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Sony A580 vs Sony S980

Portability
64
Imaging
56
Features
82
Overall
66
Sony Alpha DSLR-A580 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S980 front
Portability
94
Imaging
34
Features
17
Overall
27

Sony A580 vs Sony S980 Key Specs

Sony A580
(Full Review)
  • 16MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 12800 (Increase to 25600)
  • Sensor based Image Stabilization
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony/Minolta Alpha Mount
  • 599g - 137 x 104 x 84mm
  • Revealed May 2011
  • Older Model is Sony A100
Sony S980
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Display
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 33-132mm (F3.3-5.2) lens
  • 167g - 93 x 56 x 24mm
  • Launched February 2009
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Sony A580 vs Sony S980 Overview

On this page, we are looking at the Sony A580 vs Sony S980, former is a Entry-Level DSLR while the other is a Small Sensor Compact and both are built by Sony. There is a large difference among the sensor resolutions of the A580 (16MP) and S980 (12MP) and the A580 (APS-C) and S980 (1/2.3") posses different sensor measurements.

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The A580 was manufactured 2 years after the S980 which is a fairly serious difference as far as camera tech is concerned. Both of the cameras have different body design with the Sony A580 being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony S980 being a Compact camera.

Before going into a comprehensive comparison, here is a quick view of how the A580 matches up against the S980 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

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Reasons to pick Sony A580 over the Sony S980

 A580 S980 
LaunchedMay 2011February 2009More modern by 28 months
Display typeTiltingFixed Tilting display
Display dimensions3"2.7"Larger display (+0.3")
Display resolution922k230kCrisper display (+692k dot)

Reasons to pick Sony S980 over the Sony A580

 S980 A580 

Common features in the Sony A580 and Sony S980

 A580 S980 
Manual focus More exact focusing
Selfie screen Neither features selfie screen
Touch display Neither features Touch display

Sony A580 vs Sony S980 Physical Comparison

For anyone who is planning to carry around your camera often, you need to consider its weight and size. The Sony A580 enjoys outside measurements of 137mm x 104mm x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") accompanied by a weight of 599 grams (1.32 lbs) and the Sony S980 has specifications of 93mm x 56mm x 24mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") accompanied by a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs).

Look at the Sony A580 vs Sony S980 in our completely new Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into consideration, the weight of an ILC will vary depending on the lens you are utilising during that time. Following is a front view overall size comparison of the A580 compared to the S980.

Sony A580 vs Sony S980 size comparison

Taking into account size and weight, the portability score of the A580 and S980 is 64 and 94 respectively.

Sony A580 vs Sony S980 top view buttons comparison

Sony A580 vs Sony S980 Sensor Comparison

In many cases, its hard to imagine the difference in sensor sizes purely by going through technical specs. The picture below might provide you a greater sense of the sensor measurements in the A580 and S980.

As you have seen, both of the cameras provide different megapixel count and different sensor sizes. The A580 because of its larger sensor is going to make getting shallow depth of field less difficult and the Sony A580 will provide more detail due to its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will allow you to crop pics more aggressively. The fresher A580 should have an edge in sensor innovation.

Sony A580 vs Sony S980 sensor size comparison

Sony A580 vs Sony S980 Screen and ViewFinder

Sony A580 vs Sony S980 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony A580 Portrait photography features
Sony S980 Portrait photography features
73
manual focus
resolution is good (16MP)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
offers face detection focus
delivers RAW files
27
manual focus
lack of manual exposure
cannot use external flash
MP count low (12MP)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
Photography Glossary

