Canon PowerShot
SX20 IS
 vs
Sony Cyber-shot
DSC-H20

Updated (September, 2010): Compare the Canon PowerShot SX30 IS vs Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20

Canon PowerShot SX20 IS

41

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
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20

35

Reasons to buy the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20

Screen size
 Large screen
3.0"
Size
 Really small
Mid size 107x69x47 mm
Thickness
 Thin
1.9"
Weight
 Light-weight
250 g
Longest exposure
 Long exposures
30 seconds

differences

Advantages of the Canon SX20 IS
Wide angle Much better wide angle 28 mm vs 38 mm
Help
 Around 30% better wide angle
Aperture Significantly wider aperture f/2.8 vs f/3.5
Help
 At its widest zoom, the SX20 IS's lens captures slightly more light (0.6 f-stops)
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
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 2 cm
Help
 Almost the same
Fastest shutter speed Significantly faster max shutter speed 1/3200s vs 1/2000s
Help
 Around 40% faster max shutter speed
Canon PowerShot SX20 IS Learn more about
the Canon SX20 IS

Advantages of the Sony DSC-H20
Screen size Much larger screen 3.0" vs 2.5"
Help
 More than 20% larger screen
Size Much smaller 107x69x47 mm vs 128x88x87 mm
Help
 2.8x smaller
Weight Much lighter 250 g vs 600 g
Help
 2.4x lighter
Light sensitivity Better maximum light sensitivity 3,200 ISO vs 1,600 ISO
Help
 The DSC-H20's maximum light sensitivity is 1 f-stop better
Thickness Significantly thinner 1.9" vs 3.4"
Help
 Around 50% thinner
Continuous shooting Shoots slightly faster 1.8 fps vs 0.7 fps
Help
 More than 2.5x faster continuous shooting
Longest exposure Longer exposures 30s vs 15s
Help
 2x longer exposures
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 SX20 IS Canon PowerShot SX20 IS
41 vs 35
Explain scores
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20
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 super zoom with a travel zoom.

performance Which camera has better performance? Cast your vote!

CanonPowerShot SX20 IS
 Canon PowerShot SX20 IS 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
Macro focus Good macro capabilities Help
SX20 IS:0 cm
DSC-H20:2 cm
Light sensitivity (boost) No boost ISO Help
Lacks boost light sensitivity
Thickness Quite thick Help
SX20 IS:3.4"
DSC-H20:1.9"
Sensor type Lower-end sensor types Help
CCD
Screen resolution Low resolution screens Help
230k dots
Movie format Both shoot high resolution HD movies Help
720p @ 30fps

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
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 much heavier
Compare the FinePix HS20 vs the PowerShot SX20 IS
Compare the FinePix HS20 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Nikon Coolpix L120

Nikon Coolpix L120

Super zoom

$227 - $230
Wide angle Has a slightly wider wide angle lens
Screen resolution Has a significantly higher resolution screen
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the Coolpix L120 vs the PowerShot SX20 IS
Compare the Coolpix L120 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX1

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX1

Super zoom

$355
Movie format Records higher quality movies
Continuous shooting Shoots faster continuously
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is much heavier
Compare the Cyber-shot DSC-HX1 vs the PowerShot SX20 IS
Compare the Cyber-shot DSC-HX1 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20

Canon PowerShot SX20 IS Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Canon Powershot SX40

Canon Powershot SX40

Super zoom

$379
Zoom Much more zoom
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Size Larger
Thickness Thicker
Compare the Powershot SX40 vs the PowerShot SX20 IS
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
Compare the PowerShot SX30 IS vs the PowerShot SX20 IS
Nikon Coolpix P500

Nikon Coolpix P500

Super zoom

$339 - $350
Zoom Much more zoom
Screen size Much larger screen
Aperture Significantly narrower aperture
Image stabilization Worse image stabilization
Compare the Coolpix P500 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
Canon PowerShot SX10 IS

Canon PowerShot SX10 IS

Super zoom
Screen flips out Screen does not flip out
Movie format Lower resolution movies
Compare the PowerShot SX10 IS vs the PowerShot SX20 IS

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20 Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
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 Cybershot DSC-HX9v

Sony Cybershot DSC-HX9v

Travel zoom

$289 - $328
Wide angle Much better wide angle
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Macro focus Worse macro capability
True resolution Slightly lower true resolution
Compare the Cybershot DSC-HX9v vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Sony Cybershot DSC-HX7V

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX7v

Travel zoom

$219 - $250
Wide angle Much better wide angle
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Macro focus Worse macro capability
Fastest shutter speed Slower max shutter speed
Compare the Cyber-shot DSC-HX7v vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Nikon Coolpix S9100

Nikon Coolpix S9100

Travel zoom

$179 - $197
Wide angle Much better wide angle
Movie format Higher resolution movies
Image stabilization Worse image stabilization
Macro focus Worse macro capability
Compare the Coolpix S9100 vs the Cyber-shot DSC-H20

appearance

Canon PowerShot SX20 IS Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Canon PowerShot SX20 IS Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20
Canon PowerShot SX20 IS 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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