Canon SX130 IS Review

Name: Canon PowerShot SX130 IS
Brand: Canon

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Main Features

12MP - 1/2.3-inch CCD Sensor

ISO 80 - 1600

28-336 mm F3.4-5.6 Zoom Lens

Optical Image Stabilization

3.00" Fixed Type Screen

1.0fps continuous shooting

308g. 113 x 73 x 46 mm

Replaced by Canon SX150 IS

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Canon SX130 IS Overview

Launched in August 2010 , Canon PowerShot SX130 IS is a 12.0MP Small Sensor Superzoom camera with a 1/2.3-inch (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) sized CCD sensor, built-in Image Stabilization and 12.0x zoom 28-336 mm F3.4-5.6 lens. Canon later replaced SX130 IS with SX150 IS. Follow the link to read our in-depth comparison of these cameras:
Compare Canon PowerShot SX130 IS vs Canon SX150 IS

Canon SX130 IS Review - Click for Table of Contents

Overview
Pros and Cons
Sensor and Photography Features
Physical Specs
LCD and Viewfinder
Connectivity, Storage and Battery
Video
Other Features
Lens
Photography Type Scores
Alternatives
Popular Comparisons
Frequently Asked Questions
Detailed Specifications

Canon SX130 IS is a member of Canon's Small Sensor Superzoom class cameras. Below you can see the latest models in this class and how their main specs have changed with each new model.

Canon Small Sensor Superzoom Series History

Model	Release Date	Sensor	Max FPS	Dimensions	Weight
Canon SX70 HS Compare	2018	20.0MP - 1/2.3"	10.0 fps	127 x 91 x 117mm	608g
Canon SX740 HS Compare	2018	21.0MP - 1/2.3"	10.0 fps	110 x 64 x 40mm	299g
Canon SX730 HS Compare	2017	20.3MP - 1/2.3	5.9 fps	110 x 64 x 40mm	300g
Canon SX620 HS Compare	2016	20.0MP - 1/2.3"	2.5 fps	97 x 57 x 28mm	182g
Canon SX720 HS Compare	2016	20.3MP - 1/2.3"	5.9 fps	110 x 64 x 36mm	270g

Check the link below to compare specs of the latest cameras in this series side by side:
Canon SX70 HS vs SX740 HS vs SX730 HS vs SX620 HS vs SX720 HS

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking through my links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Canon SX130 IS PROs and CONs Review

Now let's get in to more details of our Canon SX130 IS review by analysing its specs and features and listing out its pros and cons compared to average competitor cameras in its class.

PROs

Image Stabilization

1/2500s High Shutter Speed

Manual Focusing

Manual Exposure

336mm Good Tele Lens

12.0X Optical Zoom

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CONs

No Wireless Connection

No Articulating Screen

No External Flash Shoe

No Full HD Video

No Touch Screen

No Built-in Viewfinder

No RAW Shooting

No Face Detection Focusing

Low Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP

Max Sensitivity only ISO 1.600

Only Unknown Focus Points

Low Screen Resolution ( 230kdots )

Slow Continuous Shooting: 1.0fps

Heavy Body: 308

No Environmental Sealing

Slow Lens at Wide: f3.40

Slow Lens at Tele: f5.60

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Canon SX130 IS Physical Specs

Canon SX130 IS weighs 308 g (0.68 lb / 10.86 oz) and has external dimensions of 113 x 73 x 46 mm (4.45 x 2.87 x 1.81″). Considering that the average weight of Compact type cameras is 188g, Canon SX130 IS is a significantly heavy camera for its class. With a thickness of 46mm, it is not small either, 17mm thicker than the average of its class.

Weight Comparison

Compact Cameras

Canon SX130 IS

Min

Average

Max

Thickness Comparison

Compact Cameras

Canon SX130 IS

Min

Average

Max

In order to give you a better idea about the real life size of Canon SX130 IS, we have added an image of how it looks next to a credit card and an AA type battery.

