I’ve written about DxO labs before, most recently their filmpack 3 software. I’ve also used their illuminating DxOMark sensor tests and comparisons before. The Nikon 1 has just been tested, and here’s the overview link:
http://www.dxomark.com/index.php/News/DxOMark-news/Nikon-1-series-The-tests
The results are interesting:
1. Nikon 1 vs quality digicams
The Nikon 1 walks all over these guys, in the tell-tale comparisons of dynamic range and low light shooting.
2. Nikon 1 vs Panasonic M43 and Sony NEX
The Sony NEX-C3 with its APS-C size sensor walks away with this contest, but the Nikon beats the Panny in dynamic range and colour depth. Predictably, it loses the low light contest but gets the same overall score as the G3. That’s a surprise.
3. Nikon 1 vs Olympus PEN
Another surprise, the Nikon 1 level-pegging with the E-PL2 – the very latest PENs have not yet been tested but the sensor hasn’t changed to the best of my knowledge. And this old M43 sensor is letting both the Panny and the Oly M43 cameras down. It was the poor dynamic range that put me off a while back with the Panny GF1, and the problem remains http://briard.typepad.com/get_the_picture/2011/01/panasonic-lumix-dmc-gf1-evil-can-be-fun.html
http://briard.typepad.com/get_the_picture/2011/02/panasonic-lumix-dmc-gf1-evil-fun-part-2.html
I suspect this not the fault of the M43 sensor as such, which is twice the size as the Nikon’s CX sensor and should perform better on all counts. It’s more to do with Panasonic and Olympus fiddling with the firmware and neglecting the sensor itself.
Here are some real image comparisons pulled together from several sources by the author of another blog http://www.eoshd.com/content/4216/nikon-j1-and-v1-image-quality
I don’t agree with his conclusion that the Nikon 1 fares poorly. I think it does surprisingly well given the small size of its sensor. See what you think.
Kim
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