Nikon Coolpix 4100 vs. Nikon Coolpix 4300

Comparison

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Coolpix 4100 image
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Coolpix 4300 image
Nikon Coolpix 4100 Nikon Coolpix 4300
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Megapixels
3.90
3.90
Max. image resolution
2288 x 1712
2272 x 1704

Sensor

Sensor type
CCD
CCD
Sensor size
1/2.5" (~ 5.75 x 4.32 mm)
1/1.8" (~ 7.11 x 5.33 mm)
Sensor resolution
2277 x 1712
2277 x 1712
Diagonal
7.19 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 : 1.53
(ratio)
Nikon Coolpix 4100 Nikon Coolpix 4300
Surface area:
24.84 mm² vs 37.90 mm²
Difference: 13.06 mm² (53%)
4300 sensor is approx. 1.53x bigger than 4100 sensor.
Note: You are comparing cameras of different generations. There is a 2 year gap between Nikon 4100 (2004) and Nikon 4300 (2002). All things being equal, newer sensor generations generally outperform the older.
Pixel pitch
2.53 µm
3.12 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: 0.59 µm (23%)
Pixel pitch of 4300 is approx. 23% higher than pixel pitch of 4100.
Pixel area
6.4 µm²
9.73 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: 3.33 µm² (52%)
A pixel on Nikon 4300 sensor is approx. 52% bigger than a pixel on Nikon 4100.
Pixel density
15.68 MP/cm²
10.26 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: 5.42 µm (53%)
Nikon 4100 has approx. 53% higher pixel density than Nikon 4300.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Nikon 4100
Nikon 4300
Crop factor
6.02
4.87
Total megapixels
4.20
4.10
Effective megapixels
3.90
3.90
Optical zoom
3x
3x
Digital zoom
Yes
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto
100, 200, 400
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
50 cm
30 cm
Macro focus range
3 cm
4 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
35 - 105 mm
38 - 114 mm
Aperture priority
No
Yes
Max. aperture
f2.8 - f4.9
f2.8 - f4.9
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f16.9 - f29.5
f13.6 - f23.9
Metering
Multi, Center-weighted, Average
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
4 sec
60 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/3000 sec
1/2000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
Optical (tunnel)
Optical (tunnel)
White balance presets
6
6
Screen size
1.6"
1.5"
Screen resolution
80,000 dots
134,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
SD/MMC card, Internal
CompactFlash type I
USB
USB 1.0
USB 1.0
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
AA (2) batteries (NiMH recommended)
Nikon EN-EL1 Lithium-Ion included
Weight
190 g
235 g
Dimensions
88 x 65 x 38 mm
69 x 95 x 52 mm
Year
2004
2002




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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

Nikon 4100 diagonal

The diagonal of 4100 sensor is not 1/2.5 or 0.4" (10.2 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 7.19 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 5.75 mm
h = 4.32 mm
Diagonal = √  5.75² + 4.32²   = 7.19 mm

Nikon 4300 diagonal

The diagonal of 4300 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.

4100 sensor area

Width = 5.75 mm
Height = 4.32 mm

Surface area = 5.75 × 4.32 = 24.84 mm²

4300 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

4100 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 5.75 mm
Sensor resolution width = 2277 pixels
Pixel pitch =   5.75  × 1000  = 2.53 µm
2277

4300 pixel pitch

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


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

4100 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 2.53 µm

Pixel area = 2.53² = 6.4 µm²

4300 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 3.12 µm

Pixel area = 3.12² = 9.73 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

4100 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 2277 pixels
Sensor width = 0.575 cm

Pixel density = (2277 / 0.575)² / 1000000 = 15.68 MP/cm²

4300 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 2277 pixels
Sensor width = 0.711 cm

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

4100 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 5.75 mm
Sensor height = 4.32 mm
Effective megapixels = 3.90
r = 5.75/4.32 = 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

4300 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


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


4100 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 7.19 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 6.02
7.19

4300 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).

4100 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 6.02
Aperture = f2.8 - f4.9

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8 - f4.9) × 6.02 = f16.9 - f29.5

4300 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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