Canon PowerShot
S95
 vs
Canon PowerShot
SD980 IS

Updated (September, 2011): Compare the Canon Powershot S100 vs Canon PowerShot SD980 IS

Canon PowerShot S95

82
"Image quality is still excellent, with a usable ISO range of 80-800 and fast f/2.0 maximum aperture, albeit only at the wide-angle lens setting, making the S95 very well-suited to low-light, hand-held photography."
photographyblog.com | talking about the S95's iso-noise
"The Canon PowerShot S95 produces images of excellent quality."
photographyblog.com | talking about the S95's image-quality

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot S95

Aperture
 Wide aperture
f/2.0
Size
 Really small
Compact 99x58x29 mm
Supports 24p
 24p movies
For that film look
Sensor size
 Large sensor
1/1.7" 7.6x5.7mm
Light sensitivity (boost)
 High ISO (boost)
12,800 ISO
Thickness
 Thin
1.2"
Canon PowerShot SD980 IS

59

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot SD980 IS

Wide angle
 Wide angle lens
24 mm
Size
 Really small
Super compact 100x53x23 mm
Touch screen
 Touch screen
Less buttons
Thickness
 Thin
0.9"
Weight
 Light-weight
150 g
Fastest shutter speed
 Fast shutter speed
1/3000 of a second

differences

Advantages of the Canon S95
Aperture Significantly wider aperture f/2.0 vs f/2.8
Help
 At its widest zoom, the S95's lens captures slightly more light (1 f-stop)
Sensor size Much larger sensor 1/1.7" 7.6x5.7mm vs 1/2.3" 6.2x4.6mm
Help
 More than 50% larger sensor
Supports 24p Supports 24p Yes vs No
Help
 Get that real film feel
Supports RAW Shoots RAW Yes vs No
Help
 Digitally develop your own photos with precise image control
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
Screen resolution Higher resolution screen 461k dots vs 230k dots
Help
 More than 2x higher resolution screen
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity 3,200 ISO vs 1,600 ISO
Help
 The S95's maximum light sensitivity is 1 f-stop better
True resolution Slightly higher true resolution 10 MP vs 9.8 MP
Help
 Almost the same
Continuous shooting Shoots slightly faster 1.9 fps vs 0.8 fps
Help
 Around 2.5x faster continuous shooting
Canon PowerShot S95 Learn more about
the Canon S95

Advantages of the Canon SD980 IS
Wide angle Significantly better wide angle 24 mm vs 28 mm
Help
 More than 10% better wide angle
Touch screen Has a touch screen Yes vs No
Help
 Fewer buttons to worry about and direct interaction with camera menus
Size Smaller 100x53x23 mm vs 99x58x29 mm
Help
 Around 30% smaller
Macro focus Better macro capability 3 cm vs 5 cm
Help
 Focus on subjects 40% closer to the lens
Weight Significantly lighter 150 g vs 193 g
Help
 More than 20% lighter
Thickness Thinner 0.9" vs 1.2"
Help
 More than 20% thinner
Zoom Slightly more zoom 5x vs 3.8x
Help
 Around 80% more zoom
Fastest shutter speed Much faster max shutter speed 1/3000s vs 1/1600s
Help
 Around 50% faster max shutter speed
Canon PowerShot SD980 IS Learn more about
the Canon SD980 IS
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent compacts, and ignoring price

Canon PowerShot S95 Canon PowerShot S95
82 vs 59
Explain scores
Canon PowerShot SD980 IS Canon PowerShot SD980 IS
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Canon PowerShot S95. 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 compact.

performance Which camera has better performance? Cast your vote!

