Canon SD4000 IS vs Olympus SZ-12

Its time to look a little more closely at the Canon SD4000 IS vs Olympus SZ-12, one being a Small Sensor Compact and the other is a Small Sensor Superzoom by competitors Canon and Olympus. There exists a big gap between the image resolutions of the SD4000 IS (10MP) and SZ-12 (14MP) but both cameras offer the identical sensor sizes (1/2.3").

Photography Glossary

The SD4000 IS was unveiled 17 months before the SZ-12 making them a generation apart from one another. Both cameras feature the same body design (Compact).

Before getting straight to a thorough comparison, here is a short summation of how the SD4000 IS grades against the SZ-12 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall rating.

The following is a sample of the gallery pics for Canon PowerShot SD4000 IS and Olympus SZ-12. The full galleries are viewable at Canon SD4000 IS Gallery and Olympus SZ-12 Gallery.

In case you're planning to carry your camera frequently, you will want to think about its weight and proportions. The Canon SD4000 IS provides outside dimensions of 100mm x 54mm x 23mm (3.9" x 2.1" x 0.9") and a weight of 175 grams (0.39 lbs) whilst the Olympus SZ-12 has measurements of 106mm x 69mm x 40mm (4.2" x 2.7" x 1.6") and a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs).

Examine the Canon SD4000 IS vs Olympus SZ-12 in the new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change based on the lens you have at the time. Following is a front view measurements comparison of the SD4000 IS against the SZ-12.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the SD4000 IS and SZ-12 is 94 and 89 respectively.

Typically, it is very difficult to picture the contrast between sensor sizing purely by reading technical specs. The photograph here should give you a more clear sense of the sensor dimensions in the SD4000 IS and SZ-12.

As you can tell, both of these cameras come with the identical sensor size but different megapixels. You should expect to see the Olympus SZ-12 to deliver extra detail having an extra 4MP. Greater resolution can also make it easier to crop images a good deal more aggressively. The older SD4000 IS is going to be behind in sensor technology.