Nikon D2X vs. Nikon D300

Comparison

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D2X image
vs
D300 image
Nikon D2X Nikon D300
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Megapixels
12.20
12.30
Max. image resolution
4288 x 2848
4288 x 2848

Sensor

Sensor type
CMOS
CMOS
Sensor size
23.7 x 15.7 mm
23.6 x 15.8 mm
Sensor resolution
4291 x 2842
4281 x 2873
Diagonal
28.43 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
1 : 1
(ratio)
Nikon D2X Nikon D300
Surface area:
372.09 mm² vs 372.88 mm²
Difference: 0.79 mm² (0.2%)
D300 sensor is slightly bigger than D2X sensor (only 0.2% difference).
Note: You are comparing cameras of different generations. There is a 3 year gap between Nikon D2X (2004) and Nikon D300 (2007). All things being equal, newer sensor generations generally outperform the older.
Pixel pitch
5.52 µm
5.51 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: 0.01 µm (0.2%)
Pixel pitch of D2X is approx. 0.2% higher than pixel pitch of D300.
Pixel area
30.47 µm²
30.36 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: 0.11 µm² (0.4%)
A pixel on Nikon D2X sensor is approx. 0.4% bigger than a pixel on Nikon D300.
Pixel density
3.28 MP/cm²
3.29 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: 0.01 µm (0.3%)
Nikon D300 has approx. 0.3% higher pixel density than Nikon D2X.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Nikon D2X
Nikon D300
Crop factor
1.52
1.52
Total megapixels
12.80
13.10
Effective megapixels
12.20
12.30
Optical zoom
Digital zoom
No
No
ISO sensitivity
100 - 800 in 1, 1/2 or 1/3 EV steps (1600 & 3200 as boost)
200 - 3200 in 1, 1/2 or 1/3 EV steps (100 - 6400 with boost)
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
Macro focus range
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
Aperture priority
Yes
Yes
Max. aperture
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
n/a
n/a
Metering
Multi, Center-weighted, Average
3D Matrix metering II, Centre weighted, Spot
Exposure compensation
±5 EV (in 1/3 EV, 1/2 EV steps)
±5 EV (in 1/3 EV, 1/2 EV, 1 EV steps)
Shutter priority
Yes
Yes
Min. shutter speed
30 sec
30 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/8000 sec
1/8000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
Optical (pentaprism)
Optical (pentaprism)
White balance presets
6
12
Screen size
2.5"
3"
Screen resolution
235,000 dots
920,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
Compact Flash (Type I or II)
CompactFlash type I, CompactFlash type II, Microdrive
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
Nikon EN-EL1 Lithium-Ion included
Lithium-Ion EN-EL3e rechargeable battery
Weight
1200 g
925 g
Dimensions
158 x 150 x 86 mm
147 x 114 x 74 mm
Year
2004
2007




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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 D2X diagonal

w = 23.70 mm
h = 15.70 mm
Diagonal =  23.70² + 15.70²   = 28.43 mm

Nikon D300 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.

D2X sensor area

Width = 23.70 mm
Height = 15.70 mm

Surface area = 23.70 × 15.70 = 372.09 mm²

D300 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

D2X pixel pitch

Sensor width = 23.70 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4291 pixels
Pixel pitch =   23.70  × 1000  = 5.52 µm
4291

D300 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 23.60 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4281 pixels
Pixel pitch =   23.60  × 1000  = 5.51 µm
4281


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

D2X pixel area

Pixel pitch = 5.52 µm

Pixel area = 5.52² = 30.47 µm²

D300 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 5.51 µm

Pixel area = 5.51² = 30.36 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

D2X pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4291 pixels
Sensor width = 2.37 cm

Pixel density = (4291 / 2.37)² / 1000000 = 3.28 MP/cm²

D300 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4281 pixels
Sensor width = 2.36 cm

Pixel density = (4281 / 2.36)² / 1000000 = 3.29 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

D2X sensor resolution

Sensor width = 23.70 mm
Sensor height = 15.70 mm
Effective megapixels = 12.20
r = 23.70/15.70 = 1.51
X =  12.20 × 1000000  = 2842
1.51
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 2842 × 1.51 = 4291
Resolution vertical: X = 2842

Sensor resolution = 4291 x 2842

D300 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 23.60 mm
Sensor height = 15.80 mm
Effective megapixels = 12.30
r = 23.60/15.80 = 1.49
X =  12.30 × 1000000  = 2873
1.49
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 2873 × 1.49 = 4281
Resolution vertical: X = 2873

Sensor resolution = 4281 x 2873


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


D2X crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 28.43 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 1.52
28.43

D300 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).

D2X 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 Nikon D2X, take the aperture of the lens you're using and multiply it with crop factor.

Crop factor for Nikon D2X is 1.52

D300 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 Nikon D300, take the aperture of the lens you're using and multiply it with crop factor.

Crop factor for Nikon D300 is 1.52

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