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Canon 1200D vs Sony a5100

Portability
68
Imaging
59
Features
54
Overall
57
Canon EOS 1200D front
 
Sony Alpha a5100 front
Portability
89
Imaging
64
Features
74
Overall
68

Canon 1200D vs Sony a5100 Key Specs

Canon 1200D
(Full Review)
  • 18MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 6400 (Push to 12800)
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Canon EF/EF-S Mount
  • 480g - 130 x 100 x 78mm
  • Launched February 2014
  • Additionally referred to as EOS Rebel T5 / EOS Kiss X70
  • Replaced the Canon 1100D
  • Refreshed by Canon T6
Sony a5100
(Full Review)
  • 24MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Tilting Screen
  • ISO 100 - 25600
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 283g - 110 x 63 x 36mm
  • Announced August 2014
  • Replaced the Sony a5000
Photography Glossary

Canon 1200D vs Sony a5100 Overview

Lets look more in depth at the Canon 1200D and Sony a5100, one being a Entry-Level DSLR and the latter is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by rivals Canon and Sony. There exists a big gap among the resolutions of the 1200D (18MP) and a5100 (24MP) but both cameras posses the same sensor dimensions (APS-C).

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The 1200D was released 6 months earlier than the a5100 and they are both of a similar generation. The two cameras have different body design with the Canon 1200D being a Compact SLR camera and the Sony a5100 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before going into a detailed comparison, here is a simple overview of how the 1200D matches up versus the a5100 when considering portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

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Reasons to pick Canon 1200D over the Sony a5100

 1200D a5100 

Reasons to pick Sony a5100 over the Canon 1200D

 a5100 1200D 
Screen typeTiltingFixed Tilting screen
Screen resolution922k460kClearer screen (+462k dot)
Touch screen Quickly navigate

Common features in the Canon 1200D and Sony a5100

 1200D a5100 
AnnouncedFebruary 2014August 2014Same generation
Manual focus More exact focusing
Screen dimensions3"3"Equal screen sizing
Selfie screen Lacking selfie screen

Canon 1200D vs Sony a5100 Physical Comparison

If you're aiming to lug around your camera often, you will have to factor its weight and proportions. The Canon 1200D offers exterior measurements of 130mm x 100mm x 78mm (5.1" x 3.9" x 3.1") accompanied by a weight of 480 grams (1.06 lbs) whilst the Sony a5100 has measurements of 110mm x 63mm x 36mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.4") with a weight of 283 grams (0.62 lbs).

Examine the Canon 1200D and Sony a5100 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Take into account, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will differ based on the lens you use at that moment. Here is a front view dimensions comparison of the 1200D vs the a5100.

Canon 1200D vs Sony a5100 size comparison

Looking at dimensions and weight, the portability score of the 1200D and a5100 is 68 and 89 respectively.

Canon 1200D vs Sony a5100 top view buttons comparison

Canon 1200D vs Sony a5100 Sensor Comparison

Normally, it's tough to envision the difference in sensor measurements only by seeing technical specs. The visual here will provide you a greater sense of the sensor sizing in the 1200D and a5100.

As you have seen, the two cameras have the same sensor dimensions albeit not the same megapixels. You should expect the Sony a5100 to produce more detail as a result of its extra 6 Megapixels. Higher resolution will let you crop pictures a bit more aggressively.

Canon 1200D vs Sony a5100 sensor size comparison

Canon 1200D vs Sony a5100 Screen and ViewFinder

Canon 1200D vs Sony a5100 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Canon 1200D as a Portrait photography camera
Sony a5100 as a Portrait photography camera
75
focusing manually
decent MP (18MP)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
has face detection autofocus
supports RAW formats
71
you can focus manually
MP count good (24 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
provides face detection focus
exports RAW files
no external flash support
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Street Comparison

Canon 1200D Street photography highlights
Sony a5100 Street photography highlights
59
nice sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW formats
fixed screen
lack of image stabilization
81
has a tilting screen
good sensor size (APS-C)
exports RAW files
supports touch focus
above average high ISO (25,600)
does not have image stabilization
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Sports Comparison

Sports photography with Canon 1200D
Sports photography with Sony a5100
54
decent MP (18MP)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
has phase detect autofocus
continuous shooting slow (3.0 frames/s)
lack of image stabilization
bad battery pack (500 per charge)
67
MP count good (24 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
provides tracking autofocus
good battery power (400 shots)
supports phase detect auto focus
slow frames per second (6.0 frames/s)
does not have image stabilization
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Travel Comparison

