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Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500

Portability
92
Imaging
38
Features
23
Overall
32
Canon PowerShot SD990 IS front
 
Sony Alpha a3500 front
Portability
69
Imaging
63
Features
54
Overall
59

Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500 Key Specs

Canon SD990 IS
(Full Review)
  • 15MP - 1/1.7" Sensor
  • 2.5" Fixed Screen
  • ISO 80 - 1600
  • Optical Image Stabilization
  • 640 x 480 video
  • 36-133mm (F2.8-5.8) lens
  • 205g - 98 x 62 x 28mm
  • Announced September 2008
  • Other Name is Digital IXUS 980 IS
Sony a3500
(Full Review)
  • 20MP - APS-C Sensor
  • 3" Fixed Display
  • ISO 100 - 16000
  • 1920 x 1080 video
  • Sony E Mount
  • 411g - 128 x 91 x 85mm
  • Released March 2014
  • Succeeded the Sony A3000
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Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500 Overview

Its time to look more closely at the Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500, one is a Ultracompact and the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by brands Canon and Sony. There is a huge difference among the image resolutions of the SD990 IS (15MP) and a3500 (20MP) and the SD990 IS (1/1.7") and a3500 (APS-C) use different sensor dimensions.

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The SD990 IS was released 6 years before the a3500 which is a fairly significant gap as far as camera tech is concerned. Both the cameras come with different body type with the Canon SD990 IS being a Ultracompact camera and the Sony a3500 being a SLR-style mirrorless camera.

Before diving through a complete comparison, below is a simple introduction of how the SD990 IS scores versus the a3500 with regard to portability, imaging, features and an overall mark.

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Reasons to pick Canon SD990 IS over the Sony a3500

 SD990 IS a3500 

Reasons to pick Sony a3500 over the Canon SD990 IS

 a3500 SD990 IS 
ReleasedMarch 2014September 2008Newer by 67 months
Manual focus Dial accurate focusing
Display dimension3"2.5"Larger display (+0.5")

Common features in the Canon SD990 IS and Sony a3500

 SD990 IS a3500 
Display typeFixed Fixed Fixed display
Display resolution230k230kSame display resolution
Selfie screen Neither comes with selfie screen
Touch friendly display No Touch friendly display

Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500 Physical Comparison

For those who are going to travel with your camera frequently, you will want to take into account its weight and proportions. The Canon SD990 IS comes with exterior measurements of 98mm x 62mm x 28mm (3.9" x 2.4" x 1.1") with a weight of 205 grams (0.45 lbs) whilst the Sony a3500 has measurements of 128mm x 91mm x 85mm (5.0" x 3.6" x 3.3") with a weight of 411 grams (0.91 lbs).

See the Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500 in the all new Camera and Lens Size Comparison Tool. Camera Size Comparison with Lenses

Do not forget, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary based on the lens you are utilizing at that moment. The following is the front view sizing comparison of the SD990 IS and the a3500.

Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500 size comparison

Considering size and weight, the portability grade of the SD990 IS and a3500 is 92 and 69 respectively.

Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500 top view buttons comparison

Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500 Sensor Comparison

Generally, it can be difficult to visualize the difference in sensor dimensions only by viewing specs. The pic here should give you a much better sense of the sensor sizing in the SD990 IS and a3500.

As you can plainly see, both of these cameras posses different megapixel count and different sensor dimensions. The SD990 IS because of its smaller sensor is going to make getting shallow depth of field trickier and the Sony a3500 will render extra detail as a result of its extra 5 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also allow you to crop images somewhat more aggressively. The more aged SD990 IS will be behind when it comes to sensor tech.

Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500 sensor size comparison

Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500 Screen and ViewFinder

Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500 Screen and Viewfinder comparison
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Photography Type Scores

Portrait Comparison

Canon SD990 IS Portrait photography factors
Sony a3500 Portrait photography factors
37
great flash sync speed (1/500s)
good megapixels (15MP)
offers face detect focus
lack of manual focus
no manual control
no external flash support
very small sensor (1/1.7")
lacks RAW support
77
you can focus manually
decent sensor resolution (20 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
comes with face detection autofocus
saves RAW files
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Street Comparison

Canon SD990 IS Street photography info
Sony a3500 Street photography info
54
built in image stabilization (Optical)
no articulating screen
very small sensor (1/1.7")
lacks RAW support
heavier than competition (205 grams)
57
good sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW files
screen is fixed
lack of image stabilization
heavier than competition in class (411g)
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Sports Comparison

Canon SD990 IS Sports photography factors
Sony a3500 Sports photography factors
35
built in image stabilization (Optical)
good megapixels (15 megapixels)
painfully slow continuous shooting (1.0 frames per second)
no shutter priority mode
very small sensor (1/1.7")
lacks phase detect auto focus
60
decent sensor resolution (20MP)
good sensor size (APS-C)
comes with tracking autofocus
good battery (470 shots)
slow continuous shooting (4.0 frames/s)
lack of image stabilization
does not have phase detect autofocus
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Travel Comparison

Canon SD990 IS Travel photography features
Sony a3500 Travel photography features
57
good megapixels (15MP)
flash built-in
heavier than competition (205g)
doesn't have a selfie friendly display
wide angle not the best (36mm)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
60
good battery (470 per charge)
decent sensor resolution (20MP)
flash built-in
missing Time Lapse recording
heavier than competition in class (411 grams)
doesn't feature selfie friendly screen
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Landscape Comparison

