Pentax MX-1 vs. Nikon Coolpix 7600

Comparison

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MX-1 image
vs
Coolpix 7600 image
Pentax MX-1 Nikon Coolpix 7600
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Megapixels
12.00
7.10
Max. image resolution
4000 x 3000
3072 x 2304

Sensor

Sensor type
CMOS
CCD
Sensor size
1/1.7" (~ 7.53 x 5.64 mm)
1/1.8" (~ 7.11 x 5.33 mm)
Sensor resolution
4011 x 2993
3072 x 2310
Diagonal
9.41 mm
8.89 mm
Sensor size comparison
Sensor size is generally a good indicator of the quality of the camera. Sensors can vary greatly in size. As a general rule, the bigger the sensor, the better the image quality.

Bigger sensors are more effective because they have more surface area to capture light. An important factor when comparing digital cameras is also camera generation. Generally, newer sensors will outperform the older.

Learn more about sensor sizes »

Actual sensor size

Note: Actual size is set to screen → change »
vs
1.12 : 1
(ratio)
Pentax MX-1 Nikon Coolpix 7600
Surface area:
42.47 mm² vs 37.90 mm²
Difference: 4.57 mm² (12%)
MX-1 sensor is approx. 1.12x bigger than 7600 sensor.
Note: You are comparing sensors of very different generations. There is a gap of 8 years between Pentax MX-1 (2013) and Nikon 7600 (2005). Eight years is a lot of time in terms of technology, meaning newer sensors are overall much more efficient than the older ones.
Pixel pitch
1.88 µm
2.31 µm
Pixel pitch tells you the distance from the center of one pixel (photosite) to the center of the next. It tells you how close the pixels are to each other.

The bigger the pixel pitch, the further apart they are and the bigger each pixel is. Bigger pixels tend to have better signal to noise ratio and greater dynamic range.
Difference: 0.43 µm (23%)
Pixel pitch of 7600 is approx. 23% higher than pixel pitch of MX-1.
Pixel area
3.53 µm²
5.34 µm²
Pixel or photosite area affects how much light per pixel can be gathered. The larger it is the more light can be collected by a single pixel.

Larger pixels have the potential to collect more photons, resulting in greater dynamic range, while smaller pixels provide higher resolutions (more detail) for a given sensor size.
Relative pixel sizes:
vs
Pixel area difference: 1.81 µm² (51%)
A pixel on Nikon 7600 sensor is approx. 51% bigger than a pixel on Pentax MX-1.
Pixel density
28.37 MP/cm²
18.67 MP/cm²
Pixel density tells you how many million pixels fit or would fit in one square cm of the sensor.

Higher pixel density means smaller pixels and lower pixel density means larger pixels.
Difference: 9.7 µm (52%)
Pentax MX-1 has approx. 52% higher pixel density than Nikon 7600.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Pentax MX-1
Nikon 7600
Crop factor
4.6
4.87
Total megapixels
12.76
7.10
Effective megapixels
12.00
7.10
Optical zoom
4x
3x
Digital zoom
Yes
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800
Auto
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
60 cm
30 cm
Macro focus range
1 cm
4 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
28 - 112 mm
38 - 114 mm
Aperture priority
Yes
No
Max. aperture
f1.8 - f2.5
f2.8 - f4.9
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f8.3 - f11.5
f13.6 - f23.9
Metering
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot
Multi, Center-weighted, Average
Exposure compensation
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
Yes
No
Min. shutter speed
30 sec
4 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/8000 sec
1/2000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
None
Optical (tunnel)
White balance presets
9
6
Screen size
3"
1.8"
Screen resolution
920,000 dots
85,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
SD/SDHC/SDXC
Secure Digital
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
USB 1.0
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
Lithium-Ion D-Li-106 rechargeable battery
AA NiMH (2) batteries included
Weight
391 g
145 g
Dimensions
122 x 61 x 51 mm
85 x 60 x 39 mm
Year
2013
2005




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Diagonal

Diagonal is calculated by the use of Pythagorean theorem:
Diagonal =  w² + h²
where w = sensor width and h = sensor height

Pentax MX-1 diagonal

The diagonal of MX-1 sensor is not 1/1.7 or 0.59" (14.9 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 9.41 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 7.53 mm
h = 5.64 mm
Diagonal =  7.53² + 5.64²   = 9.41 mm

Nikon 7600 diagonal

The diagonal of 7600 sensor is not 1/1.8 or 0.56" (14.1 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 8.89 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 7.11 mm
h = 5.33 mm
Diagonal =  7.11² + 5.33²   = 8.89 mm


Surface area

Surface area is calculated by multiplying the width and the height of a sensor.

