Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony S980

Let's look a little more in depth at the Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony S980, both Small Sensor Compact cameras by competitors Olympus and Sony. The image resolution of the XZ-2 iHS (12MP) and the S980 (12MP) is very comparable but the XZ-2 iHS (1/1.7") and S980 (1/2.3") use different sensor sizing.

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The XZ-2 iHS was released 3 years after the S980 which is a fairly significant gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both the cameras offer the identical body type (Compact).

Before going in to a in-depth comparison, below is a concise view of how the XZ-2 iHS scores versus the S980 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Below is a sample of the gallery pics for Olympus XZ-2 iHS and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S980. The complete galleries are viewable at Olympus XZ-2 iHS Gallery and Sony S980 Gallery.

If you are going to carry around your camera regularly, you will need to think about its weight and proportions. The Olympus XZ-2 iHS has got outer dimensions of 113mm x 65mm x 48mm (4.4" x 2.6" x 1.9") along with a weight of 346 grams (0.76 lbs) while the Sony S980 has measurements of 93mm x 56mm x 24mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") with a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus XZ-2 iHS vs Sony S980 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you use at that moment. Below is the front view measurement comparison of the XZ-2 iHS and the S980.

Looking at size and weight, the portability grade of the XZ-2 iHS and S980 is 85 and 94 respectively.

In many cases, it is very hard to picture the difference in sensor sizes purely by checking out specifications. The picture here will give you a stronger sense of the sensor dimensions in the XZ-2 iHS and S980.

To sum up, each of these cameras offer the same exact MP but different sensor sizes. The XZ-2 iHS includes the larger sensor which should make achieving shallow DOF simpler. The younger XZ-2 iHS should have an edge when it comes to sensor innovation.