Size and weight is a big decision factor when you are trying to find the ideal camera for your needs.
In this section, We are going to illustrate Sony A7S and Nikon L820 side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Sony A7S has external dimensions of 127 x 94 x 48 mm (5 x 3.7 x 1.89″) and weighs 489 g (1.08 lb / 17.25 oz) (including batteries). Nikon L820 has external dimensions of 111 x 76 x 85 mm (4.37 x 2.99 x 3.35″) and weighs 470 g (1.04 lb / 16.58 oz) (including batteries).
Below you can see the front view size comparison of Sony A7S and Nikon L820. Nikon L820 is 16mm narrower and 18mm shorter than Sony A7S but it is also 37mm thicker. As you can tell, actually this is not a fair size comparison since Nikon L820 has a built-in lens but Sony A7S doesn't. Once you put a lens on A7S, its thickness will increase significantly.
![Sony A7S vs Nikon L820 Camera Size Comparison - Front View]()
Comparison image of Sony A7S and Nikon L820 Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View
Here is the back view size comparison of Sony A7S and Nikon L820.
![Sony A7S vs Nikon L820 Camera Size Comparison - Back View]()
Comparison image of Sony A7S and Nikon L820 Size and Weight - Back View
Now lets look at the top view comparison of Sony A7S and Nikon L820.
![Sony A7S vs Nikon L820 Camera Size Comparison - Top View]()
Top View Comparison image of Sony A7S and Nikon L820 Size
Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day.
Nikon L820 is 19g lighter than the Sony A7S but we don't think this will make a significant difference.
Again, this comparison may not be very useful in real life as we are comparing the weight of a camera with a built-in lens to the body-only weight of an interchangeable lens camera. Once you put a lens on A7S, the total kit will weigh much higher.
Weather Sealing
With its weather sealed body, we believe that A7S has a big advantage over L820 which doesn't provide any kind of environmental sealing.
LCD Screen Size and Features
Sony A7S and Nikon L820's LCD screens has the same diagonal size of 3.
On the other hand, Sony A7S features a
Tilting screen where you can change the angle of the screen to make it easier to shoot from waist or over the head levels whereas the Nikon L820 has a fixed type screen which provides less flexibility in shooting positions compared to A7S.
Sony A7S has a 12.0MP Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Bionz X processor. On the other hand, Nikon L820 has a 16.0MP 1/2.3" (6.16 x 4.62 mm ) sized BSI-CMOS sensor .
Below you can see the A7S and L820 sensor size comparison.
![Sony A7S vs Nikon L820 Sensor Size Comparison]()
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Sony A7S and Nikon L820 Cameras
As seen above, Sony A7S has a 30.1x Larger sensor area than Nikon L820. Larger sensors give photographer more control on the depth of field and blurry background compared to smaller sensor when shot in same focal length and aperture.
In this section, we rank and compare Sony A7S and Nikon L820 for five different photography types in order to make your decision process easier in case you are specifically interested in one or more of these areas.
Sony A7S for Portrait Photography
Nikon L820 for Portrait Photography
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Average Resolution Sensor: 16.0MP
Average Ergonomics&Handling
Small 1/2.3″ (6.16 x 4.62 mm) sensor
No Image Stabilization
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
Read the details
Sony A7S for Street Photography
Nikon L820 for Street Photography
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Tilting LCD Screen
Medium sized Body
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Live-view
23 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Medium sized Body
Small 1/2.3″ (6.16 x 4.62 mm) sensor
No Image Stabilization
No RAW shooting capability
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
Read the details
Sony A7S for Sports Photography
Nikon L820 for Sports Photography
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/8000s
25 Focus Points
Good Low Light ISO
Wireless Connection
Average Continuous Shooting: 5.0fps
No Image Stabilization
Read the details
Fast Continuous Shooting: 8.0fps
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/4000s
675 mm Tele Lens
Average Ergonomics&Handling
No Image Stabilization
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
Environmental Sealings
Unknown Focus Points
Slow Lens at Tele: f5.80
Read the details
Sony A7S for Daily Photography
Nikon L820 for Daily Photography
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Environmental Sealings
Medium size Body
489g
Body Thickness 48mm
Read the details
29.3X Optical Zoom
Medium size Body
Small 1/2.3″ (6.16 x 4.62 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
470g
Body Thickness 85mm
Read the details
Sony A7S for Landscape Photography
Nikon L820 for Landscape Photography
Large Full frame (35.8 x 23.9 mm) sensor
Environmental Sealings
Live-view
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Read the details
23 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Average Resolution Sensor: 16.0MP
Small 1/2.3″ (6.16 x 4.62 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Manual Focus Mode
No Manual Exposure Mode
No Environmental Sealings
Read the details
You may have already made your decision about which camera suits better for your needs and your budget so far but in case you wonder how we rated Sony A7S and Nikon L820, below you can find their scores in five different aspects.