Physical size of the Canon SX130 IS Body Compared to a Credit Card and an AA Battery

Below you can find the comparison of the weight and thickness of Canon SX130 IS with its main competitors:

Canon SX130 IS Size Compared to Main Competitors

Model	Weight	vs SX130 IS	Thickness	vs SX130 IS
Canon SX150 IS Compare	306g	2g lighter	46mm	equal thickness
Canon SX160 IS Compare	291g	17g lighter	44mm	2mm thinner
Canon SX120 IS Compare	285g	23g lighter	45mm	1mm thinner
Canon SX170 IS Compare	251g	57g lighter	44mm	2mm thinner
Canon SX210 IS Compare	220g	88g lighter	38mm	8mm thinner
Canon G12 Compare	401g	93g heavier	48mm	2mm thicker
Canon SX200 IS Compare	247g	61g lighter	38mm	8mm thinner
Canon SX30 IS Compare	601g	293g heavier	108mm	62mm thicker

Weather Sealing

Canon SX130 IS doesn't have any environmental sealings on its body so you got to be extra careful to protect it against water and dust. If you shoot under these conditions very often, consider checking Top Compact Cameras with Weather Sealing page.

Canon SX130 IS Lens

Canon SX130 IS features a 28-336 mm F3.4-5.6 12× zoom lens. Lens has a good wide angle capability starting at 28mm and remarkable super telephoto reach at 336mm.

Wide Coverage

Compact Cameras

SX130 IS

Widest - Olympus TG-850 iHS

Average

Telezoom

Compact Cameras

SX130 IS

Longest - Canon SX520 HS

Average

With a max aperture of f3.40 at 28mm, we can not consider this lens fast on wide end and neither at tele end with its f5.60.

Max Aperture at Wide

Compact Cameras

SX130 IS

Fastest - Leica D-Lux 6

Average

Max Aperture at Tele

Compact Cameras

SX130 IS

Fastest - Ricoh GR Digital IV

Average

SX130 IS is equipped with Optical image stabilization system which is very handy especially at lower shutter speeds. Canon SX130 IS's lens also has a Manual Focus Mode.

Canon SX130 IS Sensor and Photography Features

Canon SX130 IS has a 12.0MP 1/2.3-inch (6.17 x 4.55 mm ) sized CCD sensor and features Digic 4 processor. You can shoot at maximum resolution of 4000 x 3000 pixels with aspect ratios of 4:3 and 3:2. SX130 IS has a native ISO range of 80 - 1600 but unfortunately, Canon SX130 IS doesn't have RAW file support. If you need a Compact camera with a RAW support, consider Canon PowerShot S90 or in the same price range.

Canon SX130 IS is not the highest resolution Small Sensor camera. GoPro Hero9 Black with its 23.0MP sensor is leading in this class. Check the comparison of Canon SX130 IS vs GoPro Hero9 Black or take a look at Highest resolution Compact cameras list.

Let's look at how the size of the Canon SX130 IS's 1/2.3-inch sensor compares with other standard sensor sizes.

Comparison image of Canon SX130 IS Sensor Size with other standard sensors

Canon SX130 IS LCD

Canon SX130 IS has a Fixed Type 3.00-inch LCD screen with a resolution of 230k dots. Both the screen size and the screen resolution is up to the standards of this class.

Unfortunately Canon PowerShot SX130 IS doesn't have a Selfie friendly screen. If this feature is important for your shooting style, check here the list of Best Compact Cameras with Selfie Friendly LCD screen.

SX130 IS doesn't have a viewfinder and no option for external viewfinder. Lack of a viewfinder can be problematic especially under strong light where visibility of LCD screens goes down dramatically. If you need a Compact camera with a built-in viewfinder in a similar price range, consider Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS100 (Lumix DMC-TZ100) (Compare) or Nikon Coolpix P7800 (Compare).
Alternatively, check here the list of all Compact cameras with viewfinder..

Canon SX130 IS Connectivity, Storage and Battery

Canon SX130 IS has a USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) port to connect your camera to other devices.

Canon SX130 IS Features Compared to Main Competitors

Model	Max Video	Battery Life	Wi-fi	Bluetooth	NFC
Canon SX150 IS Compare	1280 x 720	130shots	No	No	No
Canon SX160 IS Compare	1280 x 720	380shots	No	No	No
Canon SX120 IS Compare	640 x 480	shots	No	No	No
Canon SX170 IS Compare	1280 x 720	300shots	No	No	No
Canon SX210 IS Compare	1280 x 720	shots	No	No	No
Canon G12 Compare	1280 x 720	370shots	No	No	No
Canon SX200 IS Compare	1280 x 720	shots	No	No	No
Canon SX30 IS Compare	1280 x 720	shots	No	No	No

Canon SX130 IS Video Features

With Canon SX130 IS, you can record your videos at a highest resolution of 1280 x 720 at 30 fps and save in and H.264 formats. 1280 x 720 is a low video resolution by todays standards. If video quality is important for you, we recommend you to look at cameras with Full HD, even better 4K / Ultra-HD resolution .

