Sony S980 vs Sony A35

Below, we are matching up the Sony S980 and Sony A35, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the other is a Entry-Level DSLR and both of them are produced by Sony. There is a considerable difference between the image resolutions of the S980 (12MP) and A35 (16MP) and the S980 (1/2.3") and A35 (APS-C) enjoy different sensor measurements.

Photography Glossary

The S980 was brought out 3 years prior to the A35 and that is quite a large difference as far as tech is concerned. Both of the cameras come with different body type with the Sony S980 being a Compact camera and the Sony A35 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before diving in to a in-depth comparison, below is a quick overview of how the S980 grades vs the A35 for portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Below is a sample of the gallery pics for Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S980 & Sony SLT-A35. The entire galleries are viewable at Sony S980 Gallery & Sony A35 Gallery.

In case you're looking to lug around your camera, you should factor its weight and dimensions. The Sony S980 has physical measurements of 93mm x 56mm x 24mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") having a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs) whilst the Sony A35 has dimensions of 124mm x 92mm x 85mm (4.9" x 3.6" x 3.3") accompanied by a weight of 415 grams (0.91 lbs).

Contrast the Sony S980 and Sony A35 in our brand new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will change depending on the lens you have attached at the time. Following is the front view dimensions comparison of the S980 against the A35.

Factoring in size and weight, the portability grade of the S980 and A35 is 94 and 69 respectively.

Oftentimes, its difficult to imagine the difference between sensor measurements purely by reviewing specs. The visual underneath should give you a stronger sense of the sensor sizing in the S980 and A35.

As you can plainly see, both of the cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The S980 due to its tinier sensor is going to make shooting shallower depth of field more challenging and the Sony A35 will deliver more detail having its extra 4MP. Greater resolution will let you crop pics somewhat more aggressively. The older S980 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor technology.