Olympus C-5050 Zoom vs. Olympus XZ-2 iHS

Comparison

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C-5050 Zoom image
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XZ-2 iHS image
Olympus C-5050 Zoom Olympus XZ-2 iHS
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Megapixels
4.90
12.00
Max. image resolution
3200 x 2400
3968 x 2976

Sensor

Sensor type
CCD
CMOS
Sensor size
1/1.8" (~ 7.11 x 5.33 mm)
1/1.7" (~ 7.53 x 5.64 mm)
Sensor resolution
2552 x 1919
4011 x 2993
Diagonal
8.89 mm
9.41 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

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1 : 1.12
(ratio)
Olympus C-5050 Zoom Olympus XZ-2 iHS
Surface area:
37.90 mm² vs 42.47 mm²
Difference: 4.57 mm² (12%)
XZ-2 iHS sensor is approx. 1.12x bigger than C-5050 Zoom sensor.
Note: You are comparing sensors of very different generations. There is a gap of 10 years between Olympus C-5050 Zoom (2002) and Olympus XZ-2 iHS (2012). Ten years is a lot of time in terms of technology, meaning newer sensors are overall much more efficient than the older ones.
Pixel pitch
2.79 µm
1.88 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: 0.91 µm (48%)
Pixel pitch of C-5050 Zoom is approx. 48% higher than pixel pitch of XZ-2 iHS.
Pixel area
7.78 µm²
3.53 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: 4.25 µm² (120%)
A pixel on Olympus C-5050 Zoom sensor is approx. 120% bigger than a pixel on Olympus XZ-2 iHS.
Pixel density
12.88 MP/cm²
28.37 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: 15.49 µm (120%)
Olympus XZ-2 iHS has approx. 120% higher pixel density than Olympus C-5050 Zoom.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Olympus C-5050 Zoom
Olympus XZ-2 iHS
Crop factor
4.87
4.6
Total megapixels
5.20
12.80
Effective megapixels
4.90
12.00
Optical zoom
3x
4x
Digital zoom
Yes
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 64, 100, 200, 400
Auto (100 -1600), 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
80 cm
60 cm
Macro focus range
3 cm
1 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
35 - 105 mm
28 - 112 mm
Aperture priority
Yes
Yes
Max. aperture
f1.8 - f2.6
f1.8 - f2.5
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f8.8 - f12.7
f8.3 - f11.5
Metering
ESP Digital, Multi Spot, Spot
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot
Exposure compensation
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±3 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
Yes
Yes
Min. shutter speed
16 sec
60 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/2000 sec
1/2000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
Optical (tunnel)
Electronic (optional)
White balance presets
7
7
Screen size
1.8"
3"
Screen resolution
114,000 dots
920,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
CompactFlash type I, CompactFlash type II, Microdrive, SmartMedia
SD/SDHC/SDXC
USB
USB 1.0
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
AA (4) batteries (NiMH recommended)
Lithium-Ion Li-90B rechargeable battery
Weight
462 g
346 g
Dimensions
115 x 70 x 80 mm
113 x 65 x 48 mm
Year
2002
2012




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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

Olympus C-5050 Zoom diagonal

The diagonal of C-5050 Zoom 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

Olympus XZ-2 iHS diagonal

The diagonal of XZ-2 iHS sensor is not 1/1.7 or 0.59" (14.9 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 9.41 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 7.53 mm
h = 5.64 mm
Diagonal = √  7.53² + 5.64²   = 9.41 mm


Surface area

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

C-5050 Zoom sensor area

Width = 7.11 mm
Height = 5.33 mm

Surface area = 7.11 × 5.33 = 37.90 mm²

XZ-2 iHS sensor area

Width = 7.53 mm
Height = 5.64 mm

Surface area = 7.53 × 5.64 = 42.47 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

C-5050 Zoom pixel pitch

Sensor width = 7.11 mm
Sensor resolution width = 2552 pixels
Pixel pitch =   7.11  × 1000  = 2.79 µm
2552

XZ-2 iHS pixel pitch

Sensor width = 7.53 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4011 pixels
Pixel pitch =   7.53  × 1000  = 1.88 µm
4011


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

C-5050 Zoom pixel area

Pixel pitch = 2.79 µm

Pixel area = 2.79² = 7.78 µm²

XZ-2 iHS pixel area

Pixel pitch = 1.88 µm

Pixel area = 1.88² = 3.53 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

C-5050 Zoom pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 2552 pixels
Sensor width = 0.711 cm

Pixel density = (2552 / 0.711)² / 1000000 = 12.88 MP/cm²

XZ-2 iHS pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4011 pixels
Sensor width = 0.753 cm

Pixel density = (4011 / 0.753)² / 1000000 = 28.37 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

C-5050 Zoom sensor resolution

Sensor width = 7.11 mm
Sensor height = 5.33 mm
Effective megapixels = 4.90
r = 7.11/5.33 = 1.33
X = √  4.90 × 1000000  = 1919
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 1919 × 1.33 = 2552
Resolution vertical: X = 1919

Sensor resolution = 2552 x 1919

XZ-2 iHS sensor resolution

Sensor width = 7.53 mm
Sensor height = 5.64 mm
Effective megapixels = 12.00
r = 7.53/5.64 = 1.34
X = √  12.00 × 1000000  = 2993
1.34
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 2993 × 1.34 = 4011
Resolution vertical: X = 2993

Sensor resolution = 4011 x 2993


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


C-5050 Zoom crop factor

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

XZ-2 iHS crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 9.41 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 4.6
9.41

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).

C-5050 Zoom equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 4.87
Aperture = f1.8 - f2.6

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f1.8 - f2.6) × 4.87 = f8.8 - f12.7

XZ-2 iHS equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 4.6
Aperture = f1.8 - f2.5

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f1.8 - f2.5) × 4.6 = f8.3 - f11.5

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