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Sony A6300 vs Sony S980

Portability
83
Imaging
67
Features
82
Overall
73
Sony Alpha a6300 front
 
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S980 front
Portability
94
Imaging
34
Features
17
Overall
27

Sony A6300 vs Sony S980 Key Specs

Sony A6300
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 25600 (Raise to 51200)
  • 3840 x 2160 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 404g - 120 x 67 x 49mm
  • Introduced February 2016
  • Previous Model is Sony A6000
  • Newer Model is Sony A6500
Sony S980
(Full Review)
  • 12MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
  • 2.7" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 3200
  • 1280 x 720 video
  • 33-132mm (F3.3-5.2) lens
  • 167g - 93 x 56 x 24mm
  • Announced February 2009
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Sony A6300 vs Sony S980 Overview

Its time to look more closely at the Sony A6300 vs Sony S980, one being a Advanced Mirrorless and the latter is a Small Sensor Compact and both are offered by Sony. There exists a big gap between the image resolutions of the A6300 (24MP) and S980 (12MP) and the A6300 (APS-C) and S980 (1/2.3") posses different sensor sizes.

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The A6300 was announced 7 years later than the S980 and that is quite a big gap as far as technology is concerned. Each of these cameras feature different body design with the Sony A6300 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera and the Sony S980 being a Compact camera.

Before diving straight to a more detailed comparison, here is a concise summary of how the A6300 grades vs the S980 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Sony A6300 over the Sony S980

 A6300 S980 
AnnouncedFebruary 2016February 2009More recent by 85 months
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen size3"2.7"Bigger screen (+0.3")
Screen resolution922k230kSharper screen (+692k dot)

Reasons to pick Sony S980 over the Sony A6300

 S980 A6300 

Common features in the Sony A6300 and Sony S980

 A6300 S980 
Manual focus Very exact focus
Selfie screen Lack of selfie screen
Touch screen Neither has Touch screen

Sony A6300 vs Sony S980 Physical Comparison

For those who are intending to lug around your camera, you will want to factor in its weight and dimensions. The Sony A6300 has outside dimensions of 120mm x 67mm x 49mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 1.9") having a weight of 404 grams (0.89 lbs) whilst the Sony S980 has dimensions 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 Sony A6300 vs Sony S980 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Always remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ based on the lens you have at that time. Here is a front view overall size comparison of the A6300 compared to the S980.

Sony A6300 vs Sony S980 size comparison

Considering dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the A6300 and S980 is 83 and 94 respectively.

Sony A6300 vs Sony S980 top view buttons comparison

Sony A6300 vs Sony S980 Sensor Comparison

Typically, it can be difficult to imagine the gap between sensor measurements only by reading through technical specs. The photograph below may offer you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the A6300 and S980.

As you have seen, both of these cameras feature different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The A6300 with its bigger sensor is going to make achieving shallower depth of field simpler and the Sony A6300 will give you more detail with its extra 12MP. Higher resolution will let you crop photographs way more aggressively. The younger A6300 should have an edge with regard to sensor innovation.

Sony A6300 vs Sony S980 sensor size comparison

Sony A6300 vs Sony S980 Screen and ViewFinder

Sony A6300 vs Sony S980 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Sony A6300 Portrait photography advice
Sony S980 Portrait photography advice
80
you can focus manually
good megapixels (24 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
provides face detection autofocus
supports RAW files
27
has manual focus
manual mode not possible
no external flash support
low MP (12MP)
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
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Street Comparison

Sony A6300 Street photography advice
Sony S980 Street photography advice
79
tilting screen
decent sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW files
environment proof
above average high ISO (25,600)
no image stabilization
47
no articulating screen
lack of image stabilization
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
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Sports Comparison

Sony A6300 Sports photography highlights
Sony S980 Sports photography highlights
75
good megapixels (24 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
provides tracking autofocus
environment proof
sensor has phase detect autofocus
no image stabilization
17
very slow continuous shooting (1.0 fps)
lack of shutter priority mode
lack of image stabilization
low MP (12 megapixels)
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Sony A6300 as a Travel photography camera
Sony S980 as a Travel photography camera
76
environment proof
good megapixels (24MP)
flash built-in
does not have a selfie friendly display
51
built-in flash
doesn't have Timelapse recording
low MP (12 megapixels)
doesn't offer selfie friendly screen
wide angle not great (33mm)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.3)
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Landscape Comparison