SX130 IS has a built-in Stereo microphone but no speaker. On the other hand, Canon SX130 IS doesn't have any connections for external microphones and headphones. If you need a Compact camera with external microphone connectivity, consider or in a similar price range.

Canon SX130 IS Other Features

Max Shutter speed

Canon SX130 IS can shoot continuously at max speed of 1 fps and has max shutter speed of 1/2500 sec.

Flash

Unfortunately SX130 IS doesn't have an external flash shoe so you are limited with the built-in flash.

Focusing

Canon SX130 IS features a Contrast Detection autofocusing system.

What type of Photography is Canon SX130 IS Good for?

In this section, we review and score Canon SX130 IS in 5 different photography areas.

Canon SX130 IS for Portrait Photography

Canon SX130 IS has a score of 27 for Portrait Photography which makes it a POOR candidate for this type of photography. If Portrait We strongly recommend you to check our Top Compact Cameras for Portrait Photography list and consider these alternatives over theSX130 IS.

Image Stabilization
Manual Focus Mode
Manual Exposure Mode
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor

No RAW shooting capability
No External Flash Shoe
No Built-in Viewfinder
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling

Read the details of how we scored Canon SX130 IS for Portrait Photography

Canon SX130 IS for Street Photography

Canon SX130 IS has a score of 60 for Street Photography which makes it a GOOD candidate for this type of photography. If you are looking for a camera that is better suited to Street Photography, we recommend you to check our Top 10 Compact Cameras for Street Photography list.

Manual Focus Mode
Live-view
Image Stabilization
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage

Small Body
No Built-in Viewfinder
No RAW shooting capability
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor

Read the details of how we scored Canon SX130 IS for Street Photography

Canon SX130 IS for Sports Photography

Canon SX130 IS has a score of 21 for Sports Photography which makes it a POOR candidate for this type of photography. If Sports We strongly recommend you to check our Top Compact Cameras for Sports Photography list and consider these alternatives over theSX130 IS.

Manual Exposure Mode
Manual Focus Mode
Image Stabilization
336 mm Tele Lens
Average Max shutter speed: 1/2500s
Slow Continuous Shooting: 1.0fps

Environmental Sealings
Unknown Focus Points
Not so good Ergonomics&Handling
No Built-in Viewfinder
No External Flash Shoe
No RAW shooting capability

Read the details of how we scored Canon SX130 IS for Sports Photography

Canon SX130 IS for Daily Photography

Canon SX130 IS has a score of 60 for Daily Photography which makes it a GOOD candidate for this type of photography. If you are looking for a camera that is better suited to Daily Photography, we recommend you to check our Top 10 Compact Cameras for Daily Photography list.

Compact Body
12.0X Optical Zoom
308g

Body Thickness 46mm
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No RAW shooting capability

Read the details of how we scored Canon SX130 IS for Daily Photography

Canon SX130 IS for Landscape Photography

Canon SX130 IS has a score of 23 for Landscape Photography which makes it a POOR candidate for this type of photography. If Landscape We strongly recommend you to check our Top Compact Cameras for Landscape Photography list and consider these alternatives over theSX130 IS.

Manual Exposure Mode
Manual Focus Mode
28 mm - Good Wide Angle Coverage
Average Resolution Sensor: 12.0MP

No RAW shooting capability
Small 1/2.3" (6.17 x 4.55 mm) sensor
No Environmental Sealings

Read the details of how we scored Canon SX130 IS for Landscape Photography

Canon SX130 IS Alternatives

In this section, we analyse how Canon SX130 IS compares with other Compact cameras within a similar price range.

Read a more detailed analysis of Canon SX130 IS alternatives.

Popular Comparisons of Canon SX130 IS

Here is the eight most popular comparisons of Canon SX130 IS amongst Camera Decision readers.

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Canon SX130 IS Alternatives in Cameras

It would also be interesting to compare Canon SX130 IS with Cameras. Below we have listed 4 highest ranked cameras in Canon SX130 IS's price range.

