Canon PowerShot SD3500 IS vs. Nikon Coolpix 8800

Comparison

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PowerShot SD3500 IS image
vs
Coolpix 8800 image
Canon PowerShot SD3500 IS Nikon Coolpix 8800
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Megapixels
14.10
8.00
Max. image resolution
4320 x 3240
3264 x 2448

Sensor

Sensor type
CCD
CCD
Sensor size
1/2.3" (~ 6.16 x 4.62 mm)
2/3" (~ 8.8 x 6.6 mm)
Sensor resolution
4330 x 3256
3262 x 2453
Diagonal
7.70 mm
11.00 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 : 2.04
(ratio)
Canon PowerShot SD3500 IS Nikon Coolpix 8800
Surface area:
28.46 mm² vs 58.08 mm²
Difference: 29.62 mm² (104%)
8800 sensor is approx. 2.04x bigger than SD3500 IS sensor.
Note: You are comparing sensors of very different generations. There is a gap of 6 years between Canon SD3500 IS (2010) and Nikon 8800 (2004). Six years is a lot of time in terms of technology, meaning newer sensors are overall much more efficient than the older ones.
Pixel pitch
1.42 µm
2.7 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: 1.28 µm (90%)
Pixel pitch of 8800 is approx. 90% higher than pixel pitch of SD3500 IS.
Pixel area
2.02 µm²
7.29 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: 5.27 µm² (261%)
A pixel on Nikon 8800 sensor is approx. 261% bigger than a pixel on Canon SD3500 IS.
Pixel density
49.41 MP/cm²
13.74 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: 35.67 µm (260%)
Canon SD3500 IS has approx. 260% higher pixel density than Nikon 8800.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Canon SD3500 IS
Nikon 8800
Crop factor
5.62
3.93
Total megapixels
14.50
8.30
Effective megapixels
14.10
8.00
Optical zoom
5x
10x
Digital zoom
Yes
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600
Auto, 50, 100, 200, 400
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
50 cm
50 cm
Macro focus range
3 cm
3 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
24 - 120 mm
35 - 350 mm
Aperture priority
No
Yes
Max. aperture
f2.8 - f5.9
f2.8 - f5.2
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f15.7 - f33.2
f11 - f20.4
Metering
Centre weighted, Evaluative, Spot
256-segment Matrix, Centre weighted, Spot, Spot-AF
Exposure compensation
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
No
Yes
Min. shutter speed
15 sec
8 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/3000 sec
1/8000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
None
Electronic
White balance presets
5
7
Screen size
3.5"
1.8"
Screen resolution
461,000 dots
134,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
SDHC, SDXC, Secure Digital
CompactFlash type I, CompactFlash type II, Microdrive
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
USB 1.0
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
Lithium-Ion NB-6L battery
Nikon EN-EL1 Lithium-Ion included
Weight
160 g
600 g
Dimensions
99.3 x 55.7 x 22.0 mm
116 x 85 x 121 mm
Year
2010
2004




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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

Canon SD3500 IS diagonal

The diagonal of SD3500 IS 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

Nikon 8800 diagonal

The diagonal of 8800 sensor is not 2/3 or 0.67" (16.9 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 11 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 8.80 mm
h = 6.60 mm
Diagonal =  8.80² + 6.60²   = 11.00 mm


Surface area

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

SD3500 IS sensor area

Width = 6.16 mm
Height = 4.62 mm

Surface area = 6.16 × 4.62 = 28.46 mm²

8800 sensor area

Width = 8.80 mm
Height = 6.60 mm

Surface area = 8.80 × 6.60 = 58.08 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

SD3500 IS pixel pitch

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

8800 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 8.80 mm
Sensor resolution width = 3262 pixels
Pixel pitch =   8.80  × 1000  = 2.7 µm
3262


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

SD3500 IS pixel area

Pixel pitch = 1.42 µm

Pixel area = 1.42² = 2.02 µm²

8800 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 2.7 µm

Pixel area = 2.7² = 7.29 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

SD3500 IS pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4330 pixels
Sensor width = 0.616 cm

Pixel density = (4330 / 0.616)² / 1000000 = 49.41 MP/cm²

8800 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 3262 pixels
Sensor width = 0.88 cm

Pixel density = (3262 / 0.88)² / 1000000 = 13.74 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

SD3500 IS 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

8800 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 8.80 mm
Sensor height = 6.60 mm
Effective megapixels = 8.00
r = 8.80/6.60 = 1.33
X =  8.00 × 1000000  = 2453
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 2453 × 1.33 = 3262
Resolution vertical: X = 2453

Sensor resolution = 3262 x 2453


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


SD3500 IS crop factor

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

8800 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 11.00 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 3.93
11.00

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).

SD3500 IS equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 5.62
Aperture = f2.8 - f5.9

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8 - f5.9) × 5.62 = f15.7 - f33.2

8800 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 3.93
Aperture = f2.8 - f5.2

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8 - f5.2) × 3.93 = f11 - f20.4

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