Sony ZV-E1 vs Canon PowerShot SX1 IS

In this comparison, we will evaluate the Sony ZV-E1 and the Canon PowerShot SX1 IS, highlighting the advantages of each over the other, discussing their pros and cons, shared strengths and weaknesses, and providing a rating based on their available features and specifications to assist you in choosing the one that best suits your needs.

Sony ZV-E1 was introduced in March 2023 and Canon PowerShot SX1 IS was introduced in March 2009. Let us first list highlights of the models.

Now that we've looked at the most essential specifications and gained a basic understanding of these cameras, we can delve into more details and see the differences between them.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Sony ZV-E1 over Canon PowerShot SX1 IS.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Canon PowerShot SX1 IS over Sony ZV-E1.

We already listed pros and cons of each model. However, you may also find useful to look at their common strengths and weaknesses shown side-by-side.

Screen

Sony ZV-E1 has a 3.0" screen with 1,037k dot resolution and Canon PowerShot SX1 IS has a 2.80" screen with 230k dot resolution. Both have Fully Articulated screens. Fully articulated screen makes cameras selfie and vlogger friendly and generally very useful for video shooting. Sony ZV-E1 also features touchscreen which has advantages such as easy menu navigation, intuitive controls, quick setting adjustment and most importantly a Touch-to-Focus functionality allowing users to select a specific point on the screen where they want the camera to focus. This feature can be helpful for achieving precise focus in both photo and video recording.

Electronic Viewfinder on Canon PowerShot SX1 IS

Canon PowerShot SX1 IS has a built-in Electronic viewfinder. It has a 100% coverage. There is no built-in or optional viewfinder available on Sony ZV-E1.

Sony ZV-E1 features a 12.1 megapixel Full Frame BSI-CMOS sensor with dimensions of 35.6 x 23.8 mm and a total area of 847.3 mm². Its native ISO range is 80 - 102,400 and expands to 40 - 409,600 in boosted mode. Canon PowerShot SX1 IS features a 10.0 megapixel 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor with dimensions of 6.17 x 4.55 mm and a total area of 20.7 mm². Its native ISO range is 80 - 1,600.

Sony ZV-E1 has BSI-CMOS sensor, short for Backside Illuminated Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor sensor. In traditional CMOS sensors, the wiring and circuitry are located on the front side of the sensor, which can block some of the incoming light. BSI technology flips this design by placing the photosensitive elements (pixels) on the backside of the sensor, allowing more light to reach the pixels. This significantly enhances light sensitivity and improves low-light performance. BSI-CMOS sensors are particularly effective in low-light conditions, as they can capture more light, resulting in brighter and less noisy images. This makes them well-suited for indoor and night photography. BSI-CMOS sensors deliver a higher SNR and reduced cross-talk.

Sony ZV-E1 is equipped with BIONZ XR processor and can take pictures up to 4240 x 2832 resolution. Canon PowerShot SX1 IS can take pictures up to 3648 x 2736 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 2816 x 2112, 2272 x 1704, 1600 x 1200, 640 x 480, 3840 x 2160, 1920 x 1080 with 4:3, 3:2, 16:9 aspect ratios.

Image Stabilization

The cameras have a built-in image stabilization (5 stops of compensation in Sony ZV-E1). On Sony ZV-E1 it means that you are still getting vibration reduction when it is paired with non-image stabilizied lenses. It also works with lenses with optical image stabilization and in combination can achieve even better compensation.

Built-in Wi-Fi on Sony ZV-E1

Sony ZV-E1 has a built-in Wi-Fi (Wi-Fi 5, 802.11ac/b/g/n, 2.4/5 GHz) which allows to easily transfer photos and videos from the camera to other Wi-Fi-enabled devices, such as smartphones, tablets, printers, or computers. This eliminates the need for cables and allows for quick and convenient media sharing and social media integration. It gives you the ability to control your camera remotely using a smartphone or tablet. This is particularly useful for taking self-portraits, group shots, or capturing images in challenging conditions without having to touch the camera. Firmware updates can also be downloaded and installed wirelessly.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in WiFi.

Bluetooth on Sony ZV-E1

Sony ZV-E1 has a built-in Bluetooth which lets you to connect the camera to a smartphone or a dedicated remote control device. This allows you to remotely trigger the camera, adjust settings and controls remotely through a paired mobile app. While Wi-Fi is generally faster for transferring larger files, Bluetooth can be used for small, selective transfers, it can provide real-time information about your camera's battery status, memory card capacity, and other key settings directly on your paired smartphone or smartwatch.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in Bluetooth.

NFC on Sony ZV-E1

Sony ZV-E1 has Near Field Communication (NFC) technology which simplifies the process of pairing it with other NFC-enabled devices like smartphones or tablets. It allows to quickly transfer photos and videos or remotely control the camera from compatible device. NFC can also be used for authentication and security purposes. It can verify your identity before accessing certain features or transferring sensitive data. It can be used with NFC-enabled accessories as well, such as lenses, flashes and GPS devices.

USB Inputs and HDMI Outputs

Both models have USB inputs for data transfer. connector for video signal output.

Battery

Sony ZV-E1 comes with NP-FZ100 battery pack with battery life of 570 shots and Canon PowerShot SX1 IS comes with AA batteries (NiMH recommended) battery pack.

External Storage Slots

Sony ZV-E1 has a single SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-II) card slot. Canon PowerShot SX1 IS has a single SD/SDHC/MMC card card slot.

Shutter

Sony ZV-E1 has Electronic shutter and Mechanical Focal Plane shutter. Shutter speed can go up to 1/8000 sec on Sony ZV-E1, and up to 1/3200 sec on Canon PowerShot SX1 IS. Sony ZV-E1 can shoot continuously up to 10.0 fps. Canon PowerShot SX1 IS can shoot continuously up to 4.0 fps.

Focusing

Sony ZV-E1 has Fast Hybrid AF (Phase-detection / Contrast-detection) system with 759 focusing points and Canon PowerShot SX1 IS has 9 focusing points. Sony ZV-E1 has detection range from +6 to +20 EV.

Exposure

Exposure meterings of Sony ZV-E1 ranges from +3 to +20 EV and you can set the exposure compensation within the ±5 EV range on Sony ZV-E1 and ±2 range on Canon PowerShot SX1 IS. You can also do exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Sony ZV-E1 and exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Canon PowerShot SX1 IS.

Flash

Canon PowerShot SX1 IS has a built-in flash with maximum range of 5.20 m and also accepts external flash which can be connected via Hot Shoe. Sony ZV-E1 has no built-in flash but an external flash may be connected via Intelligent Hot Shoe. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/500 sec on Canon PowerShot SX1 IS.

Sony ZV-E1 body has dimensions of 121 x 72 x 54 mm (4.76 x 2.83 x 2.13") and Canon PowerShot SX1 IS body has dimensions of 128 x 88 x 88 mm (5.04 x 3.46 x 3.46"). Sony ZV-E1 weighs 483 g (1.06 lb / 17.04 oz) and Canon PowerShot SX1 IS weighs 615 g (1.36 lb / 21.69 oz).

Sony ZV-E1

Canon PowerShot SX1 IS

121 mm

72 mm

128 mm

88 mm

72 mm

88 mm

54 mm

88 mm