12,800, with visibly better results than the predecessor from ISO 3,200 upwards. Edge sharpness also measured slightly better between ISO 400 and 1,600.

Noise is the ceiling. Visual noise measured a clean 1.3 VN at base ISO — rated very good — but climbs to 3.3 VN at ISO 6,400, where the expert assessment drops to merely satisfactory, and 3.9 VN at ISO 12,800. Up to ISO 1,600 the new sensor holds roughly the old model's level; beyond ISO 6,400 it rises more markedly than its predecessor did.

Burst shooting tells a split story. The rate holds at 11.1 frames per second, and JPEG endurance is excellent at 384 consecutive frames — considerably longer than before. RAW endurance, though, drops from the predecessor's 47 frames to just 27 in sequence. Start-up takes 1.1 seconds, and shutter lag measured 0.28 seconds with autofocus in daylight (0.33 in low light, 0.11 with manual focus).

The overdue headline feature is 4K at 60 fps, which renders fast movement more fluidly and enables clean 2× slow motion without quality loss; Full HD stretches to 120 fps, recorded in H.265. Measured daylight video resolution came out at 1,051 line pairs with low 1.2 VN noise. New cinematic vlog settings offer selectable looks and moods, and 5 GHz Wi-Fi support smooths wireless livestreams.

The big NP-FZ100 battery is a quiet highlight: 960 photos per charge using the display, or 119 minutes of video — generous figures for so compact a body. The camera weighs just 375 g at 115 × 68 × 54 mm.

The economies are equally clear: no in-body stabilisation, no dust or splash sealing, no built-in flash (with sync limited to 1/30 second), a single card slot, and that absent viewfinder — fine for the vlogging brief, limiting for stills-first photographers.

The scoring here is dynamic: the class leader defines the benchmark and every camera is continuously re-scored against it. When first tested in November 2024 the ZV-E10 II placed 25th of 34; today it stands 28th of 39 in a field that keeps strengthening. Its price assessment, meanwhile, has actually improved a notch — the camera is rated inexpensive for what it delivers, and street prices have drifted well below that ambitious launch figure.

Amazon UK stocks the body-only ZV-E10 II and the kit with the 16-50mm power-zoom lens. The current verified price for the body is shown in the buying panel above.00**, both new and sold by Amazon directly. For a camera built around that motorised zoom rocker, the modest step up to the power-zoom kit is the configuration most buyers should price up.

The ZV-E10 II is a specialist that knows its customer. For vloggers and content creators it fixes the first generation's most-cited gap — 4K 60p — and wraps it in the best selfie-screen workflow in the class, with superb battery life, long JPEG bursts and genuinely quick autofocus. As a general-purpose camera it makes too many concessions: no viewfinder, no stabilised body, no weather sealing, and high-ISO noise that arrives earlier than the class best. That is exactly what a good-but-mid-table grade looks like — excellent at the job it was designed for, ordinary at the jobs it was not.