Let's cram MP up the wazzoo, Rumored Nikon D3200 24mp slr

[freeradical]

I don't understand why 24 Mp is considered "cramming" on an APS-C sensor.

This amounts to a pixel density of about 65 Kp per square mm.

On a 10 Mp point and shoot camera with a (relatively large) 1/1.7" sensor, the pixel density is about 233 Kp per square mm. Why isn't this considered a problem?

[pRICE cUBE]

freeradical wrote:
I don't understand why 24 Mp is considered "cramming" on an APS-C sensor.

This amounts to a pixel density of about 65 Kp per square mm.

On a 10 Mp point and shoot camera with a (relatively large) 1/1.7" sensor, the pixel density is about 233 Kp per square mm. Why isn't this considered a problem?

Manufacturers have pulled back and some models have regressed on megapixel count. Even they recognize what is going on on the smaller sensors.

[Billybob]

freeradical wrote:
I don't understand why 24 Mp is considered "cramming" on an APS-C sensor.

This amounts to a pixel density of about 65 Kp per square mm.

On a 10 Mp point and shoot camera with a (relatively large) 1/1.7" sensor, the pixel density is about 233 Kp per square mm. Why isn't this considered a problem?

Different products for different audiences. Despite claims to the contrary, shots from those "high-end" P&S cameras don't approach DLSR quality. They make decent snapshots--and good photographers can perform miracles with crappy equipment--, but they do not compete with larger sensor/lower pixel-density cameras in IQ. The IQ from these cameras in anything but the best light suffer from high noise (often hidden by aggressive noise reduction), lower dynamic range, and over sharpening.

Many photography consumers have become more discriminating, which is why mirrorless cameras like M4/3, the Nikon 1, NEX and the compact Canon G1X are starting to gain traction. With the exception of the Nikon 1 (which still has a sensor that is significantly larger than traditional P&S sensors), these other compact cameras all have sensors that are much larger than those in P&S cameras with lower pixel densities.