Canon A490 vs Sony WX500
93 Imaging
33 Features
10 Overall
23


91 Imaging
43 Features
56 Overall
48
Canon A490 vs Sony WX500 Key Specs
(Full Review)
- 10MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
- 2.5" Fixed Screen
- ISO 80 - 1600
- 640 x 480 video
- 37-122mm (F3.0-5.8) lens
- 175g - 94 x 62 x 31mm
- Revealed January 2010
(Full Review)
- 18MP - 1/2.3" Sensor
- 3" Tilting Screen
- ISO 80 - 12800
- Optical Image Stabilization
- 1920 x 1080 video
- 24-720mm (F3.5-6.4) lens
- 236g - 102 x 58 x 36mm
- Introduced April 2015
- Superseded the Sony WX350

Canon A490 vs Sony WX500 Overview
Following is a thorough assessment of the Canon A490 and Sony WX500, former is a Small Sensor Compact while the latter is a Small Sensor Superzoom by manufacturers Canon and Sony. There is a sizable difference between the sensor resolutions of the A490 (10MP) and WX500 (18MP) but they possess the same exact sensor sizing (1/2.3").

The A490 was introduced 6 years prior to the WX500 which is quite a significant difference as far as tech is concerned. The two cameras offer the identical body type (Compact).
Before diving through a comprehensive comparison, below is a quick view of how the A490 scores versus the WX500 in regards to portability, imaging, features and an overall score.

Canon A490 vs Sony WX500 Gallery
The following is a preview of the gallery images for Canon PowerShot A490 & Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX500. The whole galleries are viewable at Canon A490 Gallery & Sony WX500 Gallery.
Reasons to pick Canon A490 over the Sony WX500
A490 | WX500 |
---|
Reasons to pick Sony WX500 over the Canon A490
WX500 | A490 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Introduced | April 2015 | ![]() | January 2010 | More modern by 64 months |
Screen type | Tilting | ![]() | Fixed | Tilting screen |
Screen sizing | 3" | ![]() | 2.5" | Bigger screen (+0.5") |
Screen resolution | 921k | ![]() | 115k | Clearer screen (+806k dot) |
Common features in the Canon A490 and Sony WX500
A490 | WX500 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Focus manually | ![]() | No manual focus | ||
Selfie screen | ![]() | Neither contains selfie screen | ||
Touch friendly screen | ![]() | Lack of Touch friendly screen |
Canon A490 vs Sony WX500 Physical Comparison
For anyone who is aiming to carry around your camera, you'll have to factor its weight and proportions. The Canon A490 has got outside dimensions of 94mm x 62mm x 31mm (3.7" x 2.4" x 1.2") and a weight of 175 grams (0.39 lbs) and the Sony WX500 has measurements of 102mm x 58mm x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4") with a weight of 236 grams (0.52 lbs).
See the Canon A490 and Sony WX500 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.
Take into account, the weight of an ILC will change based on the lens you are working with during that time. Below is the front view dimension comparison of the A490 versus the WX500.

Taking into consideration size and weight, the portability rating of the A490 and WX500 is 93 and 91 respectively.

Canon A490 vs Sony WX500 Sensor Comparison
Usually, its tough to see the gap between sensor sizes only by reviewing specs. The pic underneath may give you a greater sense of the sensor sizes in the A490 and WX500.
As you can plainly see, both of those cameras offer the same exact sensor sizing albeit not the same MP. You can expect the Sony WX500 to offer you more detail using its extra 8MP. Higher resolution will make it easier to crop shots a little more aggressively. The more aged A490 is going to be behind when it comes to sensor tech.

