Samsung PL70 vs. Nikon Coolpix A900

Comparison

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PL70 image
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Coolpix A900 image
Samsung PL70 Nikon Coolpix A900
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Megapixels
12.20
20.00
Max. image resolution
4000 x 3000
5184 x 3888

Sensor

Sensor type
CCD
CMOS
Sensor size
1/2.33" (~ 6.08 x 4.56 mm)
1/2.3" (~ 6.16 x 4.62 mm)
Sensor resolution
4029 x 3029
5158 x 3878
Diagonal
7.60 mm
7.70 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 : 1.03
(ratio)
Samsung PL70 Nikon Coolpix A900
Surface area:
27.72 mm² vs 28.46 mm²
Difference: 0.74 mm² (3%)
A900 sensor is slightly bigger than PL70 sensor (only 3% difference).
Note: You are comparing sensors of very different generations. There is a gap of 7 years between Samsung PL70 (2009) and Nikon A900 (2016). 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
1.51 µm
1.19 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: 0.32 µm (27%)
Pixel pitch of PL70 is approx. 27% higher than pixel pitch of A900.
Pixel area
2.28 µm²
1.42 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: 0.86 µm² (61%)
A pixel on Samsung PL70 sensor is approx. 61% bigger than a pixel on Nikon A900.
Pixel density
43.91 MP/cm²
70.11 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: 26.2 µm (60%)
Nikon A900 has approx. 60% higher pixel density than Samsung PL70.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Samsung PL70
Nikon A900
Crop factor
5.69
5.62
Total megapixels
21.14
Effective megapixels
20.00
Optical zoom
Yes
35x
Digital zoom
Yes
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200
Auto, 80-3200
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
80 cm
50 cm
Macro focus range
5 cm
1 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
28 - 144 mm
24 - 840 mm
Aperture priority
No
Yes
Max. aperture
f3.4 - f5.8
f3.4 - f6.9
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f19.3 - f33
f19.1 - f38.8
Metering
Centre weighted, Multi Spot, Spot
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot
Exposure compensation
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
No
Yes
Min. shutter speed
16 sec
8 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/2000 sec
1/4000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
None
None
White balance presets
6
5
Screen size
3"
3"
Screen resolution
230,000 dots
921,600 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
3840x2160 (30p/25p)
Storage types
SDHC, Secure Digital
SD/SDHC/SDXC
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
Li-Ion
EN-EL12 lithium-ion battery
Weight
149 g
298 g
Dimensions
96 x 60 x 24 mm
113 x 66.5 x 39.9 mm
Year
2009
2016




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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

Samsung PL70 diagonal

The diagonal of PL70 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

Nikon A900 diagonal

The diagonal of A900 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
Diagonal = √  6.16² + 4.62²   = 7.70 mm


Surface area

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

PL70 sensor area

Width = 6.08 mm
Height = 4.56 mm

Surface area = 6.08 × 4.56 = 27.72 mm²

A900 sensor area

Width = 6.16 mm
Height = 4.62 mm

Surface area = 6.16 × 4.62 = 28.46 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

PL70 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 6.08 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4029 pixels
Pixel pitch =   6.08  × 1000  = 1.51 µm
4029

A900 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 6.16 mm
Sensor resolution width = 5158 pixels
Pixel pitch =   6.16  × 1000  = 1.19 µm
5158


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

PL70 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 1.51 µm

Pixel area = 1.51² = 2.28 µm²

A900 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 1.19 µm

Pixel area = 1.19² = 1.42 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

PL70 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4029 pixels
Sensor width = 0.608 cm

Pixel density = (4029 / 0.608)² / 1000000 = 43.91 MP/cm²

A900 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 5158 pixels
Sensor width = 0.616 cm

Pixel density = (5158 / 0.616)² / 1000000 = 70.11 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

PL70 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 6.08 mm
Sensor height = 4.56 mm
Effective megapixels = 12.20
r = 6.08/4.56 = 1.33
X = √  12.20 × 1000000  = 3029
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3029 × 1.33 = 4029
Resolution vertical: X = 3029

Sensor resolution = 4029 x 3029

A900 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 6.16 mm
Sensor height = 4.62 mm
Effective megapixels = 20.00
r = 6.16/4.62 = 1.33
X = √  20.00 × 1000000  = 3878
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3878 × 1.33 = 5158
Resolution vertical: X = 3878

Sensor resolution = 5158 x 3878


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


PL70 crop factor

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

A900 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 7.70 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 5.62
7.70

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).

PL70 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 5.69
Aperture = f3.4 - f5.8

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f3.4 - f5.8) × 5.69 = f19.3 - f33

A900 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 5.62
Aperture = f3.4 - f6.9

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f3.4 - f6.9) × 5.62 = f19.1 - f38.8

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