MX-1 sensor area

Width = 7.53 mm
Height = 5.64 mm

Surface area = 7.53 × 5.64 = 42.47 mm²

7600 sensor area

Width = 7.11 mm
Height = 5.33 mm

Surface area = 7.11 × 5.33 = 37.90 mm²


Pixel pitch

Pixel pitch is the distance from the center of one pixel to the center of the next measured in micrometers (µm). It can be calculated with the following formula:
Pixel pitch =   sensor width in mm  × 1000
sensor resolution width in pixels

MX-1 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 7.53 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4011 pixels
Pixel pitch =   7.53  × 1000  = 1.88 µm
4011

7600 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 7.11 mm
Sensor resolution width = 3072 pixels
Pixel pitch =   7.11  × 1000  = 2.31 µm
3072


Pixel area

The area of one pixel can be calculated by simply squaring the pixel pitch:
Pixel area = pixel pitch²

You could also divide sensor surface area with effective megapixels:
Pixel area =   sensor surface area in mm²
effective megapixels

MX-1 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 1.88 µm

Pixel area = 1.88² = 3.53 µm²

7600 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 2.31 µm

Pixel area = 2.31² = 5.34 µm²


Pixel density

Pixel density can be calculated with the following formula:
Pixel density =  ( sensor resolution width in pixels )² / 1000000
sensor width in cm

One could also use this formula:
Pixel density =   effective megapixels × 1000000  / 10000
sensor surface area in mm²

MX-1 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4011 pixels
Sensor width = 0.753 cm

Pixel density = (4011 / 0.753)² / 1000000 = 28.37 MP/cm²

7600 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 3072 pixels
Sensor width = 0.711 cm

Pixel density = (3072 / 0.711)² / 1000000 = 18.67 MP/cm²


Sensor resolution

Sensor resolution is calculated from sensor size and effective megapixels. It's slightly higher than maximum (not interpolated) image resolution which is usually stated on camera specifications. Sensor resolution is used in pixel pitch, pixel area, and pixel density formula. For sake of simplicity, we're going to calculate it in 3 stages.

1. First we need to find the ratio between horizontal and vertical length by dividing the former with the latter (aspect ratio). It's usually 1.33 (4:3) or 1.5 (3:2), but not always.

2. With the ratio (r) known we can calculate the X from the formula below, where X is a vertical number of pixels:
(X × r) × X = effective megapixels × 1000000    →   
X =  effective megapixels × 1000000
r
3. To get sensor resolution we then multiply X with the corresponding ratio:

Resolution horizontal: X × r
Resolution vertical: X

MX-1 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 7.53 mm
Sensor height = 5.64 mm
Effective megapixels = 12.00
r = 7.53/5.64 = 1.34
X =  12.00 × 1000000  = 2993
1.34
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 2993 × 1.34 = 4011
Resolution vertical: X = 2993

Sensor resolution = 4011 x 2993

7600 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 7.11 mm
Sensor height = 5.33 mm
Effective megapixels = 7.10
r = 7.11/5.33 = 1.33
X =  7.10 × 1000000  = 2310
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 2310 × 1.33 = 3072
Resolution vertical: X = 2310

Sensor resolution = 3072 x 2310


Crop factor

Crop factor or focal length multiplier is calculated by dividing the diagonal of 35 mm film (43.27 mm) with the diagonal of the sensor.
Crop factor =   43.27 mm
sensor diagonal in mm


MX-1 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 9.41 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 4.6
9.41

7600 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 8.89 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 4.87
8.89

35 mm equivalent aperture

Equivalent aperture (in 135 film terms) is calculated by multiplying lens aperture with crop factor (a.k.a. focal length multiplier).

MX-1 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 4.6
Aperture = f1.8 - f2.5

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f1.8 - f2.5) × 4.6 = f8.3 - f11.5

7600 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 4.87
Aperture = f2.8 - f4.9

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8 - f4.9) × 4.87 = f13.6 - f23.9

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