What is the pixel pitch of the Canon 550D?

The Canon EOS 550D provides 17.9 megapixels from an APS-C sensor. This pixel density gives rise to a size of the individual pixel of 4.31µm.

The pixel size or pixel pitch can be calculated by dividing the sensor area by the pixel count and then taking the square root. In particular, the sensor in the Canon 550D measures 22.3mm in width and 14.9mm in height, so that the total imaging area of the sensor amounts to 332 mm². Moreover, the 550D has 5 184 horizontal pixels and 3 456 vertical pixels, for a total of 17.9 megapixels. Then, the size (height or width) of each individual pixel can be calculated as the square root of the ratio of the sensor area (332 mm²) to the MP count (17 915 904).

Larger pixels provide advantages with respect to gathering light, particularly in low-light situations. Large pixels notably have a better signal to noise ratio, meaning that they can better differentiate between incoming photons and the noisy signals that the internal processes of the camera create. As a result, big pixels are particularly helpful to the photographer when shooting with high ISO settings.

Sensor specs and performance

The table below compares the sensor specs of the Canon 550D to those of several similar cameras. The reported DXO values are indicators of the sensor's imaging quality (higher is better), covering color depth (DXO Portrait), dynamic range (DXO Landscape), and high-ISO noise (DXO Sports). Larger sensor cameras tend to outperform cameras of the same generation that are equipped with a smaller imager. On the other hand, larger sensors are more expensive and require bigger and heavier lenses than smaller light receptors.

Sensor Characteristics

		Camera Model	Sensor Class	Resolution (MP)	Horiz. Pixels	Vert. Pixels	Video Format	DXO Portrait	DXO Landscape	DXO Sports	DXO Overall
1.		Canon 550D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	22.1	11.5	784	66
2.		Canon 500D	APS-C	15.1	4752	3168	1080/20p	21.7	11.5	663	63
3.		Canon 600D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	22.1	11.5	793	65
4.		Canon 650D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	21.7	11.2	722	62
5.		Canon 700D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	21.7	11.2	681	61
6.		Canon 750D	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/30p	22.7	12.0	919	71
7.		Canon 760D	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/30p	22.6	12.0	915	70
8.		Canon 1100D	APS-C	12.2	4272	2848	720/30p	21.9	11.0	755	62
9.		Canon 1200D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	21.9	11.3	724	63
10.		Canon 4000D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	21.9	11.4	695	63
11.		Nikon D5100	APS-C	16.1	4928	3264	1080/30p	23.5	13.6	1183	80

Further information on the sensor in the Canon 550D and the camera's operation can be found in the camera manual.

In the United States, the 550D was initially launched in February 2010 at a price of $699.

Check 550D offers at
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Camera to camera comparisons

In case you would like to check on the differences and similarities with other camera models, just use the search menu below. An an alternative, you can also directly jump to any one of the listed comparisons that were previously generated by the CAM-parator tool.

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