Which is a better make of truck: Ford or Chevy? You’re bound to get arguments from both sides of the table; the same can be said in regards to CCD (Charged Couples Device) and CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) image sensors. It all comes down to how they collect light data transmitted through the digital camera's lens and convert the light into electrons.
CCD has had a jump-start in the world of digital photography because it's an older technology. CMOS is the newer kid on the block who is making friends quickly. Both sensors can be found in top-range digital cameras today.
The Pros and Cons of CMOS. CMOS sensors are less expensive to manufacture and are more energy efficient, reducing space and power requirements of the digital camera. However, CMOS are less sensitive to light which creates high-noise images.
The Pros and Cons of CCD. CCD sensors create low-noise images and produce high-quality images because the sensor is more sensitive to light. CCD has been around longer, making the technology more established. CCD consumes more power, up to 100 times more so than a comparable CMOS sensor.
So, as you can see, each sensor has its ups and downs. For the average consumer, which should you choose when buying a digital camera? I don’t think it will make much difference. I would suggest focusing more on other features of the camera and leave the image sensors decisions to the manufacturer of the digital camera.
Additional References:
A quick video explaining “What’s the difference between a CCD and CMOS chip?” by Tim Smith
A more in depth guide by the editors of DigitalPhotoPro called Turbo'd Image Sensors
If you’d like to read more on how to choose a digital camera, please read my series of articles on How to Buy a Digital Camera.