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Writer's pictureGearlogy Staff

What is MegaPixel? How Important is Megapixel for smartphone?

A megapixel is a unit that describes the resolution of a camera or the images that that camera produces. It is equal to one million pixels, and is represented by the most basic element that comprises an image: a simple dot. The more pixels there are, the bigger the resolution of the image and the more times you can zoom in without ruining the quality of the image through pixilation or the enlargement of the pixels. Having more megapixels also mean having a larger file size.

The number of images that can be stored in a given size of flash memory for the camera is determined by the size of the flash memory and the size of each image in terms of megapixels.

If you only enjoy your photos on your computer screen, or uploading to a photo website to share with friends, you really only need a 1 megapixel camera. That is because your computer monitor is usually about 2000×1000 pixels = 2 megapixels! 4k monitors still only have 8 megapixels. I’d err on the safe side and use a 6 megapixel camera or higher to enable cropping though, as I discuss below.Megapixels are considered one of the most important features of a camera, but this measure is not the only important factor that determines image quality. Megapixels only determine how large the resulting image can be based on the total number of pixels. What actually determines the quality of images captured by a camera is the type and quality of the image sensor. The sensor makes the difference between a good 10-megapixel picture and a bad one.

The megapixel count determines how large the image can be printed without a loss of quality. For example, a 1.3 megapixel cell phone camera can take images that are good for printing of up to 4×3 inches. If the image is blown up beyond that size, image quality degrades dramatically.

Why you might need more megapixels?

But how much room do you really need? If you were to double the image size, that would be more than enough room to crop photos and still have a great looking image on your monitor screen. Now for a 6×4 print, we are up to 4 megapixels.

The other main reason is for the times when you take a photo you are really proud of. You will want to print it as large as possible to show it off! This is where having taken the shot with a 6 megapixels camera can really help!

The Megapixel Marketing Myth!!

But wait, I hear you say, these are incredibly small numbers! Why do camera makers keep making cameras with many more megapixels every year? The answer is simple. They need a reason to convince us in the public that the next model we buy will be a big upgrade from the one they we now. What better way to do it than with a number that steadily increases as camera makers make bigger sensors every year?

So, what is the lesson to be learned from all of this? Megapixels are great. They brought digital photography out of the dark ages and allowed photographers to make digital images that compare to film images. But megapixels are no reason to upgrade your current model. 

Instead Focus on a kind of image you would like to get and consider the limitations of your current camera model. You might need a different lens or a camera body that takes a quicker continuous stream of photos. If you do end up buying a new camera body, do it for reasons other than the fact that you will be getting more megapixels with it.

Hope This Helps!

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 Information Brought To You By Biovolt Corporation.


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