Sony FX5: Open Gate and Internal RAW Arrived. What Happens to My FX6 Plan?

In March, in the FX3 and FX30 article, I wrote: "I'm waiting for the Sony FX6 to be updated. When the new FX6 version comes out I'll move my main camera to it. That decision is firm."

The FX6 didn't come. The FX5 did.

Sony announced the FX5 on 22 July 2026. And it brings two things the FX series has been waiting on for a long time.

What's inside

A newly developed 16.6-megapixel full-frame fully stacked Exmor RS sensor. Alongside it the BIONZ XR2 processor and a dedicated AI processing unit.

Up to 5K 60p, up to 4K 120p, 240p in FHD. And the real story: Open Gate shooting and in-camera X-OCN RAW recording. Both a first for the FX series.

15+ stops of dynamic range in S-Log3, and three base ISOs: 800, 4000 and 12800. Plus a Dual Gain mode.

Five-axis in-body optical stabilisation with Active and Dynamic Active modes. AI-based subject recognition autofocus.

Two optional accessories: a detachable OLED viewfinder and an XLR handle. The handle allows 96 kHz, 32-bit float audio recording.

Let me say this upfront: I have not held this camera yet. Every sentence below is a reading of what the announced features would mean in my workflow. It isn't a test.

For me the headline isn't RAW, it's the three base ISOs

The internet is talking about internal X-OCN RAW. That isn't what catches my attention.

Three base ISOs — 800, 4000, 12800 — is the thing with a direct equivalent in my work. A day on a hotel shoot goes like this: daytime exteriors, late afternoon lobby, night at the poolside and the restaurant. In practice there are three different lighting worlds in a single day.

On a camera with two base ISOs you end up somewhere between 4000 and 12800, choosing between noise and adding light. A third base ISO means building less light in a night scene. Less light means less crew, and less time.

But I can only see that on a real night set. Three numbers appearing on a spec sheet and those three numbers actually being clean are separate things.

Open Gate may solve my real problem

Every brand film today is delivered in at least two formats: horizontal and vertical. I've written about this before — it's the sneakiest cost line in the job.

My solution so far has been to frame loose and leave room for a vertical crop. It works, but it has a price: the horizontal frame stays wider than it should be. I compromise on composition so I can crop later.

Open Gate removes that compromise. You record the full sensor, then take both the 16:9 and the 9:16 crop at full resolution. Which means I can build the horizontal frame the way it ought to be.

If it works. The question here: does a vertical crop taken from an open 5K gate really stay at deliverable resolution? On paper it looks like yes. What happens in practice once stabilisation crop and additional reframing in the edit stack on top — I can't say without trying it.

I'm sceptical about internal RAW

Bringing X-OCN inside the camera is technically impressive. In my work it raises a different question: do I need it?

I shoot hotel promotional films, fashion films, corporate brand films. For these, S-Log3 10-bit is more than enough. Moving to RAW brings three things: files several times larger, a slower edit, and more expensive storage.

In March, about the FX30's RAW crop, I wrote: "if you're doing a job with the budget that requires RAW, you're not using an FX30 anyway." The same logic applies here. The category of work that genuinely needs RAW is a separate one, and in that category other cameras get discussed.

So internal RAW isn't a reason to buy for me. It isn't a bad thing either — I just don't want to pay for a feature I won't use.

What happened to the FX6 plan

I'm not taking back my sentence from March, but I am updating it.

What I was waiting for when I wrote it was a newer sensor, better low light, and a more serious body. The FX5's announced features seem to already cover part of that — especially on the stacked sensor and three base ISO side.

But there are things the FX6 brings on the body side: internal ND filters, XLR inputs on the body itself, heat management on long takes, and a form suited to shoulder work. These look small on a spec sheet but save days on set. Internal ND especially. For someone working outdoors in Antalya, electronic ND removes the minutes lost changing filters.

I haven't seen internal ND emphasised in the FX5 announcement. That's a significant question mark for me and I won't decide without confirming it.

So the plan is: I'm not cancelling the FX6 decision before getting an FX5 in hand and testing it. I need to try both cameras on the same job.

What I'll be looking at

When I get hold of one, I'll test:

The real night performance of the three base ISOs — what the noise texture looks like at 12800, where the colour starts to drift.

The real delivery quality of a vertical crop taken from Open Gate.

Heating on long takes. This is the chronic problem of small-bodied cinema cameras, and if the camera shuts down during a wedding or an event, none of the features mean anything.

Whether there's internal ND, or what solution replaces it.

And the usual question: what is the character of the image? I know the FX30's colour, I know the FX3's colour. A new sensor means a new character. Whether it's good or bad isn't something you learn from a table.

My position for now

The FX5 brings two features the FX series has long been missing, and that's a genuine update. Not a model number change.

But I don't buy a camera from a feature list. That's why I used the A7R IV for five years, and why I put the FX30 ahead of the FX3. Equipment is only as good as it works on set.

The ordinary orders on announcement day. The rebellious waits until they've seen the camera on a night set.