Canon A580 vs Sony NEX-5

Sony NEX-5 advantages over Canon A580

• Larger sensor
  APS-C vs 1/2.5 inch
  More sensor area. Bigger is (generally) better.
• Bigger pixels
  ~ 5.16 vs 1.76 microns
  Better low-light and dynamic range (all else equal)
• In-camera panoramas
  Yes vs No
  Stitches multiple shots into a panoramic photo
• Tiltable Screen
  Tiltable vs Fixed
  Tilt the screen for shooting flexbility
• RAW file ability
  Yes vs No
  Gives you more flexibility to develop your photos later
• Fast startup
  ~1.00 vs 1.4 sec
  Faster startup lets you catch the moment
• HDMI out
  HDMI out vs None
  Use HDMI output to monitor or review video
• More dots on screen
  922k vs 115k dots
  Can mean greater resolution or a brighter screen
• Hot shoe
  Hot shoe vs None
  Off-camera flashes open new possibilities
• Less shutter lag
  0.44 vs 0.76 sec
  Focus and take a photo quickly (wide angle)
• More pixels
  14.2 vs 8.0 megapixels
  Higher resolution photos
• Longer exposure
  30 vs 15 sec
  Long exposures for night shots
• Bulb shutter
  Bulb vs No bulb
  Hold the shutter open manually for long exposures
• Faster JPEG shooting
  2.7 fps vs 1.0 fps
  Faster JPEG shooting (burst mode)
• Faster shutter
  1/4000 vs 1/2000 sec
  Shoot wide open in bright light
• Higher extended ISO
  12800 vs 1600 ISO
  Higher extended ISO can give more low-light flexibility