Sony S980 vs Sony WX9

Let's look a little more in depth at the Sony S980 and Sony WX9, one is a Small Sensor Compact and the other is a Ultracompact and they are both manufactured by Sony. There exists a significant gap among the resolutions of the S980 (12MP) and WX9 (16MP) but they possess the same exact sensor dimensions (1/2.3").

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The S980 was launched 22 months earlier than the WX9 making the cameras a generation away from one another. The two cameras offer different body type with the Sony S980 being a Compact camera and the Sony WX9 being a Ultracompact camera.

Before going through a more detailed comparison, below is a short summary of how the S980 matches up vs the WX9 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

Below is a sample of the gallery pics for Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S980 and Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX9. The complete galleries are viewable at Sony S980 Gallery and Sony WX9 Gallery.

If you're intending to travel with your camera regularly, you're going to have to consider its weight and size. The Sony S980 offers outer measurements of 93mm x 56mm x 24mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") with a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs) whilst the Sony WX9 has specifications of 95mm x 56mm x 20mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.8") along with a weight of n/a grams (0.00 lbs).

See the Sony S980 and Sony WX9 in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you select during that time. Following is the front view dimensions comparison of the S980 compared to the WX9.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the S980 and WX9 is 94 and 99 respectively.

Normally, its hard to picture the difference in sensor dimensions simply by going through a spec sheet. The image below will help give you a better sense of the sensor measurements in the S980 and WX9.

Clearly, the 2 cameras offer the same exact sensor sizing but different resolution. You should expect to see the Sony WX9 to produce greater detail utilizing its extra 4 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also allow you to crop pics a little more aggressively. The more aged S980 will be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.