Canon gallops into the race for ultra wide-angle digital compact cameras with the introduction of the SD980 IS this week. At 24mm wide and 120mm tele, this is Canon’s first ever foray into this segment of compact camera market.
Canon SD980 IS... 24-120mm
This brings the SD980 IS right into the competition with several recently announced wide-angle compact cameras slotted for shipment in the next several weeks, namely the Sony Cyber-shot WX1 (24 – 120mm), Panasonic Lumix DCM-ZR1 (25 – 200mm) and Olympus FE-5020 (24 – 120mm).
The SD980 IS has a 5x optical zoom, F2.8-5.9 lens, 3-inch touchscreen LCD display with 230,000 pixels and priced at $329.
Canon SD980 IS vs Sony Cyber-shot WX1
Looking at the features and the pricing, it looks like the battle for supremacy in the 24mm wide segment this time around is between Canon SD980 IS and Sony Cyber-shot WX1, with Panasonic Lumix DCM-ZR1 making a strong presence with its longer zoom of 8x optical.
Sweep panorama, 10fps, new Exmor R sensor for better low light performance
Canon SD980 IS vs Sony Cyber-shot WX1
| Sony Cyber-shot WX1 | Canon SD980 IS | |
|---|---|---|
| Sensor | 1/2.4" Exmor R CMOS, 10.2 megapixels | 1/2.3" Type CCD, 12.1 megapixels |
| Image sizes | 3648 x 2736, 3648 x 2432, 3648 x 2056, 2592 x 1944, 2048 x 1536, 1920 x 1080, 640 X 480; Panorama 7152 x 1080, 4912 x 1080, 4912 x 1920, 3424 x 1920 | 4000 x 3000, 4000 x 2248, 3264 x 2448, 2592 x 1944, 1600 x 1200, 640 x 480, 320 x 240 |
| Lens | Sony G Lens, 5x optical (24 - 120mm) | Canon lens (24-120mm) |
| Digital zoom | 5x | 4x |
| Shooting modes | Intelligent Auto, Landscape, Macro, Program Auto, Movie, High Sensitivity, Soft snap, Landscape, Twilight Portrait, Twilight, Gourmet, Beach, Snow, Fireworks, Underwater, Pet, Sweep Panorama, Hand-held Twilight, Anti Motion Blur, Easy, Smile Shutter | Auto, Program, Portrait, Night Snapshot, Kids & Pets, Indoor, Sunset, Creative Light Effect, Fireworks, Long Shutter, Beach, Aquarium, Foliage, Snow, ISO 3200, Digital Macro, Color Accent, Color Swap, Stitch Assist, Movie |
| Movie | 1280 x 720 30fps, 640 x 480 30fps | 1280 x 720 30fps, 640 x 480 30fps, 320 x 240 30fps |
| Image Stabilisation | Optical SteadyShot | Lens-Shift |
| Sensitivity | ISO 80 - 3200 | ISO 80 - 3200 |
| Shutter speed | 2 - 1/1600 sec | 15 - 1/3000 sec |
| Continuous shooting | 10 fps (10 shots) | 0.8fps (until card is filled) |
| LCD monitor | 230,000 pixels | 230,000 pixels |
| Special features | Sweep Panorama; face, smile and blink detection | Touch-screen enables users to select objects or faces to focus on the touch-screen |
| Price | US$350 | US$329 |
