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 A7R III and Canon SD980 IS side-by-side from the front, back and top in their relative dimensions. Sony A7R III has external dimensions of 127 x 96 x 74 mm (5 x 3.78 x 2.91″) and weighs 657 g (1.45 lb / 23.17 oz) (including batteries). Canon SD980 IS has external dimensions of 100 x 53 x 23 mm (3.94 x 2.09 x 0.91″) and weighs 150 g (0.33 lb / 5.29 oz) (including batteries).
Below you can see the front view size comparison of Sony A7R III and Canon SD980 IS. Canon SD980 IS is clearly the smaller of the two cameras. Its body is 27mm narrower, 43mm shorter and 51mm thinner than Sony A7R III. As you can tell, actually this is not a fair size comparison since Canon SD980 IS has a built-in lens but Sony A7R III doesn't. Once you put a lens on A7R III, its thickness will increase significantly.
![Sony A7R III vs Canon SD980 IS Camera Size Comparison - Front View]()
Comparison image of Sony A7R III and Canon SD980 IS Size, Weight and External Dimensions - Front View
Here is the back view size comparison of Sony A7R III and Canon SD980 IS.
![Sony A7R III vs Canon SD980 IS Camera Size Comparison - Back View]()
Comparison image of Sony A7R III and Canon SD980 IS Size and Weight - Back View
Weight is another important factor especially when deciding on a camera that you want to carry with you all day.
Canon SD980 IS is significantly lighter (507g ) than the Sony A7R III which may become a big advantage especially on long walking trips.
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 A7R III, the total kit will weigh much higher.
Weather Sealing
With its weather sealed body, we believe that A7R III has a big advantage over SD980 IS which doesn't provide any kind of environmental sealing.
LCD Screen Size and Features
Sony A7R III and Canon SD980 IS's LCD screens has the same diagonal size of 3.
On the other hand, Sony A7R III 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 Canon SD980 IS has a fixed type screen which provides less flexibility in shooting positions compared to A7R III.
Sony A7R III has a 42.0MP Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm ) sized BSI-CMOS sensor and features Bionz X processor. On the other hand, Canon SD980 IS has a 12.0MP 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) sized CCD sensor and features Digic 4 processor.
Sony A7R III's sensor provides 30MP more than Canon SD980 IS's sensor, which gives a significant advantage in real life. You can print your images larger or crop more freely.
On the other hand, please keep in mind that Max sensor resolution is not the only determinant of resolving power. Factors such as the optical elements, low pass filter, pixel size and sensor technology also affects the final resolution of the captured image.
Another difference between these two cameras is that Sony A7R III's sensor lacks anti-alias (Low-Pass) filter. Removing anti-alias filter increases the sharpness and level of detail but at the same time, it increases the chance of moire occurring in certain scenes.
Below you can see the A7R III and SD980 IS sensor size comparison.
![Sony A7R III vs Canon SD980 IS Sensor Size Comparison]()
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Sony A7R III and Canon SD980 IS Cameras
As seen above, Sony A7R III has a 30.7x Larger sensor area than Canon SD980 IS. 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 A7R III and Canon SD980 IS 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 A7R III for Portrait Photography
Canon SD980 IS for Portrait Photography
Large Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 42.0MP
Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Read the details
Sony A7R III for Street Photography
Canon SD980 IS for Street Photography
Large Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm) sensor
Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Live-view
Face-Detection Focusing
Tilting LCD Screen
Medium sized Body
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Small Body
Live-view
Fast Lens at Wide: f2.80
24 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
Read the details
Sony A7R III for Sports Photography
Canon SD980 IS for Sports Photography
Image Stabilization
Electronic Built-in Viewfinder
Good Ergonomics&Handling
Fast Continuous Shooting: 10.0fps
Anti Flicker feature
Environmental Sealings
Fast Max shutter speed: 1/8000s
425 Focus Points
Good Battery Life: 650 shots
Good Low Light ISO
Wireless Connection
Read the details
Image Stabilization
Average Max shutter speed: 1/3000s
120 mm Tele Lens
No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
No Manual Focus Mode
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
Slow Continuous Shooting: 1.0fps
Environmental Sealings
9 Focus Points
Slow Lens at Tele: f5.90
Read the details
Sony A7R III for Daily Photography
Canon SD980 IS for Daily Photography
Large Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm) sensor
Anti Flicker feature
Environmental Sealings
Medium size Body
657g
Body Thickness 74mm
Read the details
Compact Body
150g
5.0X Optical Zoom
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
Read the details
Sony A7R III for Landscape Photography
Canon SD980 IS for Landscape Photography
Large Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm) sensor
Very High Resolution Sensor: 42.0MP
Environmental Sealings
Live-view
Read the details
24 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability
No Manual Focus 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 A7R III and Canon SD980 IS, 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 A7R III and Canon SD980 IS scores compare:
Sony A7R III
Ranked
#4 out of 88 in SLR-style mirrorless cameras
Ranked
#4 out of 1223 in all Cameras
Canon SD980 IS
Ranked
#267 out of 475 in Compact cameras
Ranked
#874 out of 1223 in all Cameras
Sony A7R III is the overall winner of this comparison. It has a higher Overall Score and beats Canon SD980 IS in all criteria except one: Portability. Canon SD980 IS is significantly smaller than Sony A7R III. If small size and light body is a big priority for you, choose Canon SD980 IS. Otherwise, Sony A7R III is the better camera overall.
