Both Sony A200 and Nikon 1 J1 have 10.0 MP resolution sensors but Sony A200's sensor is APS-C (23.6 x 15.8 mm ) and Nikon 1 J1's sensor is 1-inch (13.2 x 8.8 mm ).
Since Sony A200'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 J1.
Below you can see the A200 and 1 J1 sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Sony A200 and Nikon 1 J1 Cameras
As seen above, Sony A200 has a 3.2x Larger sensor area than Nikon 1 J1. 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 Sony A200 and Nikon 1 J1 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, A200 has scored 63, 7 points higher than 1 J1.
Model
Overall
Color Depth
Dynamic Range
Low-light ISO
Sony A200
63
22.3 bits
11.3 Evs
521 ISO
Nikon 1 J1
56
21.5 bits
11.0 Evs
372 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
Sony A200
or the
Nikon 1 J1 ,
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.
