Canon PowerShot
A1200
 vs
Canon PowerShot
A1100 IS

Updated (February, 2012): Compare the Canon PowerShot A1300 vs Canon PowerShot A1100 IS

Canon PowerShot A1200

46

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot A1200

Wide angle
 Wide angle lens
28 mm
True resolution
 High true resolution
9.8 MP
Supports 24p
 24p movies
For that film look
Sensor size
 Large sensor
1/2.3" 6.2x4.6mm
Viewfinder
 Great viewfinder
Tunnel
Canon PowerShot A1100 IS

40

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot A1100 IS

Aperture
 Wide aperture
f/2.7
Image stabilization
 Image stabilization
Lens
True resolution
 High true resolution
9.8 MP
Sensor size
 Large sensor
1/2.3" 6.2x4.6mm
Viewfinder
 Great viewfinder
Tunnel

differences

Advantages of the Canon A1200
Wide angle Much better wide angle 28 mm vs 35 mm
Help
 20% better wide angle
Supports 24p Supports 24p Yes vs No
Help
 Get that real film feel
Movie format Higher resolution movies 720p @ 24fps vs 480p @ 30fps
Help
 Shoots high resolution HD (720p) video but at a lower frame rate
Screen size Larger screen 2.7" vs 2.5"
Help
 Around 10% larger screen
Lowest price Significantly cheaper $70.50 vs $247.89
Help
 The best price we've seen is $177 cheaper (3.5x less)
Canon PowerShot A1200 Learn more about
the Canon A1200

Advantages of the Canon A1100 IS
Image stabilization Image stabilization Lens vs None
Help
 Helps eliminate blur caused by small camera movements
Aperture Slightly wider aperture f/2.7 vs f/2.8
Help
 At its widest zoom, the A1100 IS's lens captures marginally more light (0.1 f-stops)
Weight Lighter 150 g vs 185 g
Help
 Around 20% lighter
Size Slightly smaller 95x62x31 mm vs 99x63x30 mm
Help
 Almost the same
Light sensitivity (boost) Has boost ISO 3,200 ISO vs None
Help
 Allows taking photos in darker situations, often at the cost of additional noise in the image
Canon PowerShot A1100 IS Learn more about
the Canon A1100 IS
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent compacts, and ignoring price

Canon PowerShot A1200 Canon PowerShot A1200
46 vs 40
Explain scores
Canon PowerShot A1100 IS Canon PowerShot A1100 IS
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Canon PowerShot A1200.

advice

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by Lori-Gilda-Barnes 4 days ago
Canon A1200 vs Canon A1300

Most of my keeper/share photos are taken on vacation.  Cruises (past) mountians and wildlife (th...

similarities

Compared to recent compacts

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Aperture Wide aperture Help
A1200:f/2.8
A1100 IS:f/2.7
Viewfinder Both have tunnel viewfinders Help
Tunnel
Macro focus Good macro capabilities Help
3 cm
Fastest shutter speed Slow max shutter speed Help
1/1600 of a second
Thickness Quite thick Help
1.2"
Panorama Neither camera stitches together panoramas Help
You could stitch photos in post
Sensor type Lower-end sensor types Help
CCD
HDR Neither has in-camera HDR Help
You could do HDR manually
Light sensitivity Poor maximum light sensitivity Help
1,600 ISO
Screen size Very small screens Help
A1200:2.7"
A1100 IS:2.5"
Touch screen No touchscreens Help
More buttons
Size Large Help
A1200:99x63x30 mm
A1100 IS:95x62x31 mm
Screen resolution Low resolution screens Help
230k dots
Movie format Poor movies Help
A1200:720p @ 24fps
A1100 IS:480p @ 30fps
Wide angle Poor wide angle Help
A1200:28 mm
A1100 IS:35 mm
Zoom Poor zoom Help
4x

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon PowerShot A2200

Canon PowerShot A2200

Compact

$91 - $142
Size Is significantly smaller
Light sensitivity (boost) Slightly higher boost light sensitivity
Viewfinder Doesn't have a viewfinder
Compare the PowerShot A2200 vs the PowerShot A1200
Compare the PowerShot A2200 vs the PowerShot A1100 IS
Canon PowerShot A1300

Canon PowerShot A1300

Compact

$109 - $119
Fastest shutter speed Has a faster max shutter speed
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the PowerShot A1300 vs the PowerShot A1200
Compare the PowerShot A1300 vs the PowerShot A1100 IS
Canon ELPH 100 HS

Canon ELPH 100 HS

Compact

$105 - $189
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Screen size Has a significantly larger screen
Viewfinder Doesn't have a viewfinder
Compare the ELPH 100 HS vs the PowerShot A1200
Compare the ELPH 100 HS vs the PowerShot A1100 IS
Nikon Coolpix S3100

