Clash of the cameras: Sony W380 vs Canon IXUS 130

Sony and Canon are two well known doyens of the world of digital cameras and it’s about time we pitted these two Japanese Godzilla’s one against the others. Time to square off, gentlemen!

The two cameras we have picked today are sitting in each corner of the ring. In the orange corner, and it is not a particularly fetching color but it’s infinitely better than having to see it in pink, is the Canon IXUS 130. Tipping the scales at 133 grams and only marginally heavier than its opponent today, you would expect the Canon to be the favorite since it has for long produced digital cameras that are the joy and pride of the market. In the far corner, and sheathed in an infinitely more respectable black, is the Sony Cybershot DSC W380.  Both these cameras offer a lot of bang for your buck and are good little shutterbugs. In terms of specifications, there’s almost nothing to choose between them and very little by the way of weaknesses in this price range. The Cybershot is a bit lighter and allows you to zoom in a little bit more, while the Canon is slimmer and offers better macro shots. Which one do you pick?

That’s a tricky question to answer because, like we said, there is almost nothing to choose. The better question is what do you want the camera to do? For example, the Cybershot DSC W380 has a panorama mode for taking more sweeping photos and some users will find this to be a delightful little addition to the camera’s feature set. Its maximum aperture of f/2.4 is also quite large, which works in its favor. Think of all those low light situations you’ve encountered and how you’ve cursed your luck at not being able to capture that one perfect shot thanks to poor performance in dim light conditions. The Sony would be a handy companion at times like that, but wait. The IXUS isn’t out of this one just yet. The 130 has a set of features that is more popularly used and this is a hallmark of Canon’s cameras now, offering options that are more suited for its target user, and that’s more than we can say for the Cybershot.

And then there’s the small matter of looks. We have to admit that the IXUS range, almost all of it, is very stylish and the 130 is no different. It comes in a more common black and silver, but our test model is a fuzzy orange color that we find a bit jarring and out of place. Even so, we feel that the pebble-like contours of the IXUS are nicer looking than the Cybershot at any rate. But beauty lies in the eye of the beholder, and so allow us to state why we rate the Canon better in this department. The IXUS has a few very nice touches here and there that puts it ahead of the competition when it comes to looks. The fact that it boasts solid construction and build quality puts it ahead of the pack for us and it’s not as if the Cybershot looks bad. It’s just that it doesn’t stand out for us in an engineering sense like the Canon does in a crowd. Sony’s T-series is an excellent example of how they can get it right. They haven’t on this occasion.

It’s in performance and UI that the Cybershot more than regains lost ground. The simplest measure of a camera is its photo quality, its shutter lag and the time taken from powering up to snapping away, and it is in these regards that the Sony comes into its own. It was faster, more nimble, easier to navigate and on the whole more pliable to our demands. Turn on the flash and the IXUS 130 starts to pant and seem out of breath as it slows down tremendously, handing the advantage to Sony. In terms of picture quality and color reproduction there isn’t a lot to be said, you could pick either of these cameras blind and be happy either way, but the Cybershot does do better outdoors but when lighting was poor the Canon again stole a march and clicked away happily and very well, we might add.

Strangely, we began to realize that the Canon being feature loaded was its Achilles heel. The Sony treats to you as a bit of a newbie and gives you everything you need, which is what most people want in a simple point and shoot. The fact there’s less to run through on the Cybershot DSC W380 also helps you get up to speed with it easier. And so we come to the end of this comparison and leave the verdict to you, unless you want to be spoon-fed, in which case you should buy the Sony if

• Ease of use is your thing
• You don’t want your camera to be too complex
• You want snappy performance
• You feel lighter is better.

Conversely, buy the Canon if

• You want performance across a range of light spectrums
• You like your cameras fully loaded
• You want a good-looking, reasonably priced camera
• You take a lot of close-ups.