Compared to the Sony DSC-F717

Our first comparison will be to the five megapixel, five times optical zoom Sony DSC-F717. The DSC-F717 is the follow-up to the DSC-F707, one of the first five megapixel consumer digital cameras. In this comparison we will be shooting at the lowest and therefore best quality ISO sensitivity on each camera, ISO 64 for the C-5050 Zoom and ISO 100 on the DSC-F717. It's worth noting that the DSC-F717 has a slightly larger 2/3" (8.8 x 6.6 mm) CCD compared to the C-5050 Zoom's 1/1.8" (7.2 x 5.3 mm) CCD.

Studio scene comparison

  • Olympus C-5050 Zoom: Aperture Priority, ISO 64, Default Parameters (Sharpness,
    Contrast, Saturation), Manual preset white balance, Exposure Compensation: +0.3 EV
     
  • Sony DSC-F717: Aperture Priority, ISO 100, Default Parameters (Sharpness),
    Manual preset white balance, Exposure Compensation: +0.7 EV
Olympus C-5050 Zoom Sony DSC-F717
ISO 64, 1/3 sec, F4.5 ISO 100, 1/4 sec, F4.5
2,536 KB JPEG 1,950 KB JPEG

The C-5050 Zoom quickly proves that the smaller sensor hasn't affect its ability to resolve detail. Indeed in many of the crops shown above it manages to resolve more detail than the DSC-F717. That said the C-5050 Zoom's demosaic / sharpening algorithm also appears to be less sophisticated than the Sony with more jaggies and visible moire. The F717 produces a smoother, slightly less sharp image.