It is becoming more and more difficult to make decisions when you want to buy a compact digital camera, since there are many types of cameras that have their own distinctive specifications. Therefore, you need to spend more time learning about the products. In this case, before you start shopping, let’s do a fair comparison between America’s most affordable point-and-shoot cameras: Sony CyberShot DSC-T200 and Canon PowerShot SD870 IS. based on some specifications including:

  • The lens – the zoom lens of the camera
  • The resolution of the camera – total megapixels of the camera
  • The market price – price that is available to buy through Amazon
  • Other camera features to look out for

Spec #1: The Lens

Obviously, the Sony CyberShot DSC-T200 has a higher zoom lens (with 5X optical zoom) than the Canon PowerShot SD870IS (with only 3.8X optical zoom). It means that Sony CyberShot is capable of taking good pictures of distant objects clearer than Canon.

However, hobbyist photographers are not recommended to take full advantage of the optical zoom as it would increase the chances of blurring as the Image Stabilizer isn’t quite strong at the moment. Therefore, some hobbyists are satisfied with Canon’s 3.8X optical zoom, which is enough to take good landscape photos.

Spec #2: The megapixels of the camera

In this relative comparison, both compact digital cameras have similar megapixels: the Sony CyberShot DSC-T200 has 8.1 megapixels, while the Canon PowerShot SD870 IS has 8.0 megapixels. For hobbyists, the 0.1 megapixel difference doesn’t affect users of this particular Canon PowerShot camera much in terms of producing high-resolution images.

Specification #3: The market price

Although both cameras respectively cost differently, you can still find lower prices through Amazon. For example, the price of this particular Sony digital camera (price may be around $300) may be cheaper than this comparison Canon PowerShot digital camera (price may be around $530).

Other camera features to look out for:

Although both cameras have image stabilization and face detection features, this Canon PowerShot has advanced presets that allow photographers to shoot clearly under certain conditions, as the photo-taking process can be very unforgiving. This Sony CyberShot has a 3.5-inch LCD touch screen that includes on-screen buttons for more spontaneous operation. Apart from this, both cameras support different flash memory cards respectively: Memory Stick Pro Duo for Sony Cybershot camera and SDHC memory card for Canon PowerShot camera.

Before you start making a decision on which digital camera to buy, always read product reviews and customer comments to find a camera that suits your preferences.