Sony S980 vs Sony A68

Let's look more closely at the Sony S980 vs Sony A68, one being a Small Sensor Compact and the latter is a Entry-Level DSLR and they are both built by Sony. There is a crucial difference between the image resolutions of the S980 (12MP) and A68 (24MP) and the S980 (1/2.3") and A68 (APS-C) have totally different sensor sizing.

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The S980 was announced 7 years earlier than the A68 and that is quite a serious gap as far as tech is concerned. Each of these cameras feature different body design with the Sony S980 being a Compact camera and the Sony A68 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before we go right into a more detailed comparison, here is a simple view of how the S980 scores against the A68 in relation to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Following is a preview of the gallery images for Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S980 and Sony SLT-A68. The whole galleries are viewable at Sony S980 Gallery and Sony A68 Gallery.

When you are intending to lug around your camera frequently, you will have to consider its weight and dimensions. The Sony S980 comes with external dimensions of 93mm x 56mm x 24mm (3.7" x 2.2" x 0.9") with a weight of 167 grams (0.37 lbs) while the Sony A68 has dimensions of 143mm x 104mm x 81mm (5.6" x 4.1" x 3.2") having a weight of 610 grams (1.34 lbs).

Examine the Sony S980 vs Sony A68 in the new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Don't forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change depending on the lens you select at that time. Here is a front view dimension comparison of the S980 and the A68.

Looking at size and weight, the portability rating of the S980 and A68 is 94 and 64 respectively.

Usually, its hard to see the gap between sensor measurements just by reading technical specs. The visual underneath should offer you a better sense of the sensor dimensions in the S980 and A68.

As you have seen, the two cameras feature different megapixels and different sensor measurements. The S980 having a tinier sensor will make shooting shallow depth of field harder and the Sony A68 will offer you more detail with its extra 12 Megapixels. Higher resolution can also let you crop photographs way more aggressively. The older S980 is going to be disadvantaged in sensor technology.