What is the crop factor of the Pentax MX-1?

The Pentax MX-1 is equipped with a 1/1.7-inch sensor, whose diagonal measures 9.5mm. The sensor has a crop factor (or format factor, or focal length multiplier) of 4.5.

The crop factor is defined as the ratio of the 35mm full-frame film diagonal to the diagonal of a digital sensor. This number indicates how a lens behaves in relation to the size of the image sensor.

Sensor size comparison with a film slide

With a crop factor of 4.5, the sensor in the Pentax MX-1 is smaller than the receptor area of a 35mm film slide or negative. As a result, the lens that is attached to the Pentax MX-1 will offer a narrower angle of view and provide deeper depth of field than a lens of similar focal length and aperture on a film camera. The equivalent focal length is obtained by multiplying the actual focal length of the lens with the crop factor. For example, a 11mm lens on the Pentax MX-1 will provide the same angle of view and depth of field as a 50mm normal lens on a film camera (11mm * 4.5 = 50mm).

Sensor specs and performance

The table below compares the sensor specs of the Pentax MX-1 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.		Pentax MX-1	1/1.7	12.0	4000	3000	1080/30p	20.4	11.3	208	49
2.		Canon G15	1/1.7	12.0	4000	3000	1080/24p	19.9	11.5	165	46
3.		Canon G16	1/1.7	12.0	4000	3000	1080/60p	21.0	11.7	230	54
4.		Canon SX50	1/2.3	12.0	4000	3000	1080/24p	20.3	11.2	179	47
5.		Fujifilm X10	2/3	12.0	4000	3000	1080/30p	20.5	11.3	245	50
6.		Fujifilm X20	2/3	12.0	4000	3000	1080/60p	20.1	10.9	-462	46
7.		Fujifilm X30	2/3	12.0	4000	3000	1080/60p	20.4	11.2	-312	49
8.		Nikon P7800	1/1.7	12.0	4000	3000	1080/30p	21.2	11.7	200	54
9.		Olympus E-PL2	Four Thirds	12.2	4032	3024	720/30p	21.4	10.2	573	55
10.		Olympus XZ-2	1/1.7	11.8	3968	2976	1080/30p	20.4	11.3	216	49
11.		Panasonic LX7	1/1.7	10.0	3648	2736	1080/60p	20.7	11.7	147	50
Note: DXO values in italics represent estimates based on sensor size and age.

In the United States, the MX-1 was initially launched in January 2013 at a price of $499.

Check MX-1 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 make a corresponding selection in the search boxes 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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