Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX1 vs. Leica X2

Comparison

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Cyber-shot DSC-RX1 image
vs
X2 image
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX1 Leica X2
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Megapixels
24.30
16.20
Max. image resolution
6000 x 4000
4928 x 3264

Sensor

Sensor type
CMOS
CMOS
Sensor size
35.8 x 23.9 mm
23.6 x 15.8 mm
Sensor resolution
6038 x 4025
4913 x 3297
Diagonal
43.04 mm
28.40 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
2.29 : 1
(ratio)
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX1 Leica X2
Surface area:
855.62 mm² vs 372.88 mm²
Difference: 482.74 mm² (129%)
RX1 sensor is approx. 2.29x bigger than X2 sensor.
Pixel pitch
5.93 µm
4.8 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: 1.13 µm (24%)
Pixel pitch of RX1 is approx. 24% higher than pixel pitch of X2.
Pixel area
35.16 µm²
23.04 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: 12.12 µm² (53%)
A pixel on Sony RX1 sensor is approx. 53% bigger than a pixel on Leica X2.
Pixel density
2.84 MP/cm²
4.33 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: 1.49 µm (52%)
Leica X2 has approx. 52% higher pixel density than Sony RX1.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Sony RX1
Leica X2
Crop factor
1.01
1.52
Total megapixels
24.70
16.50
Effective megapixels
24.30
16.20
Optical zoom
1x
1x
Digital zoom
Yes
No
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800, 25600
Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12500
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
25 cm
30 cm
Macro focus range
30 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
35 mm
36 mm
Aperture priority
Yes
Yes
Max. aperture
f2.0
f2.8
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f2
f4.3
Metering
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot
Exposure compensation
±3 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±3 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
Yes
Yes
Min. shutter speed
30 sec
30 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/2000 sec
1/2000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
Electronic and Optical (optional)
Electronic (optional)
White balance presets
9
5
Screen size
3"
2.7"
Screen resolution
1,229,000 dots
230,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
SD/SDHC/SDXC, Memory Stick Duo/Pro Duo/Pro-HG Duo
SD/SDHC card
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
Lithium-Ion NP-BX1 battery
Lithium-Ion rechargeable battery
Weight
482 g
345 g
Dimensions
113 x 65 x 70 mm
124 x 69 x 52 mm
Year
2012
2012




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vs

Diagonal

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

Sony RX1 diagonal

w = 35.80 mm
h = 23.90 mm
Diagonal =  35.80² + 23.90²   = 43.04 mm

Leica X2 diagonal

w = 23.60 mm
h = 15.80 mm
Diagonal =  23.60² + 15.80²   = 28.40 mm


Surface area

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

RX1 sensor area

Width = 35.80 mm
Height = 23.90 mm

Surface area = 35.80 × 23.90 = 855.62 mm²

X2 sensor area

Width = 23.60 mm
Height = 15.80 mm

Surface area = 23.60 × 15.80 = 372.88 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

RX1 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 35.80 mm
Sensor resolution width = 6038 pixels
Pixel pitch =   35.80  × 1000  = 5.93 µm
6038

X2 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 23.60 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4913 pixels
Pixel pitch =   23.60  × 1000  = 4.8 µm
4913


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

RX1 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 5.93 µm

Pixel area = 5.93² = 35.16 µm²

X2 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 4.8 µm

Pixel area = 4.8² = 23.04 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

RX1 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 6038 pixels
Sensor width = 3.58 cm

Pixel density = (6038 / 3.58)² / 1000000 = 2.84 MP/cm²

X2 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4913 pixels
Sensor width = 2.36 cm

Pixel density = (4913 / 2.36)² / 1000000 = 4.33 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

RX1 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 35.80 mm
Sensor height = 23.90 mm
Effective megapixels = 24.30
r = 35.80/23.90 = 1.5
X =  24.30 × 1000000  = 4025
1.5
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 4025 × 1.5 = 6038
Resolution vertical: X = 4025

Sensor resolution = 6038 x 4025

X2 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 23.60 mm
Sensor height = 15.80 mm
Effective megapixels = 16.20
r = 23.60/15.80 = 1.49
X =  16.20 × 1000000  = 3297
1.49
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3297 × 1.49 = 4913
Resolution vertical: X = 3297

Sensor resolution = 4913 x 3297


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


RX1 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 43.04 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 1.01
43.04

X2 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 28.40 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 1.52
28.40

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).

RX1 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 1.01
Aperture = f2.0

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.0) × 1.01 = f2

X2 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 1.52
Aperture = f2.8

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8) × 1.52 = f4.3

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