Both Pentax K-m and Nikon 1 V1 have 10.0 MP resolution sensors but Pentax K-m's sensor is APS-C (23.5 x 15.7 mm ) and Nikon 1 V1's sensor is 1-inch (13.2 x 8.8 mm ).
Since Pentax K-m's has a larger sensor area with the same resolution, this means that it also has a larger pixel area hence better light collecting capacity for a given aperture compared to Nikon 1 V1.
Below you can see the K-m and 1 V1 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Pentax K-m and Nikon 1 V1 Cameras
As seen above, Pentax K-m has a 3.2x Larger sensor area than Nikon 1 V1. Larger sensors give photographer more control on the depth of field and blurry background compared to smaller sensor when shot in same focal length and aperture.
DxOMark Sensor Scores
Both Pentax K-m and Nikon 1 V1 sensors have been tested by DxoMark. DxoMark scores camera sensors for color depth (DXO Portrait), dynamic range (DXO Landscape) and low-light sensitivity (DXO Sports), and also gives them an overall score. Of the two cameras that we are comparing, K-m has scored 64, 10 points higher than 1 V1.
Model
Overall
Color Depth
Dynamic Range
Low-light ISO
Pentax K-m
64
22.4 bits
11.4 Evs
513 ISO
Nikon 1 V1
54
21.3 bits
11.0 Evs
346 ISO
Sensor size sets the circle of confusion, so it drives how much depth of field each
of these bodies gives you at a given aperture. You can calculate it exactly for the
Pentax K-m
or the
Nikon 1 V1 ,
including hyperfocal distance.
One thing to watch when comparing these two: they have different sensor sizes
(APS-C versus 1-inch),
so compare them at the same framing rather than the same focal length.
Put the same focal length on the smaller sensor and it will show less depth of
field, not more, because it also crops tighter. The calculator shows the
full frame equivalent focal length for each body so you can match the framing.
