Canon PowerShot A800 vs. Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W520

Comparison

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PowerShot A800 image
vs
Cyber-shot DSC-W520 image
Canon PowerShot A800 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W520
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Megapixels
10.00
14.10
Max. image resolution
3648 x 2736

Sensor

Sensor type
CCD
CCD
Sensor size
1/2.3" (~ 6.16 x 4.62 mm)
1/2.3" (~ 6.16 x 4.62 mm)
Sensor resolution
3647 x 2742
4330 x 3256
Diagonal
7.70 mm
7.70 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 »
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1 : 1
(ratio)
Canon PowerShot A800 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W520
Surface area:
28.46 mm² vs 28.46 mm²
Difference: 0 mm² (0%)
A800 and W520 sensors are the same size.
Pixel pitch
1.69 µm
1.42 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: 0.27 µm (19%)
Pixel pitch of A800 is approx. 19% higher than pixel pitch of W520.
Pixel area
2.86 µm²
2.02 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: 0.84 µm² (42%)
A pixel on Canon A800 sensor is approx. 42% bigger than a pixel on Sony W520.
Pixel density
35.05 MP/cm²
49.41 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: 14.36 µm (41%)
Sony W520 has approx. 41% higher pixel density than Canon A800.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Canon A800
Sony W520
Crop factor
5.62
5.62
Total megapixels
10.60
Effective megapixels
10.00
Optical zoom
3.3x
Yes
Digital zoom
Yes
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600
Auto, 100 - 3200
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
45 cm
Macro focus range
1 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
37 - 122 mm
25 - 125 mm
Aperture priority
No
No
Max. aperture
f3.0 - f5.8
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f16.9 - f32.6
n/a
Metering
Centre weighted, Multi-segment, Spot
Centre weighted, Multi-segment, Spot
Exposure compensation
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
Yes
No
Min. shutter speed
15 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/2000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
None
None
White balance presets
6
Screen size
2.5"
2.7"
Screen resolution
115,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
SDHC, SDXC, Secure Digital
Memory Stick Duo, Memory Stick Pro Duo, SDHC, SDXC, Secure Digital
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
2 x AA batteries
Li-Ion
Weight
186 g
108 g
Dimensions
94 x 62 x 31 mm
96.3 x 55.6 x 21.2 mm
Year
2011
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 A800 diagonal

The diagonal of A800 sensor is not 1/2.3 or 0.43" (11 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 7.7 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 6.16 mm
h = 4.62 mm
Diagonal = √  6.16² + 4.62²   = 7.70 mm

Sony W520 diagonal

The diagonal of W520 sensor is not 1/2.3 or 0.43" (11 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 7.7 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 6.16 mm
h = 4.62 mm
Diagonal = √  6.16² + 4.62²   = 7.70 mm


Surface area

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

A800 sensor area

Width = 6.16 mm
Height = 4.62 mm

Surface area = 6.16 × 4.62 = 28.46 mm²

W520 sensor area

Width = 6.16 mm
Height = 4.62 mm

Surface area = 6.16 × 4.62 = 28.46 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

A800 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 6.16 mm
Sensor resolution width = 3647 pixels
Pixel pitch =   6.16  × 1000  = 1.69 µm
3647

W520 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 6.16 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4330 pixels
Pixel pitch =   6.16  × 1000  = 1.42 µm
4330


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

A800 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 1.69 µm

Pixel area = 1.69² = 2.86 µm²

W520 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 1.42 µm

Pixel area = 1.42² = 2.02 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

A800 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 3647 pixels
Sensor width = 0.616 cm

Pixel density = (3647 / 0.616)² / 1000000 = 35.05 MP/cm²

W520 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4330 pixels
Sensor width = 0.616 cm

Pixel density = (4330 / 0.616)² / 1000000 = 49.41 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

A800 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 6.16 mm
Sensor height = 4.62 mm
Effective megapixels = 10.00
r = 6.16/4.62 = 1.33
X = √  10.00 × 1000000  = 2742
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 2742 × 1.33 = 3647
Resolution vertical: X = 2742

Sensor resolution = 3647 x 2742

W520 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 6.16 mm
Sensor height = 4.62 mm
Effective megapixels = 14.10
r = 6.16/4.62 = 1.33
X = √  14.10 × 1000000  = 3256
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3256 × 1.33 = 4330
Resolution vertical: X = 3256

Sensor resolution = 4330 x 3256


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


A800 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 7.70 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 5.62
7.70

W520 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 7.70 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 5.62
7.70

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).

A800 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 5.62
Aperture = f3.0 - f5.8

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f3.0 - f5.8) × 5.62 = f16.9 - f32.6

W520 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 W520, take the aperture of the lens you're using and multiply it with crop factor.

Crop factor for Sony W520 is 5.62

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