Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 VII vs. Panasonic Lumix DC-LX100 II

Comparison

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Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 VII image
vs
Lumix DC-LX100 II image
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 VII Panasonic Lumix DC-LX100 II
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Megapixels
20.10
17.00
Max. image resolution
5472 x 3648
4736 x 3552

Sensor

Sensor type
CMOS
CMOS
Sensor size
13.2 x 8.8 mm
Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm)
Sensor resolution
5492 x 3661
4755 x 3575
Diagonal
15.86 mm
21.64 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 : 1.94
(ratio)
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 VII Panasonic Lumix DC-LX100 II
Surface area:
116.16 mm² vs 224.90 mm²
Difference: 108.74 mm² (94%)
Lumix DC-LX100 II sensor is approx. 1.94x bigger than RX100 VII sensor.
Pixel pitch
2.4 µm
3.64 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: 1.24 µm (52%)
Pixel pitch of Lumix DC-LX100 II is approx. 52% higher than pixel pitch of RX100 VII.
Pixel area
5.76 µm²
13.25 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: 7.49 µm² (130%)
A pixel on Panasonic Lumix DC-LX100 II sensor is approx. 130% bigger than a pixel on Sony RX100 VII.
Pixel density
17.31 MP/cm²
7.55 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: 9.76 µm (129%)
Sony RX100 VII has approx. 129% higher pixel density than Panasonic Lumix DC-LX100 II.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Sony RX100 VII
Panasonic Lumix DC-LX100 II
Crop factor
2.73
2
Total megapixels
21.77
Effective megapixels
20.10
17.00
Optical zoom
8x
3.1x
Digital zoom
Yes
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 125-12800 (extends to 64-25600)
Auto, 200-25600 (extendable to 100)
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
8 cm
50 cm
Macro focus range
3 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
24 - 200 mm
24 - 75 mm
Aperture priority
Yes
Yes
Max. aperture
f2.8 - f4.5
f1.7 - f2.8
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f7.6 - f12.3
f3.4 - f5.6
Metering
Multi, Center-weighted, Highlight-weighted, Average, Spot
Multi, Center-weighted, Spot
Exposure compensation
±3 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±5 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
Yes
Yes
Min. shutter speed
30 sec
60 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/2000 sec
1/16000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
Electronic
Electronic
White balance presets
8
5
Screen size
3"
3"
Screen resolution
921,600 dots
1,240,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
3840x2160 (30p/​25p/​24p)
3840x2160 (30p/24p)
Storage types
SD/ SDHC/SDXC, MS Pro Duo
SD/SDHC/SDXC
USB
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
NP-BX1 lithium-ion battery
Li-ion Battery Pack
Weight
302 g
392 g
Dimensions
101.6 x 58.1 x 42.8 mm
115 x 66.2 x 64.2 mm
Year
2019
2018




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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

Sony RX100 VII diagonal

w = 13.20 mm
h = 8.80 mm
Diagonal =  13.20² + 8.80²   = 15.86 mm

Panasonic Lumix DC-LX100 II diagonal

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


Surface area

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

RX100 VII sensor area

Width = 13.20 mm
Height = 8.80 mm

Surface area = 13.20 × 8.80 = 116.16 mm²

Lumix DC-LX100 II sensor area

Width = 17.30 mm
Height = 13.00 mm

Surface area = 17.30 × 13.00 = 224.90 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

RX100 VII pixel pitch

Sensor width = 13.20 mm
Sensor resolution width = 5492 pixels
Pixel pitch =   13.20  × 1000  = 2.4 µm
5492

Lumix DC-LX100 II pixel pitch

Sensor width = 17.30 mm
Sensor resolution width = 4755 pixels
Pixel pitch =   17.30  × 1000  = 3.64 µm
4755


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

RX100 VII pixel area

Pixel pitch = 2.4 µm

Pixel area = 2.4² = 5.76 µm²

Lumix DC-LX100 II pixel area

Pixel pitch = 3.64 µm

Pixel area = 3.64² = 13.25 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

RX100 VII pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 5492 pixels
Sensor width = 1.32 cm

Pixel density = (5492 / 1.32)² / 1000000 = 17.31 MP/cm²

Lumix DC-LX100 II pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 4755 pixels
Sensor width = 1.73 cm

Pixel density = (4755 / 1.73)² / 1000000 = 7.55 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

RX100 VII sensor resolution

Sensor width = 13.20 mm
Sensor height = 8.80 mm
Effective megapixels = 20.10
r = 13.20/8.80 = 1.5
X =  20.10 × 1000000  = 3661
1.5
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3661 × 1.5 = 5492
Resolution vertical: X = 3661

Sensor resolution = 5492 x 3661

Lumix DC-LX100 II sensor resolution

Sensor width = 17.30 mm
Sensor height = 13.00 mm
Effective megapixels = 17.00
r = 17.30/13.00 = 1.33
X =  17.00 × 1000000  = 3575
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 3575 × 1.33 = 4755
Resolution vertical: X = 3575

Sensor resolution = 4755 x 3575


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


RX100 VII crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 15.86 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 2.73
15.86

Lumix DC-LX100 II crop factor

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

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).

RX100 VII equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 2.73
Aperture = f2.8 - f4.5

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8 - f4.5) × 2.73 = f7.6 - f12.3

Lumix DC-LX100 II equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 2
Aperture = f1.7 - f2.8

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f1.7 - f2.8) × 2 = f3.4 - f5.6

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