Canon PowerShot A80 vs. Sony Alpha NEX-7

Comparison

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PowerShot A80 image
vs
Alpha NEX-7 image
Canon PowerShot A80 Sony Alpha NEX-7
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Megapixels
3.90
24.30
Max. image resolution
2272 x 1704
6000 x 4000

Sensor

Sensor type
CCD
CMOS
Sensor size
1/1.8" (~ 7.11 x 5.33 mm)
23.5 x 15.6 mm
Sensor resolution
2277 x 1712
6058 x 4012
Diagonal
8.89 mm
28.21 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 : 9.67
(ratio)
Canon PowerShot A80 Sony Alpha NEX-7
Surface area:
37.90 mm² vs 366.60 mm²
Difference: 328.7 mm² (867%)
Alpha NEX-7 sensor is approx. 9.67x bigger than A80 sensor.
Note: You are comparing sensors of very different generations. There is a gap of 8 years between Canon A80 (2003) and Sony Alpha NEX-7 (2011). 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
3.12 µm
3.88 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: 0.76 µm (24%)
Pixel pitch of Alpha NEX-7 is approx. 24% higher than pixel pitch of A80.
Pixel area
9.73 µm²
15.05 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: 5.32 µm² (55%)
A pixel on Sony Alpha NEX-7 sensor is approx. 55% bigger than a pixel on Canon A80.
Pixel density
10.26 MP/cm²
6.65 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: 3.61 µm (54%)
Canon A80 has approx. 54% higher pixel density than Sony Alpha NEX-7.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Canon A80
Sony Alpha NEX-7
Crop factor
4.87
1.53
Total megapixels
4.10
24.70
Effective megapixels
3.90
24.30
Optical zoom
3x
Digital zoom
Yes
No
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 50, 100, 200, 400
Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800, 16000
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
45 cm
Macro focus range
5 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
38 - 114 mm
Aperture priority
Yes
Yes
Max. aperture
f2.8 - f4.9
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f13.6 - f23.9
n/a
Metering
Centre weighted, Matrix, Spot
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot
Exposure compensation
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±5 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
Yes
Yes
Min. shutter speed
15 sec
30 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/2000 sec
1/4000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
Optical (tunnel)
Electronic
White balance presets
6
6
Screen size
1.5"
3"
Screen resolution
67,000 dots
921,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
CompactFlash type I
SD/SDHC/SDXC/Memory Stick Pro Duo/ Pro-HG Duo
USB
USB 1.0
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
AA (4) batteries (NiMH recommended)
Lithium-Ion NP-FW50 rechargeable battery
Weight
250 g
400 g
Dimensions
103 x 65 x 35 mm
120 x 67 x 43 mm
Year
2003
2011




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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

Canon A80 diagonal

The diagonal of A80 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

Sony Alpha NEX-7 diagonal

w = 23.50 mm
h = 15.60 mm
Diagonal =  23.50² + 15.60²   = 28.21 mm


Surface area

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

A80 sensor area

Width = 7.11 mm
Height = 5.33 mm

Surface area = 7.11 × 5.33 = 37.90 mm²

Alpha NEX-7 sensor area

Width = 23.50 mm
Height = 15.60 mm

Surface area = 23.50 × 15.60 = 366.60 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

A80 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 7.11 mm
Sensor resolution width = 2277 pixels
Pixel pitch =   7.11  × 1000  = 3.12 µm
2277

Alpha NEX-7 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 23.50 mm
Sensor resolution width = 6058 pixels
Pixel pitch =   23.50  × 1000  = 3.88 µm
6058


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

A80 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 3.12 µm

Pixel area = 3.12² = 9.73 µm²

Alpha NEX-7 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 3.88 µm

Pixel area = 3.88² = 15.05 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

A80 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 2277 pixels
Sensor width = 0.711 cm

Pixel density = (2277 / 0.711)² / 1000000 = 10.26 MP/cm²

Alpha NEX-7 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 6058 pixels
Sensor width = 2.35 cm

Pixel density = (6058 / 2.35)² / 1000000 = 6.65 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

A80 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 7.11 mm
Sensor height = 5.33 mm
Effective megapixels = 3.90
r = 7.11/5.33 = 1.33
X =  3.90 × 1000000  = 1712
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 1712 × 1.33 = 2277
Resolution vertical: X = 1712

Sensor resolution = 2277 x 1712

Alpha NEX-7 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 23.50 mm
Sensor height = 15.60 mm
Effective megapixels = 24.30
r = 23.50/15.60 = 1.51
X =  24.30 × 1000000  = 4012
1.51
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 4012 × 1.51 = 6058
Resolution vertical: X = 4012

Sensor resolution = 6058 x 4012


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


A80 crop factor

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

Alpha NEX-7 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 28.21 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 1.53
28.21

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).

A80 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

Alpha NEX-7 equivalent aperture

Aperture is a lens characteristic, so it's calculated only for fixed lens cameras. If you want to know the equivalent aperture for Sony Alpha NEX-7, take the aperture of the lens you're using and multiply it with crop factor.

Crop factor for Sony Alpha NEX-7 is 1.53

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