Tag Archives: dslr

Small sensors aren’t good. They require a higher pixel density for the same picture quality, or offer a lower picture quality compared to larger sensors. Here is now Nikon’s “System 1″ sensors stack up to the competition:

SLR sensor sizes:
full frame: 36 x 24mm
canon DSLR 1.6x crop: 22.3 x 14.9 mm
nikon DSLR 1.5x crop: 23.6 x 15.7 mm

mirrorless sensor sizes:
sony mirrorless 1.5 crop: 23.5 x 15.6 mm
four thirds 2x crop: 17.3 x 13 mm
nikon 1 2.7x crop (CX): 13.2mm x 8.8mm

point and shoot sensor sizes:
canon s100: 7.49 x 5.52 mm
panny lx5: 7.89 x 5.81 mm
canon hs100: 6.17 x 4.55 mm

While larger than point-and-shoot sensors, it is the smallest, by far, of the mirrorless sensor sizes. Disappointing.

It’s important to note that Sony’s mirrorless system uses sensors as large as the common DSLR sensors (1.5x crop factor). That’s great – however Sony’s prices are high enough that it competes directly to full DSLRs.

The sweet spot is Olympus’ upcoming E-PM1 (aka the PEN mini). At $500 which includes a lens and an external flash, it’s a great deal. It also is the smallest and cheapest mirrorless camera.

Update: I found the new CX sensor size documented on wikipedia:

Nikon introduced their mirrorless camera system today at midnight. The J1 and V1 are 10MP, 2.7x crop factor cameras using a new interchangable lens system. Honestly, even as a Nikon shooter, the specs leave me very disappointed. First, the price, is far higher than most mirrorless systems from Sony, Panasonic and Olympus – especially given Olympus’ new E-PM1 that is $500 incl. lens. Moreover, the sensor is very disappointing – the very high crop factor (meaning a very small sensor) won’t impress anyone, especially Sony who uses a full APS-C sized sensor in their flagship mirrorless camera. The sensor also has a max ISO of 3200, well below every single mirrorless offering out there. I do not expect strong sales of these cameras – it is a baby step intended to protect their DSLR investment, nothing more.