Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ9 vs. Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ7

Comparison

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Lumix DMC-SZ9 image
vs
Lumix DMC-SZ7 image
Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ9 Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ7
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Megapixels
16.10
14.10
Max. image resolution
4608 x 3456
4320 x 3240

Sensor

Sensor type
CMOS
CMOS
Sensor size
1/2.33" (~ 6.08 x 4.56 mm)
1/2.33" (~ 6.08 x 4.56 mm)
Sensor resolution
4627 x 3479
4330 x 3256
Diagonal
7.60 mm
7.60 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)
Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ9 Panasonic Lumix DMC-SZ7
Surface area:
27.72 mm² vs 27.72 mm²
Difference: 0 mm² (0%)
SZ9 and SZ7 sensors are the same size.
Pixel pitch
1.31 µm
1.4 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: 0.09 µm (7%)
Pixel pitch of SZ7 is approx. 7% higher than pixel pitch of SZ9.
Pixel area
1.72 µm²
1.96 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: 0.24 µm² (14%)
A pixel on Panasonic SZ7 sensor is approx. 14% bigger than a pixel on Panasonic SZ9.
Pixel density
57.92 MP/cm²
50.72 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: 7.2 µm (14%)
Panasonic SZ9 has approx. 14% higher pixel density than Panasonic SZ7.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Panasonic SZ9
Panasonic SZ7
Crop factor
5.69
5.69
Total megapixels
17.50
15.30
Effective megapixels
16.10
14.10
Optical zoom
10x
10x
Digital zoom
Yes
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, Hi Auto (1600-6400), 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400
Auto, 100 - 3200
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
50 cm
50 cm
Macro focus range
5 cm
5 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
25 - 250 mm
25 - 250 mm
Aperture priority
No
No
Max. aperture
f3.1 - f5.9
f3.1 - f5.9
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f17.6 - f33.6
f17.6 - f33.6
Metering
Multi
Matrix, Multi-segment
Exposure compensation
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
No
No
Min. shutter speed
30 sec
8 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/6000 sec
1/1600 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
None
None
White balance presets
7
7
Screen size
3"
3"
Screen resolution
460,000 dots
460,000 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 rechargeable battery
Lithium-Ion rechargeable battery
Weight
134 g
133 g
Dimensions
96.5 x 56.8 x 21.2 mm
99 x 59 x 21 mm
Year
2013
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

Panasonic SZ9 diagonal

The diagonal of SZ9 sensor is not 1/2.33 or 0.43" (10.9 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 7.6 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 6.08 mm
h = 4.56 mm
Diagonal =  6.08² + 4.56²   = 7.60 mm

Panasonic SZ7 diagonal

The diagonal of SZ7 sensor is not 1/2.33 or 0.43" (10.9 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 7.6 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 6.08 mm
h = 4.56 mm
Diagonal =  6.08² + 4.56²   = 7.60 mm


Surface area

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

SZ9 sensor area

Width = 6.08 mm
Height = 4.56 mm

Surface area = 6.08 × 4.56 = 27.72 mm²

SZ7 sensor area

Width = 6.08 mm
Height = 4.56 mm

Surface area = 6.08 × 4.56 = 27.72 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

SZ9 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 6.08 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4627 pixels
Pixel pitch =   6.08  × 1000  = 1.31 µm
4627

SZ7 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 6.08 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4330 pixels
Pixel pitch =   6.08  × 1000  = 1.4 µm
4330


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

SZ9 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 1.31 µm

Pixel area = 1.31² = 1.72 µm²

SZ7 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 1.4 µm

Pixel area = 1.4² = 1.96 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

SZ9 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4627 pixels
Sensor width = 0.608 cm

Pixel density = (4627 / 0.608)² / 1000000 = 57.92 MP/cm²

SZ7 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4330 pixels
Sensor width = 0.608 cm

Pixel density = (4330 / 0.608)² / 1000000 = 50.72 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

SZ9 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 6.08 mm
Sensor height = 4.56 mm
Effective megapixels = 16.10
r = 6.08/4.56 = 1.33
X =  16.10 × 1000000  = 3479
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3479 × 1.33 = 4627
Resolution vertical: X = 3479

Sensor resolution = 4627 x 3479

SZ7 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 6.08 mm
Sensor height = 4.56 mm
Effective megapixels = 14.10
r = 6.08/4.56 = 1.33
X =  14.10 × 1000000  = 3256
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3256 × 1.33 = 4330
Resolution vertical: X = 3256

Sensor resolution = 4330 x 3256


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


SZ9 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 7.60 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 5.69
7.60

SZ7 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 7.60 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 5.69
7.60

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).

SZ9 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 5.69
Aperture = f3.1 - f5.9

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f3.1 - f5.9) × 5.69 = f17.6 - f33.6

SZ7 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 5.69
Aperture = f3.1 - f5.9

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f3.1 - f5.9) × 5.69 = f17.6 - f33.6

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