Nikon Coolpix S3100

Ultra compact

$104
Wide angle Has a slightly wider wide angle lens
Size Is significantly smaller
Longest exposure Slightly shorter exposures
Viewfinder Doesn't have a viewfinder
Compare the Coolpix S3100 vs the PowerShot A1200
Compare the Coolpix S3100 vs the PowerShot A1100 IS
Canon PowerShot A3300 IS

Canon PowerShot A3300 IS

Compact

$129
Screen size Has a significantly larger screen
Size Is slightly smaller
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Viewfinder Doesn't have a viewfinder
Compare the PowerShot A3300 IS vs the PowerShot A1200
Compare the PowerShot A3300 IS vs the PowerShot A1100 IS
Canon ELPH 300 HS

Canon ELPH 300 HS

Compact

$148 - $179
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Wide angle Has a significantly wider wide angle lens
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Viewfinder Doesn't have a viewfinder
Compare the ELPH 300 HS vs the PowerShot A1200
Compare the ELPH 300 HS vs the PowerShot A1100 IS
Canon PowerShot SD1300 IS

Canon PowerShot SD1300 IS

Compact

$178
Size Is significantly smaller
Light sensitivity (boost) Slightly higher boost light sensitivity
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Viewfinder Doesn't have a viewfinder
Compare the PowerShot SD1300 IS vs the PowerShot A1200
Compare the PowerShot SD1300 IS vs the PowerShot A1100 IS

Canon PowerShot A1200 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon PowerShot A800

Canon PowerShot A800

Compact

$84 - $90
Size Smaller
Macro focus Better macro capability
Wide angle Much worse wide angle
Supports 24p No 24p support
Compare the PowerShot A800 vs the PowerShot A1200
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS5

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS5

Digicam

$88
Image stabilization Image stabilization
Wide angle Better wide angle
Supports 24p No 24p support
Viewfinder No viewfinder
Compare the Lumix DMC-LS5 vs the PowerShot A1200
Nikon Coolpix L26

Nikon Coolpix L26

Compact

$100
Screen size Significantly larger screen
Touch screen Has a touch screen
Supports 24p No 24p support
Aperture Narrower aperture
Compare the Coolpix L26 vs the PowerShot A1200
Nikon Coolpix L25

Nikon Coolpix L25

Compact

$92 - $131
Screen size Significantly larger screen
Touch screen Has a touch screen
True resolution Much lower true resolution
Sensor size Much smaller sensor
Compare the Coolpix L25 vs the PowerShot A1200
Canon PowerShot A810

Canon PowerShot A810

Compact

$109
Size Smaller
Weight Lighter
Supports 24p No 24p support
Viewfinder No viewfinder
Compare the PowerShot A810 vs the PowerShot A1200

Canon PowerShot A1100 IS Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon PowerShot SD780 IS

Canon PowerShot SD780 IS

Ultra compact
Size Much smaller
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Aperture Narrower aperture
Light sensitivity (boost) No boost ISO
Compare the PowerShot SD780 IS vs the PowerShot A1100 IS
Canon PowerShot A1000 IS

Canon PowerShot A1000 IS

Compact

$276
Image stabilization No image stabilization
Screen resolution Lower resolution screen
Compare the PowerShot A1000 IS vs the PowerShot A1100 IS
Canon PowerShot SD1200 IS

Canon PowerShot SD1200 IS

Compact
Size Significantly smaller
Thickness Significantly thinner
Aperture Slightly narrower aperture
Light sensitivity (boost) No boost ISO
Compare the PowerShot SD1200 IS vs the PowerShot A1100 IS

appearance

Canon PowerShot A1200 Canon PowerShot A1100 IS
Canon PowerShot A1200 Canon PowerShot A1100 IS
Canon PowerShot A1200 Canon PowerShot A1100 IS

discussion

Showing 2 comments

Pankaj Prajapati (5:49 PM, July 04, 2011)
Yes I have faced same problem I have purchased it week ago  A1200 I waste my money so I raised the complaint o Canon India. They are cheating  because I have Samsung S600 6 MP entry level camera even though Samsung gave best result even sharpness too: I asked to them return my money
 
Gil (7:20 AM, April 23, 2011)
I've purchased the newly introduced A1200 from Canon after a sad loss of the Canon A1100IS i had. I was very satisfied with the image quality of the A1100IS - the colors and sharpness were superb for most lighting conditions. When I bought the Canon A1200 I expected to have the same superb image quality with some additional features like shooting HD videos. After using the A1200 for a month i must admit i'm dissapointed from its image quality. I found the A1200 image quality much lower than the one i was used to with the Canon A1100IS. The main issues I find are with the sharpness and the colors/light balance of the A1200 images. It seems that the images cannot get really sharp - when zooming into photos details they're hardly ever crispy sharp. I tried all kinds of different camera settings hoping to find a solution for this issue but did not succeed. As for image colors - i find them slightly 'milky', especially when there's a bright background.
Does anyone have the same experience with the Canon a1200?

Gil