Olympus E-M1X vs Sony S980

On this page, we are matching up the Olympus E-M1X vs Sony S980, one being a Pro Mirrorless and the other is a Small Sensor Compact by rivals Olympus and Sony. There exists a crucial gap among the sensor resolutions of the E-M1X (20MP) and S980 (12MP) and the E-M1X (Four Thirds) and S980 (1/2.3") posses totally different sensor measurements.

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The E-M1X was announced 10 years later than the S980 and that is a fairly serious gap as far as camera technology is concerned. Each of the cameras have different body design with the Olympus E-M1X being a SLR-style mirrorless camera and the Sony S980 being a Compact camera.

Before diving right into a in depth comparison, here is a simple view of how the E-M1X grades vs the S980 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Here is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus OM-D E-M1X and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S980. The whole galleries are available at Olympus E-M1X Gallery and Sony S980 Gallery.

If you're going to lug around your camera, you'll have to consider its weight and size. The Olympus E-M1X provides outer dimensions of 144mm x 147mm x 75mm (5.7" x 5.8" x 3.0") having a weight of 997 grams (2.20 lbs) whilst the Sony S980 has specifications of 93mm x 56mm x 24mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") with a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs).

See the Olympus E-M1X vs Sony S980 in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Keep in mind, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ depending on the lens you have during that time. Below is a front view proportions comparison of the E-M1X compared to the S980.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability score of the E-M1X and S980 is 54 and 94 respectively.

Normally, it is very tough to see the difference in sensor measurements simply by checking out specs. The visual below might provide you a far better sense of the sensor sizes in the E-M1X and S980.

As you can plainly see, both the cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The E-M1X having a larger sensor will make shooting shallower depth of field less difficult and the Olympus E-M1X will produce more detail with its extra 8 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also make it easier to crop images more aggressively. The more recent E-M1X will have an advantage when it comes to sensor technology.