Canon 1200D Travel photography highlights
Sony a5100 Travel photography highlights
55
decent MP (18MP)
flash built-in
does not have Timelapse recording
bad battery pack (500 per charge)
does not contain selfie friendly screen
80
good battery power (400 shots)
supports touch focus
MP count good (24 megapixels)
flash built-in
doesn't posses selfie friendly display
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Landscape Comparison

Landscape photography with Canon 1200D
Landscape photography with Sony a5100
63
focusing manually
swap lenses (Canon EF/EF-S mount)
screen size is decent (3 inch)
decent MP (18MP)
nice sensor size (APS-C)
supports RAW formats
lack of image stabilization
bad battery pack (500 shots)
does not have Timelapse recording
78
you can focus manually
interchangeable lenses (Sony E mount)
good sized screen (3")
MP count good (24MP)
good sensor size (APS-C)
above average high ISO (25,600)
exports RAW files
good battery power (400 CIPA)
does not have image stabilization
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Vlogging Comparison

Canon 1200D Vlogging advice
Sony a5100 Vlogging advice
27
has face detection autofocus
high video quality (1920 x 1080 resolution)
does not contain selfie friendly screen
lack of image stabilization
does not have external microphone port
34
screen is touchscreen
provides face detection focus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pixels)
doesn't posses selfie friendly display
does not have image stabilization
no external microphone socket
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Canon 1200D vs Sony a5100 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Canon 1200D and Sony a5100
 Canon EOS 1200DSony Alpha a5100
General Information
Brand Canon Sony
Model Canon EOS 1200D Sony Alpha a5100
Also called EOS Rebel T5 / EOS Kiss X70 -
Category Entry-Level DSLR Entry-Level Mirrorless
Launched 2014-02-12 2014-08-17
Physical type Compact SLR Rangefinder-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Chip Digic 4 Bionz X
Sensor type CMOS CMOS
Sensor size APS-C APS-C
Sensor measurements 22.3 x 14.9mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor surface area 332.3mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 18MP 24MP
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 3:2 3:2 and 16:9
Highest resolution 5184 x 3456 6000 x 4000
Highest native ISO 6400 25600
Highest boosted ISO 12800 -
Min native ISO 100 100
RAW format
Autofocusing
Focus manually
AF touch
Continuous AF
AF single
AF tracking
AF selectice
Center weighted AF
AF multi area
Live view AF
Face detect focusing
Contract detect focusing
Phase detect focusing
Number of focus points 9 179
Lens
Lens mounting type Canon EF/EF-S Sony E
Amount of lenses 326 121
Focal length multiplier 1.6 1.5
Screen
Type of display Fixed Type Tilting
Display sizing 3" 3"
Display resolution 460k dots 922k dots
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch capability
Display tech TFT color LCD, liquid-crystal monitor -
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder Optical (pentamirror) None
Viewfinder coverage 95 percent -
Viewfinder magnification 0.5x -
Features
Lowest shutter speed 30 secs 30 secs
Highest shutter speed 1/4000 secs 1/4000 secs
Continuous shooting rate 3.0 frames/s 6.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation Yes Yes
Change WB
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 9.20 m (at ISO 100) 4.00 m (at ISO 100)
Flash modes Auto, On, Off, Red-eye Flash off, auto, fill-flaw, slow sync, redeye reduction
Hot shoe
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Highest flash synchronize 1/200 secs -
Exposure
Multisegment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF area
Center weighted
Video features
Supported video resolutions 1920 x 1080 (30, 25 fps) 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 24p), 1440 x 1080 (30p, 25p), 1280 x 720 (120p), 640 x 480 (30p, 25p)
Highest video resolution 1920x1080 1920x1080
Video format H.264 MPEG-4, AVCHD, XAVC S
Microphone port
Headphone port
Connectivity
Wireless None Built-In
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental sealing
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 480g (1.06 pounds) 283g (0.62 pounds)
Physical dimensions 130 x 100 x 78mm (5.1" x 3.9" x 3.1") 110 x 63 x 36mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.4")
DXO scores
DXO All around score 63 80
DXO Color Depth score 21.9 23.8
DXO Dynamic range score 11.3 12.7
DXO Low light score 724 1347
Other
Battery life 500 pictures 400 pictures
Form of battery Battery Pack Battery Pack
Battery model LP-E10 NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (10 sec (2 sec with mirror lock-up)) Yes (2 or 10 sec, continuous (3-5 shot))
Time lapse feature With downloadable app
Storage type SD/SDHC/SDXC card SD/ SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
Card slots 1 1
Retail cost $549 $448