Olympus E-10 vs. Olympus E-20

Comparison

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E-10 image
vs
E-20 image
Olympus E-10 Olympus E-20
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Megapixels
3.70
4.90
Max. image resolution
2240 x 1680
2560 x 1920

Sensor

Sensor type
CCD
CCD
Sensor size
2/3" (~ 8.8 x 6.6 mm)
2/3" (~ 8.8 x 6.6 mm)
Sensor resolution
2218 x 1668
2552 x 1919
Diagonal
11.00 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 : 1
(ratio)
Olympus E-10 Olympus E-20
Surface area:
58.08 mm² vs 58.08 mm²
Difference: 0 mm² (0%)
E-10 and E-20 sensors are the same size.
Pixel pitch
3.97 µm
3.45 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: 0.52 µm (15%)
Pixel pitch of E-10 is approx. 15% higher than pixel pitch of E-20.
Pixel area
15.76 µm²
11.9 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: 3.86 µm² (32%)
A pixel on Olympus E-10 sensor is approx. 32% bigger than a pixel on Olympus E-20.
Pixel density
6.35 MP/cm²
8.41 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: 2.06 µm (32%)
Olympus E-20 has approx. 32% higher pixel density than Olympus E-10.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Olympus E-10
Olympus E-20
Crop factor
3.93
3.93
Total megapixels
4.00
5.20
Effective megapixels
3.70
4.90
Optical zoom
4x
4x
Digital zoom
Yes
No
ISO sensitivity
80, 160, 320
80, 160, 320
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
60 cm
60 cm
Macro focus range
20 cm
20 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
35 - 140 mm
35 - 140 mm
Aperture priority
Yes
Yes
Max. aperture
f2.0 - f2.4
f2.0 - f11.0
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f7.9 - f9.4
f7.9 - f43.2
Metering
Centre weighted, ESP Digital, Spot
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot
Exposure compensation
±3 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±3 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
Yes
Yes
Min. shutter speed
30 sec
60 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/640 sec
1/640 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
Optical (tunnel)
Optical (tunnel)
White balance presets
7
5
Screen size
1.8"
1.8"
Screen resolution
114,000 dots
118,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
CompactFlash type I, CompactFlash type II, Microdrive, SmartMedia
SmartMedia, Compact Flash Type I or II
USB
USB 1.0
USB 1.0
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
AA NiMH (4) batteries (supplied)
AA (2) batteries (NiMH recommended)
Weight
1190 g
1190 g
Dimensions
129 x 104 x 161 mm
129 x 161 x 104 mm
Year
2000
2001




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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 E-10 diagonal

The diagonal of E-10 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

Olympus E-20 diagonal

The diagonal of E-20 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.

E-10 sensor area

Width = 8.80 mm
Height = 6.60 mm

Surface area = 8.80 × 6.60 = 58.08 mm²

E-20 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

E-10 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 8.80 mm
Sensor resolution width = 2218 pixels
Pixel pitch =   8.80  × 1000  = 3.97 µm
2218

E-20 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 8.80 mm
Sensor resolution width = 2552 pixels
Pixel pitch =   8.80  × 1000  = 3.45 µm
2552


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

E-10 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 3.97 µm

Pixel area = 3.97² = 15.76 µm²

E-20 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 3.45 µm

Pixel area = 3.45² = 11.9 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

E-10 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 2218 pixels
Sensor width = 0.88 cm

Pixel density = (2218 / 0.88)² / 1000000 = 6.35 MP/cm²

E-20 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 2552 pixels
Sensor width = 0.88 cm

Pixel density = (2552 / 0.88)² / 1000000 = 8.41 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

E-10 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 8.80 mm
Sensor height = 6.60 mm
Effective megapixels = 3.70
r = 8.80/6.60 = 1.33
X = √  3.70 × 1000000  = 1668
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 1668 × 1.33 = 2218
Resolution vertical: X = 1668

Sensor resolution = 2218 x 1668

E-20 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 8.80 mm
Sensor height = 6.60 mm
Effective megapixels = 4.90
r = 8.80/6.60 = 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


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


E-10 crop factor

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

E-20 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).

E-10 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 3.93
Aperture = f2.0 - f2.4

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.0 - f2.4) × 3.93 = f7.9 - f9.4

E-20 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 3.93
Aperture = f2.0 - f11.0

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.0 - f11.0) × 3.93 = f7.9 - f43.2

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