CanonPowerShot S95
 Canon PowerShot S95 vs Canon PowerShot SD980 IS
CanonPowerShot SD980 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 compacts

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Aperture Wide aperture Help
S95:f/2.0
SD980 IS:f/2.8
Image stabilization Good image stabilization Help
Lens
Sensor type Lower-end sensor types Help
CCD

dxomark

DXOMark

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon Powershot S100

Canon Powershot S100

Pro digicam

$414 - $430
Movie format Records higher quality movies
High-speed framerate Records high-speed movies
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the Powershot S100 vs the PowerShot S95
Compare the Powershot S100 vs the PowerShot SD980 IS
Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5

Pro digicam

$320 - $468
Continuous shooting Shoots faster continuously
Sensor size Has a much larger sensor
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is much heavier
Compare the Lumix DMC-LX5 vs the PowerShot S95
Compare the Lumix DMC-LX5 vs the PowerShot SD980 IS
Canon PowerShot SX230 HS

Canon PowerShot SX230 HS

Travel zoom

$219 - $304
Zoom Has much more zoom
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is significantly heavier
Compare the PowerShot SX230 HS vs the PowerShot S95
Compare the PowerShot SX230 HS vs the PowerShot SD980 IS
Canon ELPH 300 HS

Canon ELPH 300 HS

Compact

$125 - $233
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Size Is slightly smaller
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Screen size Has a significantly smaller screen
Compare the ELPH 300 HS vs the PowerShot S95
Compare the ELPH 300 HS vs the PowerShot SD980 IS
Canon ELPH 310 HS

Canon ELPH 310 HS

Travel zoom

$195 - $199
Movie format Records higher quality movies
High-speed framerate Records high-speed movies
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Wide angle Has a significantly narrower wide angle lens
Compare the ELPH 310 HS vs the PowerShot S95
Compare the ELPH 310 HS vs the PowerShot SD980 IS
Canon PowerShot SD4000 IS

Canon PowerShot SD4000 IS

Pro digicam

$294
High-speed framerate Records high-speed movies
Sensor type Has a CMOS-family sensor
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the PowerShot SD4000 IS vs the PowerShot S95
Compare the PowerShot SD4000 IS vs the PowerShot SD980 IS
Canon ELPH 500 HS

Canon ELPH 500 HS

Pro digicam

$180 - $283
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Screen size Has a slightly larger screen
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the ELPH 500 HS vs the PowerShot S95
Compare the ELPH 500 HS vs the PowerShot SD980 IS

Canon PowerShot S95 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
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
Supports 24p No 24p support
Compare the Coolpix P300 vs the PowerShot S95
Canon PowerShot G12

Canon PowerShot G12

Pro digicam

$389 - $500
Screen flips out Has a flip-out screen
Viewfinder Has a viewfinder
Size Much larger
Aperture Significantly narrower aperture
Compare the PowerShot G12 vs the PowerShot S95
Olympus XZ-1

Olympus XZ-1

Pro digicam

$499 - $500
Screen type Has an OLED screen
Sensor size Much larger sensor
Size Much larger
Supports 24p No 24p support
Compare the XZ-1 vs the PowerShot S95
Sony Cybershot DSC-HX9v

Sony Cybershot DSC-HX9v

Travel zoom

$289 - $328
Zoom Much more zoom
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Aperture Much narrower aperture
Sensor size Much smaller sensor
Compare the Cybershot DSC-HX9v vs the PowerShot S95

Canon PowerShot SD980 IS Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon ELPH 100 HS

Canon ELPH 100 HS

Compact

$102 - $189
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Supports 24p Supports 24p
Wide angle Significantly worse wide angle
Touch screen No touch screen
Compare the ELPH 100 HS vs the PowerShot SD980 IS
Canon PowerShot SD940 IS

Canon PowerShot SD940 IS

Ultra compact
Size Smaller
Weight Lighter
Wide angle Significantly worse wide angle
Screen size Significantly smaller screen
Compare the PowerShot SD940 IS vs the PowerShot SD980 IS
Canon PowerShot SD1400 IS

Canon PowerShot SD1400 IS

Ultra compact

$225
Size Smaller
Thickness Thinner
Wide angle Significantly worse wide angle
Screen size Significantly smaller screen
Compare the PowerShot SD1400 IS vs the PowerShot SD980 IS

appearance

Canon PowerShot S95 Canon PowerShot SD980 IS
Canon PowerShot S95 Canon PowerShot SD980 IS
Canon PowerShot S95 Canon PowerShot SD980 IS

Find similar cameras

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discussion Which do you think is better?

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