Street Comparison

Sony A580 Street photography details
Sony S980 Street photography details
75
has a tilting screen
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
47
screen does not articulate
no image stabilization
very small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Sony A580 as a Sports photography camera
Sony S980 as a Sports photography camera
78
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
resolution is good (16MP)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
offers tracking autofocus
better than average battery life (1,050 per charge)
sensor has phase detect auto focus
17
slow fps (1.0 frames/s)
no shutter priority
no image stabilization
MP count low (12MP)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
has no phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Sony A580 Travel photography details
Sony S980 Travel photography details
60
better than average battery life (1,050 CIPA)
resolution is good (16 megapixels)
flash built-in
lack of Time Lapse function
display isn't selfie friendly
51
has built in flash
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
MP count low (12MP)
screen is not selfie friendly
wide angle not the best (33mm)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Sony A580 as a Landscape photography camera
Sony S980 as a Landscape photography camera
73
manual focus
switch lenses (Sony/Minolta Alpha mount)
good sized screen (3")
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
resolution is good (16MP)
sensor size is good (APS-C)
delivers RAW files
better than average battery life (1,050 CIPA)
has dual storage slots
lack of Time Lapse function
27
manual focus
can't change lenses (fixed lens mount)
wide angle not the best (33mm)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
tiny screen (2.7 inch)
lack of manual exposure
no image stabilization
MP count low (12 megapixels)
very small sensor (1/2.3")
has no RAW files
doesn't have Time Lapse mode
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Vlogging Comparison

Sony A580 as a Vlogging camera
Sony S980 as a Vlogging camera
34
built in image stabilization (Sensor based)
offers face detection focus
high quality video (1920 x 1080 pxls)
includes external mic jack
display isn't selfie friendly
22
wide angle not the best (33mm)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f3.3)
screen is not selfie friendly
no image stabilization
low quality video (1280 x 720 pixels)
doesn't have mic socket
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Sony A580 vs Sony S980 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony A580 and Sony S980
 Sony Alpha DSLR-A580Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S980
General Information
Company Sony Sony
Model type Sony Alpha DSLR-A580 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S980
Class Entry-Level DSLR Small Sensor Compact
Revealed 2011-05-26 2009-02-17
Physical type Compact SLR Compact
Sensor Information
Processor Bionz -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size APS-C 1/2.3"
Sensor dimensions 23.5 x 15.6mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor surface area 366.6mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 16MP 12MP
Anti alias filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 and 16:9 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Max resolution 4912 x 3264 4000 x 3000
Max native ISO 12800 3200
Max enhanced ISO 25600 -
Min native ISO 100 80
RAW format
Autofocusing
Manual focusing
Touch focus
AF continuous
Single AF
Tracking AF
AF selectice
AF center weighted
Multi area AF
Live view AF
Face detection AF
Contract detection AF
Phase detection AF
Total focus points 15 9
Cross type focus points 3 -
Lens
Lens support Sony/Minolta Alpha fixed lens
Lens zoom range - 33-132mm (4.0x)
Maximal aperture - f/3.3-5.2
Macro focusing distance - 10cm
Available lenses 143 -
Crop factor 1.5 5.8
Screen
Screen type Tilting Fixed Type
Screen sizing 3 inches 2.7 inches
Resolution of screen 922 thousand dots 230 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch functionality
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) None
Viewfinder coverage 95% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.53x -
Features
Minimum shutter speed 30s 2s
Fastest shutter speed 1/4000s 1/1600s
Continuous shutter rate 7.0 frames per second 1.0 frames per second
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes -
Set WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash distance 12.00 m 3.50 m
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync, High Speed Sync, Rear Curtain, Fill-in, Wireless Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction, Slow Sync
External flash
Auto exposure bracketing
WB bracketing
Fastest flash synchronize 1/160s -
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (60, 29.97 fps), 1440 x 1080 (30fps), 640 x 424 (29.97 fps) 1280 x 720 (30 fps) 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Max video resolution 1920x1080 1280x720
Video data format MPEG-4, AVCHD, H.264 Motion JPEG
Mic port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless Eye-Fi Connected None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proofing
Dust proofing
Shock proofing
Crush proofing
Freeze proofing
Weight 599g (1.32 lbs) 167g (0.37 lbs)
Physical dimensions 137 x 104 x 84mm (5.4" x 4.1" x 3.3") 93 x 56 x 24mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO Overall rating 80 not tested
DXO Color Depth rating 23.8 not tested
DXO Dynamic range rating 13.3 not tested
DXO Low light rating 1121 not tested
Other
Battery life 1050 shots -
Style of battery Battery Pack -
Battery ID NP-FM500H -
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse shooting
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo Memory Stick Duo / Pro Duo, Internal
Card slots 2 1
Cost at release $848 $300