Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P5 vs. Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P12

Comparison

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Cyber-shot DSC-P5 image
vs
Cyber-shot DSC-P12 image
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P5 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P12
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Megapixels
3.34
5.20
Max. image resolution
2048 x 1536
2592 x 1944

Sensor

Sensor type
CCD
CCD
Sensor size
1/1.8" (~ 7.11 x 5.33 mm)
1/1.8" (~ 7.11 x 5.33 mm)
Sensor resolution
2108 x 1585
2629 x 1977
Diagonal
8.89 mm
8.89 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)
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P5 Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P12
Surface area:
37.90 mm² vs 37.90 mm²
Difference: 0 mm² (0%)
P5 and P12 sensors are the same size.
Note: You are comparing cameras of different generations. There is a 3 year gap between Sony P5 (2001) and Sony P12 (2004). All things being equal, newer sensor generations generally outperform the older.
Pixel pitch
3.37 µm
2.7 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: 0.67 µm (25%)
Pixel pitch of P5 is approx. 25% higher than pixel pitch of P12.
Pixel area
11.36 µm²
7.29 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: 4.07 µm² (56%)
A pixel on Sony P5 sensor is approx. 56% bigger than a pixel on Sony P12.
Pixel density
8.79 MP/cm²
13.67 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: 4.88 µm (56%)
Sony P12 has approx. 56% higher pixel density than Sony P5.
To learn about the accuracy of these numbers, click here.



Specs

Sony P5
Sony P12
Crop factor
4.87
4.87
Total megapixels
Effective megapixels
Optical zoom
3x
Yes
Digital zoom
Yes
Yes
ISO sensitivity
Auto, 100, 200, 400
Auto, 100, 200, 400
RAW
Manual focus
Normal focus range
50 cm
50 cm
Macro focus range
10 cm
10 cm
Focal length (35mm equiv.)
39 - 117 mm
38 - 114 mm
Aperture priority
No
No
Max. aperture
f2.8 - f5.6
f2.8 - f5.6
Max. aperture (35mm equiv.)
f13.6 - f27.3
f13.6 - f27.3
Metering
Centre weighted, Spot
Matrix, Spot
Exposure compensation
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
±2 EV (in 1/3 EV steps)
Shutter priority
No
Yes
Min. shutter speed
2 sec
2 sec
Max. shutter speed
1/1000 sec
1/2000 sec
Built-in flash
External flash
Viewfinder
Optical (tunnel)
Optical
White balance presets
5
6
Screen size
1.5"
1.5"
Screen resolution
123,000 dots
123,000 dots
Video capture
Max. video resolution
Storage types
Memory Stick
Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro
USB
USB 1.0
USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec)
HDMI
Wireless
GPS
Battery
InfoLithium (NP-FC10)
InfoLithium
Weight
214 g
206 g
Dimensions
113 x 54 x 36 mm
108 x 51 x 36 mm
Year
2001
2004




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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 P5 diagonal

The diagonal of P5 sensor is not 1/1.8 or 0.56" (14.1 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 8.89 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 7.11 mm
h = 5.33 mm
Diagonal = √  7.11² + 5.33²   = 8.89 mm

Sony P12 diagonal

The diagonal of P12 sensor is not 1/1.8 or 0.56" (14.1 mm) as you might expect, but approximately two thirds of that value - 8.89 mm. If you want to know why, see sensor sizes.

w = 7.11 mm
h = 5.33 mm
Diagonal = √  7.11² + 5.33²   = 8.89 mm


Surface area

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

P5 sensor area

Width = 7.11 mm
Height = 5.33 mm

Surface area = 7.11 × 5.33 = 37.90 mm²

P12 sensor area

Width = 7.11 mm
Height = 5.33 mm

Surface area = 7.11 × 5.33 = 37.90 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

P5 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 7.11 mm
Sensor resolution width = 2108 pixels
Pixel pitch =   7.11  × 1000  = 3.37 µm
2108

P12 pixel pitch

Sensor width = 7.11 mm
Sensor resolution width = 2629 pixels
Pixel pitch =   7.11  × 1000  = 2.7 µm
2629


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

P5 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 3.37 µm

Pixel area = 3.37² = 11.36 µm²

P12 pixel area

Pixel pitch = 2.7 µm

Pixel area = 2.7² = 7.29 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

P5 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 2108 pixels
Sensor width = 0.711 cm

Pixel density = (2108 / 0.711)² / 1000000 = 8.79 MP/cm²

P12 pixel density

Sensor resolution width = 2629 pixels
Sensor width = 0.711 cm

Pixel density = (2629 / 0.711)² / 1000000 = 13.67 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

P5 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 7.11 mm
Sensor height = 5.33 mm
Effective megapixels = 3.34
r = 7.11/5.33 = 1.33
X = √  3.34 × 1000000  = 1585
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 1585 × 1.33 = 2108
Resolution vertical: X = 1585

Sensor resolution = 2108 x 1585

P12 sensor resolution

Sensor width = 7.11 mm
Sensor height = 5.33 mm
Effective megapixels = 5.20
r = 7.11/5.33 = 1.33
X = √  5.20 × 1000000  = 1977
1.33
Resolution horizontal: X × r = 1977 × 1.33 = 2629
Resolution vertical: X = 1977

Sensor resolution = 2629 x 1977


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


P5 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 8.89 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 4.87
8.89

P12 crop factor

Sensor diagonal in mm = 8.89 mm
Crop factor =   43.27  = 4.87
8.89

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).

P5 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 4.87
Aperture = f2.8 - f5.6

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8 - f5.6) × 4.87 = f13.6 - f27.3

P12 equivalent aperture

Crop factor = 4.87
Aperture = f2.8 - f5.6

35-mm equivalent aperture = (f2.8 - f5.6) × 4.87 = f13.6 - f27.3

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