Canon A1100 IS vs Olympus SH-50

Lets look more closely at the Canon A1100 IS versus Olympus SH-50, one is a Small Sensor Compact and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by companies Canon and Olympus. There is a huge difference between the image resolutions of the A1100 IS (12MP) and SH-50 (16MP) but both cameras have the identical sensor size (1/2.3").

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The A1100 IS was announced 4 years earlier than the SH-50 which is quite a significant gap as far as tech is concerned. Both cameras feature the same body design (Compact).

Before diving right into a comprehensive comparison, here is a short synopsis of how the A1100 IS scores against the SH-50 with respect to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Below is a sample of the gallery pics for Canon PowerShot A1100 IS and Olympus SH-50. The whole galleries are available at Canon A1100 IS Gallery and Olympus SH-50 Gallery.

If you are intending to carry around your camera, you'll have to factor its weight and dimensions. The Canon A1100 IS offers outside dimensions of 95mm x 62mm x 31mm (3.7" x 2.4" x 1.2") with a weight of 150 grams (0.33 lbs) whilst the Olympus SH-50 has dimensions of 112mm x 63mm x 42mm (4.4" x 2.5" x 1.7") and a weight of 269 grams (0.59 lbs).

Look at the Canon A1100 IS versus Olympus SH-50 in the all new Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Do not forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary depending on the lens you are using at that time. Underneath is a front view sizing comparison of the A1100 IS and the SH-50.

Factoring in size and weight, the portability rating of the A1100 IS and SH-50 is 93 and 88 respectively.

Generally, its difficult to visualise the gap between sensor sizes only by reading through technical specs. The image here may give you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the A1100 IS and SH-50.

As you can tell, both cameras come with the identical sensor size but not the same megapixels. You should expect to see the Olympus SH-50 to give more detail with its extra 4MP. Greater resolution will also enable you to crop images a good deal more aggressively. The more aged A1100 IS is going to be disadvantaged in sensor innovation.