Olympus SP-720UZ vs. Olympus SP 500 UZ
Comparison
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Megapixels
14.40
6.37
Max. image resolution
4288 x 3216
2816 x 2112
Sensor
Sensor type
CMOS
CCD
Sensor size
1/2.3" (~ 6.16 x 4.62 mm)
1/2.5" (~ 5.75 x 4.32 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 »
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 »
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| Olympus SP-720UZ | Olympus SP 500 UZ | |
Surface area:
| 28.46 mm² | vs | 24.84 mm² |
Difference: 3.62 mm² (15%)
SP-720UZ sensor is approx. 1.15x bigger than SP 500 UZ sensor.
Note: You are comparing sensors of very different generations.
There is a gap of 7 years between Olympus SP-720UZ (2012) and Olympus SP 500 UZ (2005).
Seven years is a lot of time in terms
of technology, meaning newer sensors are overall much more
efficient than the older ones.
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.
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.
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.
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: 1.93 µm² (97%)
A pixel on Olympus SP 500 UZ sensor is approx. 97% bigger than a pixel on Olympus SP-720UZ.
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.
Higher pixel density means smaller pixels and lower pixel density means larger pixels.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers,
click here.
Specs
Olympus SP-720UZ
Olympus SP 500 UZ
Total megapixels
Effective megapixels
Optical zoom
Yes
Yes
Digital zoom
Yes
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200
Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
30 cm
60 cm
Macro focus range
5 cm
3 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
26 - 676 mm
38 - 380 mm
Aperture priority
No
Yes
Max. aperture
f3.2 - f5.6
f2.8 - f3.7
Metering
ESP Digital
Centre weighted, ESP Digital, Spot
Exposure compensation
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
No
Yes
Min. shutter speed
15 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/1000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
None
Electronic
White balance presets
7
6
Screen size
2.5"
Screen resolution
460,000 dots
115,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
SDHC, SDXC, Secure Digital
xD Picture card
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
Li-Ion
2x CR-V3, 4x AA
Weight
405 g
285 g
Dimensions
107.4 x 72.6 x 73.2 mm
105.5 x 74.5 x 71.0 mm
Year
2012
2005
Choose cameras to compare
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Diagonal
Diagonal is calculated by the use of Pythagorean theorem:
where w = sensor width and h = sensor height
| Diagonal = √ | w² + h² |
Olympus SP-720UZ diagonal
The diagonal of SP-720UZ sensor is not 1/2.3 or 0.43" (11 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of
that value - 7.7 mm. If you want to know why, see
sensor sizes.
w = 6.16 mm
h = 4.62 mm
w = 6.16 mm
h = 4.62 mm
| Diagonal = √ | 6.16² + 4.62² | = 7.70 mm |
Olympus SP 500 UZ diagonal
The diagonal of SP 500 UZ 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
w = 5.75 mm
h = 4.32 mm
| Diagonal = √ | 5.75² + 4.32² | = 7.19 mm |
Surface area
Surface area is calculated by multiplying the width and the height of a sensor.
SP-720UZ sensor area
Width = 6.16 mm
Height = 4.62 mm
Surface area = 6.16 × 4.62 = 28.46 mm²
Height = 4.62 mm
Surface area = 6.16 × 4.62 = 28.46 mm²
SP 500 UZ sensor area
Width = 5.75 mm
Height = 4.32 mm
Surface area = 5.75 × 4.32 = 24.84 mm²
Height = 4.32 mm
Surface area = 5.75 × 4.32 = 24.84 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 |
SP-720UZ pixel pitch
Sensor width = 6.16 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4376 pixels
Sensor resolution width = 4376 pixels
| Pixel pitch = | 6.16 | × 1000 | = 1.41 µm |
| 4376 |
SP 500 UZ pixel pitch
Sensor width = 5.75 mm
Sensor resolution width = 2910 pixels
Sensor resolution width = 2910 pixels
| Pixel pitch = | 5.75 | × 1000 | = 1.98 µm |
| 2910 |
Pixel area
The area of one pixel can be calculated by simply squaring the pixel pitch:
You could also divide sensor surface area with effective megapixels:
Pixel area = pixel pitch²
You could also divide sensor surface area with effective megapixels:
| Pixel area = | sensor surface area in mm² |
| effective megapixels |
SP-720UZ pixel area
Pixel pitch = 1.41 µm
Pixel area = 1.41² = 1.99 µm²
Pixel area = 1.41² = 1.99 µm²
SP 500 UZ pixel area
Pixel pitch = 1.98 µm
Pixel area = 1.98² = 3.92 µm²
Pixel area = 1.98² = 3.92 µm²
Pixel density
Pixel density can be calculated with the following formula:
One could also use this 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 |
SP-720UZ pixel density
Sensor resolution width = 4376 pixels
Sensor width = 0.616 cm
Pixel density = (4376 / 0.616)² / 1000000 = 50.47 MP/cm²
Sensor width = 0.616 cm
Pixel density = (4376 / 0.616)² / 1000000 = 50.47 MP/cm²
SP 500 UZ pixel density
Sensor resolution width = 2910 pixels
Sensor width = 0.575 cm
Pixel density = (2910 / 0.575)² / 1000000 = 25.61 MP/cm²
Sensor width = 0.575 cm
Pixel density = (2910 / 0.575)² / 1000000 = 25.61 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:
3. To get sensor resolution we then multiply X with the corresponding ratio:
Resolution horizontal: X × r
Resolution vertical: X
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 → |
|
Resolution horizontal: X × r
Resolution vertical: X
SP-720UZ sensor resolution
Sensor width = 6.16 mm
Sensor height = 4.62 mm
Effective megapixels = 14.40
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3290 × 1.33 = 4376
Resolution vertical: X = 3290
Sensor resolution = 4376 x 3290
Sensor height = 4.62 mm
Effective megapixels = 14.40
| r = 6.16/4.62 = 1.33 |
|
Resolution vertical: X = 3290
Sensor resolution = 4376 x 3290
SP 500 UZ sensor resolution
Sensor width = 5.75 mm
Sensor height = 4.32 mm
Effective megapixels = 6.37
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 2188 × 1.33 = 2910
Resolution vertical: X = 2188
Sensor resolution = 2910 x 2188
Sensor height = 4.32 mm
Effective megapixels = 6.37
| r = 5.75/4.32 = 1.33 |
|
Resolution vertical: X = 2188
Sensor resolution = 2910 x 2188
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 |
SP-720UZ crop factor
Sensor diagonal in mm = 7.70 mm
| Crop factor = | 43.27 | = 5.62 |
| 7.70 |
SP 500 UZ crop factor
Sensor diagonal in mm = 7.19 mm
| Crop factor = | 43.27 | = 6.02 |
| 7.19 |
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).
SP-720UZ equivalent aperture
Crop factor = 5.62
Aperture = f3.2 - f5.6
35-mm equivalent aperture = (f3.2 - f5.6) × 5.62 = f18 - f31.5
Aperture = f3.2 - f5.6
35-mm equivalent aperture = (f3.2 - f5.6) × 5.62 = f18 - f31.5
SP 500 UZ equivalent aperture
Crop factor = 6.02
Aperture = f2.8 - f3.7
35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8 - f3.7) × 6.02 = f16.9 - f22.3
Aperture = f2.8 - f3.7
35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8 - f3.7) × 6.02 = f16.9 - f22.3
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