Our Decision Algorithm dynamically scores cameras using 63 different specs, current price and DxO Mark scores (where possible) in order to make a more objective and consistent comparison.
Here is a summary of how Sony A7S and Nikon L820 scores compare:
Sony A7S
Ranked
#38 out of 85 in SLR-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked
#70 out of 1218 in all Cameras
Nikon L820
Ranked
#112 out of 113 in SLR-like (bridge) cameras
Ranked
#1117 out of 1218 in all Cameras
Sony A7S is the clear winner of this comparison. It has a higher Overall Score and beats Nikon L820 in all criteria. It has better general image quality, more features, more compact body and offers more value for the money
| General |
Sony Alpha A7S |
Nikon Coolpix L820 |
| Brand |
Sony |
Nikon |
| Announced |
2014-04-06 |
2013-01-29 |
| Body Type |
SLR-style mirrorless |
SLR-like (bridge) |
Sensor |
|
|
| Type |
CMOS |
BSI-CMOS |
| Size |
Full frame |
1/2.3" |
| Dimensions |
35.8 x 23.9 mm |
6.16 x 4.62 mm |
| Area |
855.62mm2 |
28.46mm2 |
| Megapixels |
12 megapixels |
16 megapixels |
| Max Resolution |
4240 x 2832 |
4608 x 3456 |
| Max Native Light sensitivity |
409,600 ISO |
3,200 ISO |
| Min Native Light sensitivity |
100 ISO |
125 ISO |
| RAW Support |
|
|
Autofocus |
|
|
| AF Touch |
|
|
| AF Continuous |
|
|
| AF Single |
|
|
| AF Tracking |
|
|
| AF Selective |
|
|
| AF Center |
|
|
| AF Multi Area |
|
|
| AF Live View |
|
|
| AF Face Detection |
|
|
| AF Contrast Detection |
|
|
| AF Phase Detection |
|
|
| Number of Focus Points |
25 |
n/a |
Lens |
|
|
| Manual Focus |
|
|
| Lens Mount |
Sony E |
fixed lens |
| Lens Focal Range |
no lens |
23-675 mm (30×) |
| Max Aperture |
no lens |
F3.0-5.8 |
Screen |
|
|
| Type |
Tilting |
Fixed type |
| Size |
3 |
3" |
| Resolution |
1,230k dots |
921k dots |
| Touch Screen |
|
|
Viewfinder |
|
|
| Viewfinder |
Electronic |
None |
| Viewfinder Resolution |
2,359k dots |
no electronic viewfinder |
| Viewfinder Coverage |
100% |
n/a |
| Viewfinder Magnification |
0.71x |
n/a |
Photography Features |
|
|
| Max Mechanical Shutter |
1/8000s |
1/4000s |
| Shutter Priority |
|
|
| Aperture Priority |
|
|
| Manual Exposure Mode |
|
|
| Custom White Balance |
|
|
| Image Stabilization |
No |
No |
| Built-in Flash |
|
|
| External Flash |
|
|
| Continuous Shooting |
5.0 fps |
8.0 fps |
| Multi-Segment |
|
|
| Average |
|
|
| Spot |
|
|
| Partial |
|
|
| AF-Area |
|
|
| Center Weighted |
|
|
| AE Bracketing |
|
|
| WB Bracketing |
|
|
Video Features |
|
|
| Max Video Resolution |
3840 x 2160 |
1920 x 1080 |
| Video Formats |
MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC |
n/a |
| Microphone Port |
|
|
| Headphone Port |
|
|
Connectivity |
|
|
| Wireless Connectivity |
Built-In |
None |
| HDMI |
|
|
Physical |
|
|
| Environmental Sealing |
|
|
| Weight |
489g |
470g |
| Dimensions |
127 x 94 x 48mm |
111 x 76 x 85mm |
| Battery Life |
360 shots |
320 shots |
Other Features |
|
|
| Timelapse Recording |
With Downloadable App |
|
| GPS |
None |
None |
DxO Sensor Scores |
|
|
| DxO Overall Score |
87 |
not tested |
| DxO Color Depth |
23.9 |
not tested |
| DxO Dynamic Range |
13.2 |
not tested |
| DxO Low Light ISO |
3702 |
not tested |
|
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