Canon A1200 vs Nikon S3100

differences

Advantages of the Canon A1200

Supports 24p

Yes

Get that real film feel

Wider aperture

f/2.8

f/3.2

At its widest zoom, the A1200's lens captures marginally more light (0.4 f-stops)

Much better macro capability

3 cm

10 cm

Focus on subjects 3.3x closer to the lens

Has a viewfinder

Tunnel

None

A viewfinder can help save battery life by keeping the screen turned off

Slightly higher true resolution

9.8 MP

9.7 MP

Almost the same

Slightly larger sensor

1/2.3" 6.2x4.6mm

Almost the same

Longer exposures

15s

Around 4x longer exposures

Cheaper

$70.50

$104.46

The best price we've seen is $34 cheaper (more than 30% less)

Learn more about
the Canon A1200

Advantages of the Nikon S3100

Much smaller

93x57x18 mm

99x63x30 mm

Around 50% smaller

Image stabilization

Sensor shift

None

Helps eliminate blur caused by small camera movements

Better wide angle

26 mm

28 mm

Around 10% better wide angle

Can create panoramas in-camera

Yes

Stitches together multiple photos for a wide perspective

Much thinner

0.7"

1.2"

Around 40% thinner

Significantly lighter

118 g

185 g

Around 40% lighter

Better maximum light sensitivity

3,200 ISO

1,600 ISO

The S3100's maximum light sensitivity is 1 f-stop better

Faster max shutter speed

1/2000s

1/1600s

20% faster max shutter speed

Learn more about
the Nikon S3100

recommendations

Relative to the best recent compacts, and ignoring price

Canon PowerShot A1200

46	vs	61
Explain scores

Nikon Coolpix S3100

Snapsort recommends the Nikon Coolpix S3100. This recommendation, however, should be taken with a grain of salt since it doesn't always make sense to compare a compact with a ultra compact.

advice

Need help deciding?

Ask the community!

I am considering either the Canon A1200 or the Nikon S3100,

For example: Taking photos in low light or great family photos or ability to take great photos underwater

Select aspects that are most important to you: (max 3)

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votes

by Lori-Gilda-Barnes 4 days ago

Canon A1200 vs Canon A1300

Clear outdoor vacation shots

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

Inexpensive

A1200:	$70.50
S3100:	$104.46

	Lower-end sensor types
	CCD

Slow continuous shooting

A1200:	1 fps
S3100:	0.7 fps

	Neither has in-camera HDR
	You could do HDR manually

	No touchscreens
	More buttons

	Very small screens
	2.7"

	Low resolution screens
	230k dots

HD (720p) video

A1200:	720p @ 24fps
S3100:	720p @ 30fps

Poor zoom

A1200:	4x
S3100:	5x

competitors

Canon PowerShot A2200

Compact

$91 - $142

Has boost light sensitivity

Has a slower max shutter speed

Is thicker

Compare the PowerShot A2200 vs the PowerShot A1200

Compare the PowerShot A2200 vs the Coolpix S3100

Canon ELPH 100 HS

Compact

$105 - $189

Records higher quality movies

Has a significantly larger screen

Has a slower max shutter speed

Is slightly heavier

Compare the ELPH 100 HS vs the PowerShot A1200

Compare the ELPH 100 HS vs the Coolpix S3100

Canon PowerShot A3200 IS

Compact

$122 - $207

Has better image stabilization

Has a slower max shutter speed

Is thicker

Compare the PowerShot A3200 IS vs the PowerShot A1200

Compare the PowerShot A3200 IS vs the Coolpix S3100

Canon PowerShot A3300 IS

Compact

$129

Has a significantly larger screen

Has better image stabilization

Has a slower max shutter speed

Is slightly more expensive

Compare the PowerShot A3300 IS vs the PowerShot A1200

Compare the PowerShot A3300 IS vs the Coolpix S3100

Nikon Coolpix L26

Compact

$100

Has a significantly larger screen

Has a touch screen

Is thicker

Is significantly heavier

Compare the Coolpix L26 vs the PowerShot A1200

Compare the Coolpix L26 vs the Coolpix S3100

Canon ELPH 300 HS

Compact

$148 - $179

Records higher quality movies

Has a slightly wider wide angle lens

Is slightly more expensive

Is slightly heavier

Compare the ELPH 300 HS vs the PowerShot A1200

Compare the ELPH 300 HS vs the Coolpix S3100

Nikon Coolpix L25

Compact

$92 - $131

Has a significantly larger screen

Has a touch screen

Is thicker

Is significantly heavier

Compare the Coolpix L25 vs the PowerShot A1200

Compare the Coolpix L25 vs the Coolpix S3100

Canon PowerShot A1300

Compact

$109 - $119

Smaller

Lighter

No 24p support

Slightly lower true resolution

Compare the PowerShot A1300 vs the PowerShot A1200

Canon PowerShot A800

Compact

$84 - $90

Smaller

Better macro capability

Much worse wide angle

No 24p support

Compare the PowerShot A800 vs the PowerShot A1200

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS5

Digicam

$88

Image stabilization

Better wide angle

No 24p support

No viewfinder

Compare the Lumix DMC-LS5 vs the PowerShot A1200

Canon PowerShot A810

Compact

$109

Smaller

Lighter

No 24p support

No viewfinder

Compare the PowerShot A810 vs the PowerShot A1200

Nikon Coolpix S2600

Compact

$122 - $133

Slightly larger sensor

Does not take movies

Lacks in-camera panoramic stitching

Compare the Coolpix S2600 vs the Coolpix S3100

Nikon Coolpix S3300

Compact

$120

Significantly better macro capability

Slightly more zoom

Narrower aperture

Lacks in-camera panoramic stitching

Compare the Coolpix S3300 vs the Coolpix S3100

Nikon Coolpix S4100

Compact

Higher resolution movies

Significantly larger screen

No image stabilization

Lacks in-camera panoramic stitching

Compare the Coolpix S4100 vs the Coolpix S3100

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Canon PowerShotA1200 vs Nikon CoolpixS3100

Nikon Coolpix S3100

Reasons to buy the Nikon Coolpix S3100

Canon PowerShot A1200

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot A1200

recommendations

Relative to the best recent compacts, and ignoring price

differences

Advantages of the Canon A1200

Advantages of the Nikon S3100

recommendations

Relative to the best recent compacts, and ignoring price

advice

Need help deciding?

Are you a camera expert? Share your knowledge!

similarities

Compared to recent compacts

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

Canon PowerShot A2200

Canon ELPH 100 HS

Canon PowerShot A3200 IS

Canon PowerShot A3300 IS

Nikon Coolpix L26

Canon ELPH 300 HS

Nikon Coolpix L25

Canon PowerShot A1200 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

Canon PowerShot A1300

Canon PowerShot A800

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS5

Canon PowerShot A810

Nikon Coolpix S3100 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

Nikon Coolpix S2600

Nikon Coolpix S3300

Nikon Coolpix S4100

appearance

discussion

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Canon PowerShot
A1200
vs
Nikon Coolpix
S3100