Sony RX10 III has a
20.0MP 1″ (13.2 x 8.8 mm ) sized Stacked BSI-CMOS sensor and features Bionz X processor. On the other hand, Nikon D40X has a
10.0MP APS-C (23.7 x 15.6 mm ) sized CCD sensor and features Expeed processor.
Sony RX10 III's sensor provides 10MP more than Nikon D40X's sensor, which gives a significant advantage in real life. You can print your images larger or crop more freely.
On the other hand, please keep in mind that Max sensor resolution is not the only determinant of resolving power. Factors such as the optical elements, low pass filter, pixel size and sensor technology also affects the final resolution of the captured image.
Below you can see the RX10 III and D40X sensor size comparison.
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Sony RX10 III and Nikon D40X Cameras
As seen above, Nikon D40X has a 3.2x Larger sensor area than Sony RX10 III. 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 RX10 III and Nikon D40X 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, RX10 III has scored 70, 7 points higher than D40X.
Model
Overall
Color Depth
Dynamic Range
Low-light ISO
Sony RX10 III
70
23.1 bits
12.6 Evs
472 ISO
Nikon D40X
63
22.4 bits
11.4 Evs
516 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 RX10 III
or the
Nikon D40X ,
including hyperfocal distance.
One thing to watch when comparing these two: they have different sensor sizes
(1″ versus APS-C),
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.
