Canon PowerShot
S90
 vs
Sony Cyber-shot
DSC-H20

Updated (August, 2010): Compare the Canon PowerShot S95 vs Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20

Canon PowerShot S90

60

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot S90

Aperture
 Wide aperture
f/2.0
Low light performance
 Low noise at high ISO
185 ISO
Sensor size
 Large sensor
1/1.7" 7.6x5.7mm
Light sensitivity (boost)
 High ISO (boost)
12,800 ISO
Weight
 Light-weight
198 g
Supports RAW
 Shoots RAW
Better editing
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20

35

Reasons to buy the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20

We are not aware of any reasons to consider buying the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20 over the Canon PowerShot S90.

differences

Advantages of the Canon S90
Aperture Much wider aperture f/2.0 vs f/3.5
Help
 At its widest zoom, the S90's lens captures much more light (1.6 f-stops)
Wide angle Much better wide angle 28 mm vs 38 mm
Help
 Around 30% better wide angle
Sensor size Much larger sensor 1/1.7" 7.6x5.7mm vs 1/2.3" 6.2x4.6mm
Help
 More than 50% larger sensor
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
Supports RAW Shoots RAW Yes vs No
Help
 Digitally develop your own photos with precise image control
Screen resolution Higher resolution screen 461k dots vs 230k dots
Help
 More than 2x higher resolution screen
Size Smaller 100x58x30 mm vs 107x69x47 mm
Help
 Around 50% smaller
Thickness Thinner 1.2" vs 1.9"
Help
 More than 30% thinner
Weight Lighter 198 g vs 250 g
Help
 More than 20% lighter
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 Sony DSC-H20
Movie format Higher resolution movies 720p @ 30fps vs 480p @ 30fps
Help
 Shoots high resolution HD (720p) video
Zoom More zoom 10x vs 3.8x
Help
 More than 7x more zoom
Continuous shooting Shoots slightly faster 1.8 fps vs 0.9 fps
Help
 2x faster continuous shooting
Longest exposure Longer exposures 30s vs 15s
Help
 2x longer exposures
Fastest shutter speed Faster max shutter speed 1/2000s vs 1/1600s
Help
 20% faster max shutter speed
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20 Learn more about
the Sony DSC-H20
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent digicams, and ignoring price

Canon PowerShot S90 Canon PowerShot S90
60 vs 35
Explain scores
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20
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 travel zoom.

performance Which camera has better performance? Cast your vote!

CanonPowerShot S90
 Canon PowerShot S90 vs Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20
SonyCyber-shot DSC-H20
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
Image stabilization Good image stabilization Help
Lens
Sensor type Lower-end sensor types Help
CCD
Movie format Poor movies Help
S90:480p @ 30fps
DSC-H20:720p @ 30fps

dxomark

DXOMark

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon PowerShot S95

Canon PowerShot S95

Pro digicam

$369
Supports 24p Records movies in 24p
Dynamic range Has slightly wider dynamic range
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Macro focus Slightly worse macro focusing
Compare the PowerShot S95 vs the PowerShot S90
Compare the PowerShot S95 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Canon PowerShot G12

Canon PowerShot G12

Pro digicam

$389 - $500
Supports 24p Records movies in 24p
Screen flips out Has a screen which flips out
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is significantly heavier
Compare the PowerShot G12 vs the PowerShot S90
Compare the PowerShot G12 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Sony Cybershot DSC-HX9v

Sony Cybershot DSC-HX9v

Travel zoom

$289 - $328
Zoom Has slightly more zoom
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Macro focus Slightly worse macro focusing
Compare the Cybershot DSC-HX9v vs the PowerShot S90
Compare the Cybershot DSC-HX9v vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Nikon Coolpix S9100

Nikon Coolpix S9100

Travel zoom

$179 - $197
Zoom Has slightly more zoom
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Longest exposure Slightly shorter exposures
Macro focus Slightly worse macro focusing
Compare the Coolpix S9100 vs the PowerShot S90
Compare the Coolpix S9100 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Canon PowerShot SX130 IS

Canon PowerShot SX130 IS

Travel zoom

$127 - $245
Lowest price Is much less expensive
Fastest shutter speed Has a faster max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the PowerShot SX130 IS vs the PowerShot S90
Compare the PowerShot SX130 IS vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Sony Alpha NEX-3

Sony Alpha NEX-3

Mirrorless interchangeable-lens

$479 - $548 with 16mm lens
Overall image quality Has much better image quality
Screen resolution Has a slightly higher resolution screen
Weight Is slightly heavier
Image stabilization Doesn't have image stabilization
Compare the Alpha NEX-3 vs the PowerShot S90
Compare the Alpha NEX-3 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20

Canon PowerShot S90 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon Powershot S100

Canon Powershot S100

Pro digicam

$414 - $430
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Supports 24p Supports 24p
Low light performance More noise at high ISO
Sensor size Smaller sensor
Compare the Powershot S100 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
Canon PowerShot SX230 HS

Canon PowerShot SX230 HS

Travel zoom

$219 - $304
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Supports 24p Supports 24p
Aperture Much narrower aperture
Sensor size Much smaller sensor
Compare the PowerShot SX230 HS 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

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Fujifilm FinePix HS20 EXR

Fujifilm FinePix HS20

Super zoom

$310 - $475
Wide angle Much better wide angle
Zoom Much more zoom
Size Much larger
Weight Much heavier
Compare the FinePix HS20 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Sony Cybershot DSC-H70

Sony Cybershot H70

Travel zoom

$170 - $201
Wide angle Much better wide angle
Size Smaller
Macro focus Worse macro capability
True resolution Slightly lower true resolution
Compare the Cybershot H70 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H10

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H10

Travel zoom
True resolution Much lower true resolution
Movie format Lower resolution movies
Compare the Cyber-shot DSC-H10 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H1

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H1

Super zoom
Aperture Significantly wider aperture
Wide angle Better wide angle
True resolution Much lower true resolution
Screen size Much smaller screen
Compare the Cyber-shot DSC-H1 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Nikon Coolpix L120

Nikon Coolpix L120

Super zoom

$227 - $230
Wide angle Much better wide angle
Zoom Significantly more zoom
Size Larger
Light sensitivity Worse maximum light sensitivity
Compare the Coolpix L120 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20

appearance

Canon PowerShot S90 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Canon PowerShot S90 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Canon PowerShot S90 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20

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?

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