Canon PowerShot SX720 HS vs. Canon PowerShot G9

Comparison

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PowerShot SX720 HS image
vs
PowerShot G9 image
Canon PowerShot SX720 HS Canon PowerShot G9
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Megapixels
20.30
12.10
Max. image resolution
5184 x 3888
4000 x 3000

Sensor

Sensor type
CMOS
CCD
Sensor size
1/2.3" (~ 6.16 x 4.62 mm)
1/1.7" (~ 7.53 x 5.64 mm)
Sensor resolution
5196 x 3907
4027 x 3005
Diagonal
7.70 mm
9.41 mm
Sensor size comparison
Sensor size is generally a good indicator of the quality of the camera. Sensors can vary greatly in size. As a general rule, the bigger the sensor, the better the image quality.

Bigger sensors are more effective because they have more surface area to capture light. An important factor when comparing digital cameras is also camera generation. Generally, newer sensors will outperform the older.

Learn more about sensor sizes »

Actual sensor size

Note: Actual size is set to screen → change »
vs
1 : 1.49
(ratio)
Canon PowerShot SX720 HS Canon PowerShot G9
Surface area:
28.46 mm² vs 42.47 mm²
Difference: 14.01 mm² (49%)
G9 sensor is approx. 1.49x bigger than SX720 HS sensor.
Note: You are comparing sensors of very different generations. There is a gap of 9 years between Canon SX720 HS (2016) and Canon G9 (2007). Nine years is a lot of time in terms of technology, meaning newer sensors are overall much more efficient than the older ones.
Pixel pitch
1.19 µm
1.87 µm
Pixel pitch tells you the distance from the center of one pixel (photosite) to the center of the next. It tells you how close the pixels are to each other.

The bigger the pixel pitch, the further apart they are and the bigger each pixel is. Bigger pixels tend to have better signal to noise ratio and greater dynamic range.
Difference: 0.68 µm (57%)
Pixel pitch of G9 is approx. 57% higher than pixel pitch of SX720 HS.
Pixel area
1.42 µm²
3.5 µm²
Pixel or photosite area affects how much light per pixel can be gathered. The larger it is the more light can be collected by a single pixel.

Larger pixels have the potential to collect more photons, resulting in greater dynamic range, while smaller pixels provide higher resolutions (more detail) for a given sensor size.
Relative pixel sizes:
vs
Pixel area difference: 2.08 µm² (146%)
A pixel on Canon G9 sensor is approx. 146% bigger than a pixel on Canon SX720 HS.
Pixel density
71.15 MP/cm²
28.6 MP/cm²
Pixel density tells you how many million pixels fit or would fit in one square cm of the sensor.

Higher pixel density means smaller pixels and lower pixel density means larger pixels.
Difference: 42.55 µm (149%)
Canon SX720 HS has approx. 149% higher pixel density than Canon G9.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Canon SX720 HS
Canon G9
Crop factor
5.62
4.6
Total megapixels
21.10
12.40
Effective megapixels
20.30
12.10
Optical zoom
40x
6x
Digital zoom
Yes
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 100-3200
Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
5 cm
45 cm
Macro focus range
1 cm
1 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
24 - 960 mm
35 - 210 mm
Aperture priority
Yes
Yes
Max. aperture
f3.3 - f6.9
f2.8 - f4.8
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f18.5 - f38.8
f12.9 - f22.1
Metering
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot
Centre weighted, Evaluative, Spot
Exposure compensation
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
Yes
Yes
Min. shutter speed
15 sec
15 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/3200 sec
1/2500 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
None
Optical (tunnel)
White balance presets
5
8
Screen size
3"
3"
Screen resolution
921,600 dots
230,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
1920x1080 (60p/30p)
Storage types
SD/SDHC/SDXC
MultiMedia, SDHC, Secure Digital
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
NB-13L lithium-ion battery
Canon Lithium-Ion
Weight
270 g
320 g
Dimensions
109.7 x 63.8 x 35.7 mm
106.4 x 71.9 x 42.5 mm
Year
2016
2007




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Diagonal

Diagonal is calculated by the use of Pythagorean theorem:
Diagonal =  w² + h²
where w = sensor width and h = sensor height

Canon SX720 HS diagonal

The diagonal of SX720 HS sensor is not 1/2.3 or 0.43" (11 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 7.7 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 6.16 mm
h = 4.62 mm
Diagonal =  6.16² + 4.62²   = 7.70 mm

Canon G9 diagonal

The diagonal of G9 sensor is not 1/1.7 or 0.59" (14.9 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 9.41 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 7.53 mm
h = 5.64 mm
Diagonal =  7.53² + 5.64²   = 9.41 mm


Surface area

Surface area is calculated by multiplying the width and the height of a sensor.

