Updated (September, 2010): Compare the Canon PowerShot SX120 IS vs Canon PowerShot SX30 IS

Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

39

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

Screen flips out
Flip-out screen
Great for movies
Viewfinder
Great viewfinder
Digital
External flash
External flash
Better lighting
Canon PowerShot SX120 IS

31

Reasons to buy the Canon PowerShot SX120 IS

Screen size
Large screen
3.0"
Size
Really small
Mid size 111x71x45 mm
Thickness
Thin
1.8"
Weight
Light-weight
285 g

differences

Advantages of the Canon SX120 IS

Screen size Much larger screen 3.0" vs 2.5"
Help
More than 20% larger screen
Size Much smaller 111x71x45 mm vs 128x88x87 mm
Help
2.8x smaller
Weight Much lighter 285 g vs 600 g
Help
2.1x lighter
Lowest price Much cheaper $225.24 vs $742.23
Help
The best price we've seen is $517 cheaper (3.3x less)
Thickness Significantly thinner 1.8" vs 3.4"
Help
Around 50% thinner
Canon PowerShot SX120 IS Learn more about
the Canon SX120 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
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 More zoom 20x vs 10x
Help
4x more zoom
True resolution Much higher true resolution 9.8 MP vs 8.6 MP
Help
Capture more than 10% 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
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
Macro focus Better macro capability 0 cm vs 1 cm
Help
Almost the same
Fastest shutter speed Faster max shutter speed 1/3200s vs 1/2500s
Help
More than 20% faster max shutter speed
Canon PowerShot SX20 IS Learn more about
the Canon SX20 IS
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent digicams, and ignoring price

Canon PowerShot SX120 IS Canon PowerShot SX120 IS
31 vs 39
Explain scores
Canon PowerShot SX20 IS Canon PowerShot SX20 IS
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Canon PowerShot SX20 IS. This recommendation, however, should be taken with a grain of salt since it doesn't always make sense to compare a travel zoom with a super zoom.

advice

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similarities

Compared to recent digicams

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Aperture Wide aperture Help
f/2.8
Macro focus Good macro capabilities Help
SX120 IS:1 cm
SX20 IS:0 cm
Image stabilization Good image stabilization Help
Lens
Fastest shutter speed Fast max shutter speeds Help
SX120 IS:1/2500s
SX20 IS:1/3200s
Light sensitivity (boost) No boost ISO Help
Lacks boost light sensitivity
Weight Heavy Help
SX120 IS:285 g
SX20 IS:600 g
Thickness Quite thick Help
SX120 IS:1.8"
SX20 IS:3.4"
Panorama Neither camera stitches together panoramas Help
You could stitch photos in post
Sensor type Lower-end sensor types Help
CCD
Continuous shooting Slow continuous shooting Help
SX120 IS:0.9 fps
SX20 IS:0.7 fps
HDR Neither has in-camera HDR Help
You could do HDR manually
Light sensitivity Poor maximum light sensitivity Help
1,600 ISO
3D Neither camera can take 3D photos Help
No 3d support
Touch screen No touchscreens Help
More buttons
Screen resolution Low resolution screens Help
230k dots
Wide angle Poor wide angle Help
SX120 IS:36 mm
SX20 IS:28 mm
Movie format Poor movies Help
SX120 IS:480p @ 30fps
SX20 IS:720p @ 30fps

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

Canon Powershot SX40

Canon Powershot SX40

Super zoom

$347 - $380

Zoom Has way more more zoom
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Thickness Is thicker
Canon PowerShot SX130 IS

Canon PowerShot SX130 IS

Travel zoom

$144 - $245

Lowest price Is slightly less expensive
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Aperture Has a significantly narrower aperture
Canon PowerShot SX150 IS

Canon PowerShot SX150 IS

Travel zoom

$138 - $179

Lowest price Is slightly less expensive
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Aperture Has a significantly narrower aperture
Canon PowerShot SX230 HS

Canon PowerShot SX230 HS

Travel zoom

$239 - $324

Movie format Records higher quality movies
Screen resolution Has a slightly higher resolution screen
Macro focus Significantly worse macro focusing
Aperture Has a slightly narrower aperture
Canon PowerShot S5 IS

Canon PowerShot S5 IS

Super zoom

Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is significantly heavier
Canon PowerShot SX10 IS

Canon PowerShot SX10 IS

Super zoom

Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is much heavier

Canon PowerShot SX120 IS Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

Canon ELPH 100 HS

Canon ELPH 100 HS

Compact

$103 - $189

Wide angle Much better wide angle
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Zoom Less zoom
Macro focus Worse macro capability
Fujifilm FinePix S1800

Fujifilm FinePix S1800

Super zoom

Wide angle Much better wide angle
True resolution Much higher true resolution
Aperture Narrower aperture
Size Larger
Canon PowerShot ELPH 320 HS

Canon ELPH 320 HS

Compact

$249

Wide angle Much better wide angle
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Zoom Slightly less zoom
Macro focus Worse macro capability

Canon PowerShot SX20 IS Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

Canon PowerShot SX30 IS

Canon PowerShot SX30 IS

Super zoom

$420

Zoom Much more zoom
Wide angle Significantly better wide angle
Size Larger
Thickness Thicker
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
Canon PowerShot G12

Canon PowerShot G12

Pro digicam

$390 - $496

Supports 24p Supports 24p
Sensor size Much larger sensor
Zoom Significantly less zoom
Macro focus Worse macro capability
Canon PowerShot SX1 IS

Canon PowerShot SX1 IS

Super zoom

Movie format Higher resolution movies
Screen size Significantly larger screen
Weight Slightly heavier
Fujifilm FinePix HS20 EXR

Fujifilm FinePix HS20

Super zoom

$299 - $335

Zoom Significantly more zoom
Screen size Much larger screen
Size Significantly larger
Image stabilization Worse image stabilization

appearance

Canon PowerShot SX120 IS Canon PowerShot SX20 IS
Canon PowerShot SX120 IS Canon PowerShot SX20 IS
Canon PowerShot SX120 IS Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

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