Olympus PEN E-PM1 vs. Olympus XZ-1

Comparison

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PEN E-PM1 image
vs
XZ-1 image
Olympus PEN E-PM1 Olympus XZ-1
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Megapixels
12.30
10.00
Max. image resolution
4032 x 3024
3648 x 2736

Sensor

Sensor type
CMOS
CCD
Sensor size
Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm)
1/1.63" (~ 7.85 x 5.89 mm)
Sensor resolution
4045 x 3041
3647 x 2742
Diagonal
21.64 mm
9.81 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
4.86 : 1
(ratio)
Olympus PEN E-PM1 Olympus XZ-1
Surface area:
224.90 mm² vs 46.24 mm²
Difference: 178.66 mm² (386%)
PEN E-PM1 sensor is approx. 4.86x bigger than XZ-1 sensor.
Pixel pitch
4.28 µm
2.15 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: 2.13 µm (99%)
Pixel pitch of PEN E-PM1 is approx. 99% higher than pixel pitch of XZ-1.
Pixel area
18.32 µm²
4.62 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: 13.7 µm² (297%)
A pixel on Olympus PEN E-PM1 sensor is approx. 297% bigger than a pixel on Olympus XZ-1.
Pixel density
5.47 MP/cm²
21.58 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: 16.11 µm (295%)
Olympus XZ-1 has approx. 295% higher pixel density than Olympus PEN E-PM1.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Olympus PEN E-PM1
Olympus XZ-1
Crop factor
2
4.41
Total megapixels
13.10
Effective megapixels
12.30
10.00
Optical zoom
4x
Digital zoom
No
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, (200 - 1600), 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800
Auto, 100 - 6400
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
60 cm
Macro focus range
1 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
28 - 112 mm
Aperture priority
Yes
Yes
Max. aperture
f1.8 - f2.5
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
n/a
f7.9 - f11
Metering
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot
Centre weighted, ESP Digital, Spot
Exposure compensation
±3 EV (in 1/3 EV, 1/2 EV, 1 EV steps)
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
Yes
Yes
Min. shutter speed
60 sec
Bulb+16min sec
Max. shutter speed
1/4000 sec
1/2000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
Electronic (optional)
Electronic (optional)
White balance presets
8
7
Screen size
3"
3"
Screen resolution
460,000 dots
610,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
SD/SDHC/SDXC
SDHC, SDXC, Secure Digital
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
Lithium-Ion BLS-5 rechargeable battery
Lithium-Ion Li-50B rechargeable battery
Weight
265 g
275 g
Dimensions
110 x 64 x 34 mm
110.6 x 64.8 x 42.3 mm
Year
2011
2011




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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 PEN E-PM1 diagonal

w = 17.30 mm
h = 13.00 mm
Diagonal =  17.30² + 13.00²   = 21.64 mm

Olympus XZ-1 diagonal

The diagonal of XZ-1 sensor is not 1/1.63 or 0.61" (15.6 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 9.81 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 7.85 mm
h = 5.89 mm
Diagonal =  7.85² + 5.89²   = 9.81 mm


Surface area

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

PEN E-PM1 sensor area

Width = 17.30 mm
Height = 13.00 mm

Surface area = 17.30 × 13.00 = 224.90 mm²

XZ-1 sensor area

Width = 7.85 mm
Height = 5.89 mm

Surface area = 7.85 × 5.89 = 46.24 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

PEN E-PM1 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 17.30 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4045 pixels
Pixel pitch =   17.30  × 1000  = 4.28 µm
4045

XZ-1 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 7.85 mm
Sensor resolution width = 3647 pixels
Pixel pitch =   7.85  × 1000  = 2.15 µm
3647


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

PEN E-PM1 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 4.28 µm

Pixel area = 4.28² = 18.32 µm²

XZ-1 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 2.15 µm

Pixel area = 2.15² = 4.62 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

PEN E-PM1 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4045 pixels
Sensor width = 1.73 cm

Pixel density = (4045 / 1.73)² / 1000000 = 5.47 MP/cm²

XZ-1 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 3647 pixels
Sensor width = 0.785 cm

Pixel density = (3647 / 0.785)² / 1000000 = 21.58 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

PEN E-PM1 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 17.30 mm
Sensor height = 13.00 mm
Effective megapixels = 12.30
r = 17.30/13.00 = 1.33
X =  12.30 × 1000000  = 3041
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3041 × 1.33 = 4045
Resolution vertical: X = 3041

Sensor resolution = 4045 x 3041

XZ-1 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 7.85 mm
Sensor height = 5.89 mm
Effective megapixels = 10.00
r = 7.85/5.89 = 1.33
X =  10.00 × 1000000  = 2742
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 2742 × 1.33 = 3647
Resolution vertical: X = 2742

Sensor resolution = 3647 x 2742


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


PEN E-PM1 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 21.64 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 2
21.64

XZ-1 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 9.81 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 4.41
9.81

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).

PEN E-PM1 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 Olympus PEN E-PM1, take the aperture of the lens you're using and multiply it with crop factor.

Crop factor for Olympus PEN E-PM1 is 2

XZ-1 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 4.41
Aperture = f1.8 - f2.5

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f1.8 - f2.5) × 4.41 = f7.9 - f11

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