If there was a reason to pick the SX120 over a competitor it would be for photo quality, but it doesn't win by much. Noise starts to show at ISO 400, but up until that point photos are relatively clean and sharp, with very good detail. At ISO 800 photos have a mottled look, but loss of detail is still fairly minimal. Even ISO 1600 photos are usable as long as you can overlook some color change from increased noise levels. Characteristic of megazooms, the lens has some barrel distortion--a surprising amount, given the relatively narrow-angle lens. There's magenta and purple fringing, noticeable mostly in shots with extreme contrast and also pretty typical of megazoom cameras. Colors produced by the SX120 are bright, vivid, and generally excellent, and exposure is consistently good, though not without clipped highlights.
The Canon PowerShot SX120 IS is a serviceable pocket megazoom camera. Its feature set, design, and performance are lagging behind models like Sony's H20, Panasonic's ZS1, and Kodak's Z915. And while Canon still tops them in photo quality, the difference is getting smaller and smaller and less significant if your prints aren't larger than 8x10 inches or just for viewing on a computer screen, TV, or digital photo frame.
(Shorter bars indicate better performance)
 |
Time to first shot | |
Typical shot-to-shot time | |
Shutter lag (dim) | |
Shutter lag (typical) |
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
Find out more about how we test digital cameras.
What You'll Pay
- See All Prices
- Set Price Alert
- Price History
