Canon PowerShot
S5 IS
 vs
Canon PowerShot
SX20 IS

Updated (September, 2010): Compare the Canon PowerShot S5 IS vs Canon PowerShot SX30 IS

Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

57

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Screen flips out
 Flip-out screen
Great for movies
External flash
 External flash
Better lighting
Canon PowerShot S5 IS

48

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot S5 IS

Size
 Really small
Prosumer size 117x80x78 mm
Screen flips out
 Flip-out screen
Great for movies
External flash
 External flash
Better lighting

differences

Advantages of the Canon S5 IS
Size Smaller 117x80x78 mm vs 128x88x87 mm
Help
 Around 30% smaller
Aperture Slightly wider aperture f/2.7 vs f/2.8
Help
 At its widest zoom, the S5 IS's lens captures marginally more light (0.1 f-stops)
Weight Lighter 550 g vs 600 g
Help
 Around 10% lighter
Thickness Thinner 3.1" vs 3.4"
Help
 More than 10% thinner
Continuous shooting Shoots slightly faster 1.5 fps vs 0.7 fps
Help
 More than 2x faster continuous shooting
Canon PowerShot S5 IS Learn more about
the Canon S5 IS

Advantages of the Canon SX20 IS
Wide angle Much better wide angle 28 mm vs 36 mm
Help
 More than 20% better wide angle
Zoom More zoom 20x vs 12x
Help
 Around 3x more zoom
True resolution Much higher true resolution 9.8 MP vs 8 MP
Help
 Capture more than 20% more detail in your photos
Movie format Higher resolution movies 720p @ 30fps vs 480p @ 30fps
Help
 Shoots high resolution HD (720p) video
Sensor size Larger sensor 1/2.3" 6.2x4.6mm vs 1/2.5" 5.8x4.3mm
Help
 More than 10% larger sensor
Canon PowerShot SX20 IS Learn more about
the Canon SX20 IS
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent super zooms, and ignoring price

Canon PowerShot S5 IS Canon PowerShot S5 IS
48 vs 57
Explain scores
Canon PowerShot SX20 IS Canon PowerShot SX20 IS
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Canon PowerShot SX20 IS.

performance Which camera has better performance? Cast your vote!

CanonPowerShot S5 IS
 Canon PowerShot S5 IS vs Canon PowerShot SX20 IS
CanonPowerShot SX20 IS
Uses Travel score Travel
On holiday or vacation
0
1
Vote Vote
Sports score Sports
Fast action, sometimes indoors
0
1
Vote Vote
Features Low light image quality Low light image quality
Lack of noise, sharp details
1
0
Vote Vote
Color accuracy Color accuracy
White balance in varied lighting
0
1
Vote Vote
Autofocus peformance Still image focusing
Speed and accuracy
1
0
Vote Vote
Autofocus performance Video focusing
Speed and accuracy
0
1
Vote Vote
Manual controls Manual settings
How quickly and easily you can change settings
0
1
Vote Vote
Performance Image stabilization
Ability to reduce blur from hand shake
0
1
Vote Vote
Green arrow Join in the discussion below!

similarities

Compared to recent digicams

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Screen flips out Flip-out screens Help
Great for movies
Aperture Wide aperture Help
S5 IS:f/2.7
SX20 IS:f/2.8
Macro focus Good macro capabilities Help
0 cm
Image stabilization Good image stabilization Help
Lens
External flash Support external flash Help
Better lighting
Viewfinder Both have digital viewfinders Help
Digital
Fastest shutter speed Fast max shutter speeds Help
1/3200 of a second
Weight Heavy Help
S5 IS:550 g
SX20 IS:600 g
Thickness Quite thick Help
S5 IS:3.1"
SX20 IS:3.4"
Light sensitivity (boost) No boost ISO Help
Lacks boost light sensitivity
Screen size Very small screens Help
2.5"
Size Large Help
S5 IS:117x80x78 mm
SX20 IS:128x88x87 mm
Sensor type Lower-end sensor types Help
CCD
Light sensitivity Poor maximum light sensitivity Help
1,600 ISO
Continuous shooting Slow continuous shooting Help
S5 IS:1.5 fps
SX20 IS:0.7 fps
Screen resolution Low resolution screens Help
S5 IS:207k dots
SX20 IS:230k dots
Movie format Poor movies Help
S5 IS:480p @ 30fps
SX20 IS:720p @ 30fps