SX720 HS sensor area

Width = 6.16 mm
Height = 4.62 mm

Surface area = 6.16 × 4.62 = 28.46 mm²

G9 sensor area

Width = 7.53 mm
Height = 5.64 mm

Surface area = 7.53 × 5.64 = 42.47 mm²


Pixel pitch

Pixel pitch is the distance from the center of one pixel to the center of the next measured in micrometers (µm). It can be calculated with the following formula:
Pixel pitch =   sensor width in mm  × 1000
sensor resolution width in pixels

SX720 HS pixel pitch

Sensor width = 6.16 mm
Sensor resolution width = 5196 pixels
Pixel pitch =   6.16  × 1000  = 1.19 µm
5196

G9 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 7.53 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4027 pixels
Pixel pitch =   7.53  × 1000  = 1.87 µm
4027


Pixel area

The area of one pixel can be calculated by simply squaring the pixel pitch:
Pixel area = pixel pitch²

You could also divide sensor surface area with effective megapixels:
Pixel area =   sensor surface area in mm²
effective megapixels

SX720 HS pixel area

Pixel pitch = 1.19 µm

Pixel area = 1.19² = 1.42 µm²

G9 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 1.87 µm

Pixel area = 1.87² = 3.5 µm²


Pixel density

Pixel density can be calculated with the following formula:
Pixel density =  ( sensor resolution width in pixels )² / 1000000
sensor width in cm

One could also use this formula:
Pixel density =   effective megapixels × 1000000  / 10000
sensor surface area in mm²

SX720 HS pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 5196 pixels
Sensor width = 0.616 cm

Pixel density = (5196 / 0.616)² / 1000000 = 71.15 MP/cm²

G9 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4027 pixels
Sensor width = 0.753 cm

Pixel density = (4027 / 0.753)² / 1000000 = 28.6 MP/cm²


Sensor resolution

Sensor resolution is calculated from sensor size and effective megapixels. It's slightly higher than maximum (not interpolated) image resolution which is usually stated on camera specifications. Sensor resolution is used in pixel pitch, pixel area, and pixel density formula. For sake of simplicity, we're going to calculate it in 3 stages.

1. First we need to find the ratio between horizontal and vertical length by dividing the former with the latter (aspect ratio). It's usually 1.33 (4:3) or 1.5 (3:2), but not always.

2. With the ratio (r) known we can calculate the X from the formula below, where X is a vertical number of pixels:
(X × r) × X = effective megapixels × 1000000    →   
X =  effective megapixels × 1000000
r
3. To get sensor resolution we then multiply X with the corresponding ratio:

Resolution horizontal: X × r
Resolution vertical: X

SX720 HS sensor resolution

Sensor width = 6.16 mm
Sensor height = 4.62 mm
Effective megapixels = 20.30
r = 6.16/4.62 = 1.33
X =  20.30 × 1000000  = 3907
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3907 × 1.33 = 5196
Resolution vertical: X = 3907

Sensor resolution = 5196 x 3907

G9 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 7.53 mm
Sensor height = 5.64 mm
Effective megapixels = 12.10
r = 7.53/5.64 = 1.34
X =  12.10 × 1000000  = 3005
1.34
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3005 × 1.34 = 4027
Resolution vertical: X = 3005

Sensor resolution = 4027 x 3005


Crop factor

Crop factor or focal length multiplier is calculated by dividing the diagonal of 35 mm film (43.27 mm) with the diagonal of the sensor.
Crop factor =   43.27 mm
sensor diagonal in mm


SX720 HS crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 7.70 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 5.62
7.70

G9 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 9.41 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 4.6
9.41

35 mm equivalent aperture

Equivalent aperture (in 135 film terms) is calculated by multiplying lens aperture with crop factor (a.k.a. focal length multiplier).

SX720 HS equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 5.62
Aperture = f3.3 - f6.9

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f3.3 - f6.9) × 5.62 = f18.5 - f38.8

G9 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 4.6
Aperture = f2.8 - f4.8

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8 - f4.8) × 4.6 = f12.9 - f22.1

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