Sony A6300 Landscape photography information
Sony S980 Landscape photography information
79
you can focus manually
interchangeable lenses (Sony E mount)
pretty good screen size (3 inches)
good megapixels (24 megapixels)
decent sensor size (APS-C)
above average high ISO (25,600)
supports RAW files
environment proof
no image stabilization
27
has manual focus
cannot change lenses (fixed lens mount)
wide angle not great (33mm)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.3)
screen is somewhat small (2.7 inches)
manual mode not possible
lack of image stabilization
low MP (12 megapixels)
sensor is small (1/2.3")
lack of RAW files
doesn't have Timelapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Sony A6300 as a Vlogging camera
Sony S980 as a Vlogging camera
35
provides face detection autofocus
high quality video (3840 x 2160 pixels)
includes external microphone socket
does not have a selfie friendly display
no image stabilization
22
wide angle not great (33mm)
somewhat slow max aperture (f3.3)
doesn't offer selfie friendly screen
lack of image stabilization
video quality not great (1280 x 720 pxls)
doesn't have external microphone support
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Sony A6300 vs Sony S980 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Sony A6300 and Sony S980
 Sony Alpha a6300Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S980
General Information
Brand Name Sony Sony
Model Sony Alpha a6300 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S980
Class Advanced Mirrorless Small Sensor Compact
Introduced 2016-02-03 2009-02-17
Physical type Rangefinder-style mirrorless Compact
Sensor Information
Powered by BIONZ X -
Sensor type CMOS CCD
Sensor size APS-C 1/2.3"
Sensor measurements 23.5 x 15.6mm 6.17 x 4.55mm
Sensor area 366.6mm² 28.1mm²
Sensor resolution 24 megapixels 12 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 and 16:9 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9
Maximum resolution 6000 x 4000 4000 x 3000
Maximum native ISO 25600 3200
Maximum boosted ISO 51200 -
Lowest native ISO 100 80
RAW support
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch focus
Continuous AF
AF single
Tracking AF
Selective AF
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
AF live view
Face detection focusing
Contract detection focusing
Phase detection focusing
Number of focus points 425 9
Lens
Lens mount Sony E fixed lens
Lens focal range - 33-132mm (4.0x)
Maximum aperture - f/3.3-5.2
Macro focus range - 10cm
Number of lenses 121 -
Crop factor 1.5 5.8
Screen
Type of screen Tilting Fixed Type
Screen size 3" 2.7"
Screen resolution 922 thousand dots 230 thousand dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch display
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Electronic None
Viewfinder resolution 2,359 thousand dots -
Viewfinder coverage 100% -
Viewfinder magnification 0.7x -
Features
Slowest shutter speed 30 seconds 2 seconds
Maximum shutter speed 1/4000 seconds 1/1600 seconds
Continuous shooting rate 11.0 frames/s 1.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manual mode
Exposure compensation Yes -
Change WB
Image stabilization
Inbuilt flash
Flash range 6.00 m (at ISO 100) 3.50 m
Flash options Flash off, Autoflash, Fill-flash, Rear Sync., Slow Sync., Red-eye reduction, Hi-speed sync, Wireless Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye reduction, Slow Sync
Hot shoe
Auto exposure bracketing
White balance bracketing
Exposure
Multisegment exposure
Average exposure
Spot exposure
Partial exposure
AF area exposure
Center weighted exposure
Video features
Supported video resolutions 4K (3840 x 2160 @ 30p/24p), 1920 x 1080 (120p, 60p, 60i, 30p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (24p) 1280 x 720 (30 fps) 640 x 480 (30 fps)
Maximum video resolution 3840x2160 1280x720
Video data format MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S, H.264 Motion JPEG
Microphone support
Headphone support
Connectivity
Wireless Built-In None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environment sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 404 gr (0.89 lbs) 167 gr (0.37 lbs)
Physical dimensions 120 x 67 x 49mm (4.7" x 2.6" x 1.9") 93 x 56 x 24mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 85 not tested
DXO Color Depth score 24.4 not tested
DXO Dynamic range score 13.7 not tested
DXO Low light score 1437 not tested
Other
Battery life 400 pictures -
Style of battery Battery Pack -
Battery model NP-FW50 -
Self timer Yes Yes (2 or 10 sec)
Time lapse recording With downloadable app
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC Memory Stick Duo / Pro Duo, Internal
Card slots Single Single
Launch price $889 $300