Canon PowerShot
S90
 vs
Canon PowerShot
SX1 IS

Updated (August, 2010): Compare the Canon PowerShot S95 vs Canon PowerShot SX1 IS

Canon PowerShot S90

60

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot S90

Aperture
 Wide aperture
f/2.0
Size
 Really small
Compact 100x58x30 mm
Sensor size
 Large sensor
1/1.7" 7.6x5.7mm
Light sensitivity (boost)
 High ISO (boost)
12,800 ISO
Thickness
 Thin
1.2"
Weight
 Light-weight
198 g
Canon PowerShot SX1 IS

46

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot SX1 IS

Movie format
 Full HD
1080p @ 30fps
Screen flips out
 Flip-out screen
Great for movies
Sensor type
 CMOS Sensor
Better in low light
Macro focus
 Great macro
0 cm
Supports RAW
 Shoots RAW
Better editing
Viewfinder
 Great viewfinder
Digital

differences

Advantages of the Canon S90
Aperture Significantly wider aperture f/2.0 vs f/2.8
Help
 At its widest zoom, the S90's lens captures slightly more light (1 f-stop)
Size Much smaller 100x58x30 mm vs 128x88x88 mm
Help
 5.5x smaller
Sensor size Much larger sensor 1/1.7" 7.6x5.7mm vs 1/2.3" 6.2x4.6mm
Help
 More than 50% larger sensor
Screen size Larger screen 3.0" vs 2.8"
Help
 Around 10% larger screen
Light sensitivity (boost) Has boost ISO 12,800 ISO vs None
Help
 Allows taking photos in darker situations, often at the cost of additional noise in the image
Weight Much lighter 198 g vs 615 g
Help
 3.1x lighter
Screen resolution Higher resolution screen 461k dots vs 230k dots
Help
 More than 2x higher resolution screen
Thickness Much thinner 1.2" vs 3.5"
Help
 2.8x thinner
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity 3,200 ISO vs 1,600 ISO
Help
 The S90's maximum light sensitivity is 1 f-stop better
Lowest price Significantly cheaper $535.65 vs $752.66
Help
 The best price we've seen is $217 cheaper (around 30% less)
True resolution Slightly higher true resolution 10 MP vs 9.8 MP
Help
 Almost the same
Canon PowerShot S90 Learn more about
the Canon S90

Advantages of the Canon SX1 IS
Movie format Higher resolution movies 1080p @ 30fps vs 480p @ 30fps
Help
 Shoots high resolution Full HD (1080p) video
Screen flips out Has a flip-out screen Yes vs No
Help
 Flip-out screens can be helpful when composing tricky shots or taking movies
Zoom Significantly more zoom 20x vs 3.8x
Help
 Around 28.5x more zoom
Sensor type Has a CMOS-family sensor CMOS vs CCD
Help
 CMOS-family sensors often produce better quality images
External flash Supports an external flash Yes vs No
Help
 An external flash often produces better looking flash images
Viewfinder Has a viewfinder Digital vs None
Help
 A viewfinder can help save battery life by keeping the screen turned off
Continuous shooting Shoots faster 4 fps vs 0.9 fps
Help
 Around 4.5x faster continuous shooting
Fastest shutter speed Significantly faster max shutter speed 1/3200s vs 1/1600s
Help
 2x faster max shutter speed
Canon PowerShot SX1 IS Learn more about
the Canon SX1 IS
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent digicams, and ignoring price

Canon PowerShot S90 Canon PowerShot S90
60 vs 46
Explain scores
Canon PowerShot SX1 IS Canon PowerShot SX1 IS
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Canon PowerShot S90. This recommendation, however, should be taken with a grain of salt since it doesn't always make sense to compare a pro digicam with a super zoom.

performance Which camera has better performance? Cast your vote!

CanonPowerShot S90
 Canon PowerShot S90 vs Canon PowerShot SX1 IS
CanonPowerShot SX1 IS
Uses Travel score Travel
On holiday or vacation
0
0
Vote Vote
Sports score Sports
Fast action, sometimes indoors
0
0
Vote Vote
Features Low light image quality Low light image quality
Lack of noise, sharp details
0
0
Vote Vote
Color accuracy Color accuracy
White balance in varied lighting
0
0
Vote Vote
Autofocus peformance Still image focusing
Speed and accuracy
0
0
Vote Vote
Autofocus performance Video focusing
Speed and accuracy
0
0
Vote Vote
Manual controls Manual settings
How quickly and easily you can change settings
0
0
Vote Vote
Performance Image stabilization
Ability to reduce blur from hand shake
0
0
Vote Vote
Green arrow Join in the discussion below!

