What is the pixel pitch of the Olympus E-1?

The Olympus E-1 provides 4.9 megapixels from a Four Thirds sensor. This pixel density gives rise to a size of the individual pixel of 6.78µm.

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 Olympus E-1 measures 17.3mm in width and 13.0mm in height, so that the total imaging area of the sensor amounts to 225 mm². Moreover, the E-1 has 2 560 horizontal pixels and 1 920 vertical pixels, for a total of 4.9 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 (225 mm²) to the MP count (4 915 200).

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 Olympus E-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.		Olympus E-1	Four Thirds	4.9	2560	1920	none	20.0	9.7	-145	44
2.		Canon 6D Mark II	Full Frame	26.0	6240	4160	1080/60p	24.4	11.9	2862	85
3.		Canon 7D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	22.0	11.7	854	66
4.		Leica Digilux 3	Four Thirds	7.4	3136	2352	none	21.0	10.6	127	53
5.		Nikon D500	APS-C	20.7	5568	3712	4K/30p	24.0	14.0	1324	83
6.		Nikon D610	Full Frame	24.2	6016	4016	1080/30p	25.1	14.4	2925	94
7.		Nikon D7000	APS-C	16.1	4928	3264	1080/24p	23.5	13.9	1167	80
8.		Olympus E-3	Four Thirds	10.0	3648	2736	none	21.6	10.5	571	56
9.		Olympus E-5	Four Thirds	12.2	4032	3024	720/30p	21.6	10.5	519	56
10.		Olympus E-300	Four Thirds	8.0	3264	2448	none	20.4	10.1	-40	48
11.		Olympus E-330	Four Thirds	7.4	3136	2352	none	20.8	10.4	73	52
Note: DXO values in italics represent estimates based on sensor size and age.

Further information on the sensor in the Olympus E-1 and the camera's operation can be found in the camera manual.

In the United States, the E-1 was initially launched in June 2003 at a price of $1,699.

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Camera to camera comparisons

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