Canon A490 vs Sony WX500 Screen and ViewFinder


Photography Type Scores
Portrait Comparison

Street Comparison

Sports Comparison

Travel Comparison

Landscape Comparison

Vlogging Comparison

Canon A490 vs Sony WX500 Specifications
Canon PowerShot A490 | Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX500 | |
---|---|---|
General Information | ||
Manufacturer | Canon | Sony |
Model type | Canon PowerShot A490 | Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX500 |
Class | Small Sensor Compact | Small Sensor Superzoom |
Revealed | 2010-01-05 | 2015-04-14 |
Body design | Compact | Compact |
Sensor Information | ||
Processor Chip | - | Bionz X |
Sensor type | CCD | BSI-CMOS |
Sensor size | 1/2.3" | 1/2.3" |
Sensor measurements | 6.17 x 4.55mm | 6.17 x 4.55mm |
Sensor area | 28.1mm² | 28.1mm² |
Sensor resolution | 10 megapixel | 18 megapixel |
Anti alias filter | ||
Aspect ratio | 4:3 and 16:9 | 1:1, 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 |
Highest Possible resolution | 3648 x 2736 | 4896 x 3672 |
Maximum native ISO | 1600 | 12800 |
Lowest native ISO | 80 | 80 |
RAW files | ||
Autofocusing | ||
Manual focusing | ||
Touch focus | ||
Continuous autofocus | ||
Autofocus single | ||
Autofocus tracking | ||
Selective autofocus | ||
Autofocus center weighted | ||
Autofocus multi area | ||
Autofocus live view | ||
Face detection autofocus | ||
Contract detection autofocus | ||
Phase detection autofocus | ||
Total focus points | 5 | - |
Lens | ||
Lens support | fixed lens | fixed lens |
Lens zoom range | 37-122mm (3.3x) | 24-720mm (30.0x) |
Max aperture | f/3.0-5.8 | f/3.5-6.4 |
Macro focusing range | 1cm | 5cm |
Crop factor | 5.8 | 5.8 |
Screen | ||
Range of screen | Fixed Type | Tilting |
Screen size | 2.5 inch | 3 inch |
Screen resolution | 115k dot | 921k dot |
Selfie friendly | ||
Liveview | ||
Touch functionality | ||
Viewfinder Information | ||
Viewfinder | None | None |
Features | ||
Min shutter speed | 15 secs | 30 secs |
Max shutter speed | 1/2000 secs | 1/2000 secs |
Continuous shutter speed | 1.0 frames/s | 10.0 frames/s |
Shutter priority | ||
Aperture priority | ||
Expose Manually | ||
Exposure compensation | - | Yes |
Change white balance | ||
Image stabilization | ||
Inbuilt flash | ||
Flash distance | 3.00 m | 5.40 m (with Auto ISO) |
Flash settings | Auto, On, Off, Slow Sync | Auto, flash on, slow sync, flash off, rear sync |
Hot shoe | ||
AE bracketing | ||
WB bracketing | ||
Exposure | ||
Multisegment exposure | ||
Average exposure | ||
Spot exposure | ||
Partial exposure | ||
AF area exposure | ||
Center weighted exposure | ||
Video features | ||
Supported video resolutions | 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps) | 1920 x 1080 (60p, 60i, 30p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (30p) |
Maximum video resolution | 640x480 | 1920x1080 |
Video data format | Motion JPEG | AVCHD, XAVC S |
Microphone input | ||
Headphone input | ||
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 | ||
Environment seal | ||
Water proofing | ||
Dust proofing | ||
Shock proofing | ||
Crush proofing | ||
Freeze proofing | ||
Weight | 175 grams (0.39 lbs) | 236 grams (0.52 lbs) |
Dimensions | 94 x 62 x 31mm (3.7" x 2.4" x 1.2") | 102 x 58 x 36mm (4.0" x 2.3" x 1.4") |
DXO scores | ||
DXO Overall rating | not tested | not tested |
DXO Color Depth rating | not tested | not tested |
DXO Dynamic range rating | not tested | not tested |
DXO Low light rating | not tested | not tested |
Other | ||
Battery life | - | 360 pictures |
Battery format | - | Battery Pack |
Battery ID | 2 x AA | NP-BX1 |
Self timer | Yes (2 or 10 sec, Custom, Face) | Yes |
Time lapse feature | ||
Storage media | SC/SDHC/MMC/MMCplus/HC MMCplus | SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo |
Storage slots | Single | Single |
Cost at release | $99 | $348 |