similarities

Compared to recent digicams

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Aperture Wide aperture Help
S90:f/2.0
SX1 IS:f/2.8
Supports RAW RAW support Help
Better editing
Image stabilization Good image stabilization Help
Lens
Lowest price Very expensive Help
S90:$535.65
SX1 IS:$752.66

dxomark

DXOMark

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon Powershot S100

Canon Powershot S100

Pro digicam

$414 - $430
Overall image quality Has slightly better image quality
Wide angle Has a significantly wider wide angle lens
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Macro focus Slightly worse macro focusing
Compare the Powershot S100 vs the PowerShot S90
Compare the Powershot S100 vs the PowerShot SX1 IS
Canon PowerShot SX230 HS

Canon PowerShot SX230 HS

Travel zoom

$219 - $304
High-speed framerate Records high-speed movies
Supports 24p Records movies in 24p
Supports RAW Doesn't shoot RAW
Macro focus Significantly worse macro focusing
Compare the PowerShot SX230 HS vs the PowerShot S90
Compare the PowerShot SX230 HS vs the PowerShot SX1 IS
Fujifilm Finepix X10

Fujifilm Finepix X10

Pro digicam

$583 - $600
Overall image quality Has slightly better image quality
True resolution Takes much higher resolution photos
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the Finepix X10 vs the PowerShot S90
Compare the Finepix X10 vs the PowerShot SX1 IS
Canon PowerShot G12

Canon PowerShot G12

Pro digicam

$389 - $500
Supports 24p Records movies in 24p
Lowest price Is slightly less expensive
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is significantly heavier
Compare the PowerShot G12 vs the PowerShot S90
Compare the PowerShot G12 vs the PowerShot SX1 IS
Canon ELPH 300 HS

Canon ELPH 300 HS

Compact

$125 - $233
Wide angle Has a significantly wider wide angle lens
High-speed framerate Records high-speed movies
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Supports RAW Doesn't shoot RAW
Compare the ELPH 300 HS vs the PowerShot S90
Compare the ELPH 300 HS vs the PowerShot SX1 IS

Canon PowerShot S90 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon PowerShot S95

Canon PowerShot S95

Pro digicam

$369
Supports 24p Supports 24p
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Low light performance More noise at high ISO
Compare the PowerShot S95 vs the PowerShot S90
Nikon Coolpix P300

Nikon Coolpix P300

Pro digicam

$277
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Wide angle Significantly better wide angle
Sensor size Much smaller sensor
Light sensitivity (boost) No boost ISO
Compare the Coolpix P300 vs the PowerShot S90
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3

Pro digicam

$707
Supports 24p Supports 24p
Wide angle Significantly better wide angle
Overall image quality Worse image quality
Low light performance Significantly more noise at high ISO
Compare the Lumix DMC-LX3 vs the PowerShot S90
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

Pro digicam

$320 - $468
Wide angle Significantly better wide angle
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Overall image quality Worse image quality
Low light performance More noise at high ISO
Compare the Lumix DMC-LX5 vs the PowerShot S90

Canon PowerShot SX1 IS Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Fujifilm FinePix HS10

Fujifilm FinePix HS10

Super zoom

$496
High-speed framerate Records high-speed movies
Zoom Significantly more zoom
Size Significantly larger
Image stabilization Worse image stabilization
Compare the FinePix HS10 vs the PowerShot SX1 IS
Fujifilm FinePix HS20 EXR

Fujifilm FinePix HS20

Super zoom

$310 - $475
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity
Zoom Significantly more zoom
Size Significantly larger
Image stabilization Worse image stabilization
Compare the FinePix HS20 vs the PowerShot SX1 IS
Canon Powershot SX40

Canon Powershot SX40

Super zoom

$379
Zoom Much more zoom
Supports 24p Supports 24p
Supports RAW No RAW support
Size Larger
Compare the Powershot SX40 vs the PowerShot SX1 IS
Canon PowerShot SX30 IS

Canon PowerShot SX30 IS

Super zoom

$420
Zoom Much more zoom
Wide angle Significantly better wide angle
Movie format Lower resolution movies
Sensor type Has a CCD-family sensor
Compare the PowerShot SX30 IS vs the PowerShot SX1 IS
Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Super zoom
Weight Slightly lighter
Movie format Lower resolution movies
Screen size Significantly smaller screen
Compare the PowerShot SX20 IS vs the PowerShot SX1 IS

appearance

Canon PowerShot S90 Canon PowerShot SX1 IS
Canon PowerShot S90 Canon PowerShot SX1 IS
Canon PowerShot S90 Canon PowerShot SX1 IS

Find similar cameras

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discussion Which do you think is better?

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