Sony S980 has a
12.0MP 1/2.3-inch (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) sized CCD sensor . On the other hand, Nikon P7000 has a
10.0MP 1/1.7-inch (7.44 x 5.58 mm ) sized CCD sensor and features Expeed C2 processor.
Below you can see the S980 and P7000 sensor size comparison.
As seen above, Nikon P7000 has a 1.5x Larger sensor area than Sony S980. 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.