Canon SX130 IS Conclusion and Scores

Currently, Canon SX130 IS has an Overall Score of 36/100 which is based on our evaluation of 69 different technical parameters. Our scores are dynamically updated whenever a new camera is added to our database or when we change our ranking algorithm and the maximum score is always 100. Canon PowerShot SX130 IS is ranked #281 out of 631 in Compact cameras (Top 20 Compact), and ranked #881 out of 1240 in all Cameras (Top 20 Overall).

#881 out of 1240 in Top Ranking Cameras
#281 out of 631 in Top Ranking Compact Cameras
#204 out of 245 in Top Ranking Small Sensor Superzoom Cameras
#360 out of 740 in Top Ranking Small Sensor Sensor Cameras
#496 out of 536 in Lightest Compact Cameras with Small Sensor sensor(308g)
#551 out of 917 in Top Ranking Cameras with Fixed Type Screen

Main Scores

Imaging

Features

Value for Money

Portability

Overall Score

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Frequently Asked Questions about Canon SX130 IS

Does the Canon SX130 IS have Image Stabilization?
Does the Canon SX130 IS have RAW support?
Does the Canon SX130 IS have Weather Sealing?
Does the Canon SX130 IS have built-in GPS?
What is the Max ISO of Canon SX130 IS?
What is the Sensor Size of Canon SX130 IS?
is the Canon SX130 IS a Full Frame (FF) camera?
Does the Canon SX130 IS have Touch Screen?
Does the Canon SX130 IS have built-in Wireless?
What is the Max Continuous Shooting Speed (fps) of Canon SX130 IS?
What is the Weight of Canon SX130 IS?
What are the Dimensions of Canon SX130 IS?

Canon PowerShot SX130 IS Detailed Specifications

General
Brand	Canon
Model	Canon PowerShot SX130 IS
Announced	2010-08-19
Body Type	Compact
Lens
Manual Focus
Lens Mount	fixed lens
Lens Focal Range	28-336 mm (12×)
Max Aperture	F3.4-5.6
Macro Focus Range	1cm
Screen
Screen Type	Fixed Type
Screen Size	3.00"
Screen Resolution	230k dots
Live View
Touch Screen
Viewfinder
Viewfinder	None
Viewfinder Resolution	no electronic viewfinder
Viewfinder Coverage	n/a
Viewfinder Magnification	n/a
Photography Features
Min Shutter Speed	15s
Max Mechanical Shutter Speed	1/2500s
Continuous Shooting	1.0 fps
Shutter Priority
Aperture Priority
Manual Exposure Mode
Exposure Compensation	Yes
Custom White Balance
Image Stabilization
Built-in Flash
Flash Range	3.00 m
Flash Modes	Auto, On, Off, Red-Eye, Slow Sync
External Flash
AE Bracketing
WB Bracketing
Exposure Modes
Multi-Segment
Average
Spot
Partial
AF-Area
Center Weighted
DxO Sensor Scores
DxO Overall Score	not tested
DxO Color Depth	not tested
DxO Dynamic Range	not tested
DxO Low Light ISO	not tested
	Report a correction

Sensor
Sensor Type	CCD
Sensor Size	1/2.3-inch
Sensor Dimensions	6.17 x 4.55 mm
Sensor Area	28.07mm²
Sensor Resolution	12 megapixels
Max Image Resolution	4000 x 3000
Max Native ISO	1,600
Min Native ISO	80
RAW Support
Autofocus
AF Touch
AF Continuous
AF Single
AF Tracking
AF Selective
AF Center
AF Multi Area
AF Live View
AF Face Detection
AF Contrast Detection
AF Phase Detection
Number of Focus Points	Unknown
Number of Cross Focus Points	0
Video Features
Video Resolutions	1280 x 720 (30 fps), 640 x 480 (30 fps), 320 x 240 (30 fps), 160 x 120 (15 fps)
Max Video Resolution	1280 x 720
Video Formats	H.264
Microphone Port
Headphone Port
Connectivity
Wireless Connectivity	None
HDMI
USB	USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
Physical
Environmental Sealing
Water Proof
Dust Proof
Shock Proof
Crush Proof
Freeze Proof
Weight	308g
Physical Dimensions	113 x 73 x 46mm
Battery Model	2 x AA
Other Features
Self Timer	Yes (2 or 10 sec, Custom)
Timelapse Recording
GPS	None
Storage Type	SD/SDHC/SDXC/MMC/MMCplus/HC MMCplus
Storage Slots	1

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