| General |
Sony Alpha A7R III |
Canon PowerShot SD980 IS |
| Brand |
Sony |
Canon |
| Announced |
2017-10-25 |
2009-08-19 |
| Body Type |
SLR-style mirrorless |
Compact |
Sensor |
|
|
| Type |
BSI-CMOS |
CCD |
| Size |
Full frame |
1/2.3" |
| Dimensions |
35.9 x 24 mm |
6.17 x 4.55 mm |
| Area |
861.60mm2 |
28.07mm2 |
| Megapixels |
42 megapixels |
12 megapixels |
| Max Resolution |
7952 x 5304 |
4000 x 3000 |
| Max Native Light sensitivity |
32,000 ISO |
1,600 ISO |
| Max Boosted Light Sensitivity |
102400 ISO |
- |
| Min Native Light sensitivity |
100 ISO |
80 ISO |
| Min Boosted Light Sensitivity |
50 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 |
425 |
9 |
Lens |
|
|
| Manual Focus |
|
|
| Lens Mount |
Sony E |
fixed lens |
| Lens Focal Range |
no lens |
24-120 mm (5×) |
| Max Aperture |
no lens |
F2.8-5.9 |
| Macro Focus Range |
no lens |
3cm |
Screen |
|
|
| Type |
Tilting |
Fixed type |
| Size |
3 |
3" |
| Resolution |
1,440k dots |
230k dots |
| Touch Screen |
|
|
Viewfinder |
|
|
| Viewfinder |
Electronic |
None |
| Viewfinder Resolution |
3,686k dots |
no electronic viewfinder |
| Viewfinder Coverage |
100% |
n/a |
| Viewfinder Magnification |
0.78x |
n/a |
Photography Features |
|
|
| Max Mechanical Shutter |
1/8000s |
1/3000s |
| Shutter Priority |
|
|
| Aperture Priority |
|
|
| Manual Exposure Mode |
|
|
| Custom White Balance |
|
|
| Image Stabilization |
Sensor-shift |
Optical |
| Built-in Flash |
|
|
| Flash Range |
no built-in flash |
6.50 m |
| External Flash |
|
|
| Continuous Shooting |
10.0 fps |
1.0 fps |
| Multi-Segment |
|
|
| Average |
|
|
| Spot |
|
|
| Partial |
|
|
| AF-Area |
|
|
| Center Weighted |
|
|
| AE Bracketing |
|
|
| WB Bracketing |
|
|
Video Features |
|
|
| Max Video Resolution |
3840 x 2160 |
1280 x 720 |
| Video Formats |
MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S |
H.264 |
| Microphone Port |
|
|
| Headphone Port |
|
|
Connectivity |
|
|
| Wireless Connectivity |
Built-In |
None |
| HDMI |
|
|
Physical |
|
|
| Environmental Sealing |
|
|
| Weight |
657g |
150g |
| Dimensions |
127 x 96 x 74mm |
100 x 53 x 23mm |
| Battery Life |
650 shots |
n/a |
Other Features |
|
|
| Timelapse Recording |
|
|
| GPS |
None |
None |
DxO Sensor Scores |
|
|
| DxO Overall Score |
100 |
not tested |
| DxO Color Depth |
26.0 |
not tested |
| DxO Dynamic Range |
14.7 |
not tested |
| DxO Low Light ISO |
3523 |
not tested |
|
Report a correction |
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