Compared to recent super zooms

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses

Snapsort is not aware of any interesting strengths shared by these two products.
Supports RAW No RAW support Help
Less editing fidelity
Zoom Poor zoom Help
S5 IS:12x
SX20 IS:20x
Wide angle Poor wide angle Help
S5 IS:36 mm
SX20 IS:28 mm

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon Powershot SX40

Canon Powershot SX40

Super zoom

$379
Zoom Has way more more zoom
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the Powershot SX40 vs the PowerShot S5 IS
Compare the Powershot SX40 vs the PowerShot SX20 IS
Canon PowerShot SX30 IS

Canon PowerShot SX30 IS

Super zoom

$420
Zoom Has way more more zoom
Wide angle Has a significantly wider wide angle lens
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the PowerShot SX30 IS vs the PowerShot S5 IS
Compare the PowerShot SX30 IS vs the PowerShot SX20 IS
Fujifilm FinePix HS20 EXR

Fujifilm FinePix HS20

Super zoom

$310 - $475
Zoom Has much more zoom
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is significantly heavier
Compare the FinePix HS20 vs the PowerShot S5 IS
Compare the FinePix HS20 vs the PowerShot SX20 IS
Nikon Coolpix P500

Nikon Coolpix P500

Super zoom

$339 - $350
Zoom Has way more more zoom
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Compare the Coolpix P500 vs the PowerShot S5 IS
Compare the Coolpix P500 vs the PowerShot SX20 IS
Canon PowerShot SX10 IS

Canon PowerShot SX10 IS

Super zoom
Screen flips out Doesn't have a screen which flips out
Size Is slightly larger
Compare the PowerShot SX10 IS vs the PowerShot S5 IS
Compare the PowerShot SX10 IS vs the PowerShot SX20 IS
Nikon Coolpix L120

Nikon Coolpix L120

Super zoom

$227 - $230
Wide angle Has a slightly wider wide angle lens
Screen size Has a much larger screen
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Viewfinder Doesn't have a viewfinder
Compare the Coolpix L120 vs the PowerShot S5 IS
Compare the Coolpix L120 vs the PowerShot SX20 IS
Canon PowerShot SX1 IS

Canon PowerShot SX1 IS

Super zoom

$753
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Screen size Has a significantly larger screen
Lowest price Is much more expensive
Size Is slightly larger
Compare the PowerShot SX1 IS vs the PowerShot S5 IS
Compare the PowerShot SX1 IS vs the PowerShot SX20 IS

Canon PowerShot S5 IS Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon PowerShot SX130 IS

Canon PowerShot SX130 IS

Travel zoom

$127 - $245
Wide angle Much better wide angle
Screen size Much larger screen
Aperture Significantly narrower aperture
Screen flips out Screen does not flip out
Compare the PowerShot SX130 IS vs the PowerShot S5 IS
Canon PowerShot S3 IS

Canon PowerShot S3 IS

Super zoom
Size Slightly smaller
Weight Slightly lighter
Screen size Much smaller screen
Macro focus Much worse macro capability
Compare the PowerShot S3 IS vs the PowerShot S5 IS
Canon PowerShot SX150 IS

Canon PowerShot SX150 IS

Travel zoom

$169 - $199
Wide angle Much better wide angle
Screen size Much larger screen
Aperture Significantly narrower aperture
Screen flips out Screen does not flip out
Compare the PowerShot SX150 IS vs the PowerShot S5 IS

Canon PowerShot SX20 IS Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon PowerShot SX220 HS

Canon PowerShot SX220 HS

Travel zoom

$305 - $379
Screen size Much larger screen
Size Much smaller
Screen flips out Screen does not flip out
Aperture Narrower aperture
Compare the PowerShot SX220 HS vs the PowerShot SX20 IS
Nikon Coolpix P100

Nikon Coolpix P100

Super zoom
Screen size Much larger screen
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Image stabilization Worse image stabilization
External flash No external flash support
Compare the Coolpix P100 vs the PowerShot SX20 IS

appearance

Canon PowerShot S5 IS Canon PowerShot SX20 IS
Canon PowerShot S5 IS Canon PowerShot SX20 IS
Canon PowerShot S5 IS Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Find similar cameras

Here are some links to help you find other cameras with similar features to both of these:

discussion Which do you think is better?

Speech is free, but discussion at Snapsort is moderated! Please discuss your opinion of these cameras here, and discuss feedback for Snapsort at our support community.

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