Canon SD990 IS as a Landscape photography camera
Sony a3500 as a Landscape photography camera
34
built in image stabilization (Optical)
good megapixels (15 megapixels)
lack of manual focus
fixed lens (fixed lens mount)
wide angle not the best (36mm)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
screen is small (2.5 inches)
no manual control
very small sensor (1/1.7")
lacks RAW support
70
you can focus manually
swap lenses (Sony E mount)
decent sized screen (3 inch)
decent sensor resolution (20 megapixels)
good sensor size (APS-C)
saves RAW files
good battery (470 per charge)
lack of image stabilization
missing Time Lapse recording
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Vlogging Comparison

Vlogging with Canon SD990 IS
Vlogging with Sony a3500
27
built in image stabilization (Optical)
offers face detect focus
wide angle not the best (36mm)
somewhat slow maximum aperture (f2.8)
doesn't have a selfie friendly display
video res low (640 x 480 pixels)
doesn't have mic socket
heavier than competition (205 grams)
26
comes with face detection autofocus
video res high (1920 x 1080 pxls)
doesn't feature selfie friendly screen
lack of image stabilization
missing external mic port
heavier than competition in class (411g)
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Canon SD990 IS vs Sony a3500 Specifications

Detailed spec comparison table for Canon SD990 IS and Sony a3500
 Canon PowerShot SD990 ISSony Alpha a3500
General Information
Make Canon Sony
Model Canon PowerShot SD990 IS Sony Alpha a3500
Also called Digital IXUS 980 IS -
Category Ultracompact Entry-Level Mirrorless
Announced 2008-09-17 2014-03-21
Body design Ultracompact SLR-style mirrorless
Sensor Information
Chip - BIONZ image
Sensor type CCD CMOS
Sensor size 1/1.7" APS-C
Sensor dimensions 7.44 x 5.58mm 23.5 x 15.6mm
Sensor area 41.5mm² 366.6mm²
Sensor resolution 15 megapixels 20 megapixels
Anti aliasing filter
Aspect ratio 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9 3:2 and 16:9
Full resolution 4416 x 3312 5456 x 3632
Max native ISO 1600 16000
Minimum native ISO 80 100
RAW data
Autofocusing
Manual focus
Touch to focus
Continuous autofocus
Single autofocus
Tracking autofocus
Selective autofocus
Autofocus center weighted
Autofocus multi area
Autofocus live view
Face detection focus
Contract detection focus
Phase detection focus
Number of focus points - 25
Lens
Lens mounting type fixed lens Sony E
Lens focal range 36-133mm (3.7x) -
Largest aperture f/2.8-5.8 -
Macro focus range 5cm -
Amount of lenses - 121
Focal length multiplier 4.8 1.5
Screen
Screen type Fixed Type Fixed Type
Screen diagonal 2.5 inches 3 inches
Resolution of screen 230k dot 230k dot
Selfie friendly
Liveview
Touch operation
Screen technology - TFT LCD
Viewfinder Information
Viewfinder type Optical (tunnel) Electronic
Viewfinder coverage - 100 percent
Viewfinder magnification - 0.47x
Features
Slowest shutter speed 15 secs 30 secs
Maximum shutter speed 1/1600 secs 1/4000 secs
Continuous shooting speed 1.0 frames/s 4.0 frames/s
Shutter priority
Aperture priority
Manually set exposure
Exposure compensation - Yes
Change white balance
Image stabilization
Integrated flash
Flash range 4.60 m 6.00 m (at ISO200 / 4m at ISO100)
Flash options Auto, On, Off, Slow, Manual (Red Eye On/Off) Flash off, Auto flash, Fill-flash, Slow Sync., Rear Sync.
External flash
AE bracketing
White balance bracketing
Maximum flash sync 1/500 secs 1/160 secs
Exposure
Multisegment metering
Average metering
Spot metering
Partial metering
AF area metering
Center weighted metering
Video features
Video resolutions 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps), 160 x 120 (15 fps) 1920 x 1080
Max video resolution 640x480 1920x1080
Video file format Motion JPEG AVCHD, H.264
Mic jack
Headphone jack
Connectivity
Wireless None None
Bluetooth
NFC
HDMI
USB USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
GPS None None
Physical
Environmental seal
Water proof
Dust proof
Shock proof
Crush proof
Freeze proof
Weight 205 gr (0.45 pounds) 411 gr (0.91 pounds)
Dimensions 98 x 62 x 28mm (3.9" x 2.4" x 1.1") 128 x 91 x 85mm (5.0" x 3.6" x 3.3")
DXO scores
DXO All around score not tested not tested
DXO Color Depth score not tested not tested
DXO Dynamic range score not tested not tested
DXO Low light score not tested not tested
Other
Battery life - 470 images
Battery form - Battery Pack
Battery model NB-5L NP-FW50
Self timer Yes (2 or 10 sec) Yes (2-sec. or 10-sec. delay)
Time lapse recording
Type of storage SD/SDHC/MMC card -
Storage slots Single Single
Launch price - $398