Canon SX20 IS vs Olympus SZ-16 iHS

Below, we will be comparing the Canon SX20 IS vs Olympus SZ-16 iHS, both Small Sensor Superzoom digital cameras by companies Canon and Olympus. There exists a huge gap between the image resolutions of the SX20 IS (12MP) and SZ-16 iHS (16MP) but they come with the exact same sensor dimensions (1/2.3").

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The SX20 IS was revealed 3 years before the SZ-16 iHS and that is quite a significant gap as far as technology is concerned. The two cameras come with different body type with the Canon SX20 IS being a SLR-like (bridge) camera and the Olympus SZ-16 iHS being a Compact camera.

Before getting straight into a more detailed comparison, below is a short overview of how the SX20 IS matches up versus the SZ-16 iHS in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Here is a preview of the gallery photos for Canon PowerShot SX20 IS and Olympus SZ-16 iHS. The full galleries are viewable at Canon SX20 IS Gallery and Olympus SZ-16 iHS Gallery.

When you are planning to lug around your camera, you'll have to consider its weight and proportions. The Canon SX20 IS provides exterior dimensions of 128mm x 88mm x 87mm (5.0" x 3.5" x 3.4") along with a weight of 600 grams (1.32 lbs) whilst the Olympus SZ-16 iHS has measurements of 108mm x 70mm x 40mm (4.3" x 2.8" x 1.6") along with a weight of 226 grams (0.50 lbs).

Check out the Canon SX20 IS vs Olympus SZ-16 iHS in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will change dependant on the lens you have at that time. The following is the front view dimensions comparison of the SX20 IS against the SZ-16 iHS.

Using dimensions and weight, the portability grade of the SX20 IS and SZ-16 iHS is 65 and 89 respectively.

Sometimes, its hard to see the contrast between sensor measurements only by checking specs. The visual here may give you a greater sense of the sensor dimensions in the SX20 IS and SZ-16 iHS.

As you can plainly see, both of those cameras posses the exact same sensor measurements albeit not the same MP. You should count on the Olympus SZ-16 iHS to give you greater detail because of its extra 4 Megapixels. Higher resolution will help you crop shots somewhat more aggressively. The older SX20 IS is going to be disadvantaged when it comes to sensor tech.