ANSWERS: 1
  • 4.2 megapixels most commonly refers to the number of megapixels offered by a digital camera. More megapixels mean higher quality images, and the number of megapixels a camera offers is a deciding factor in the quality of the camera.

    Definition

    The Merriam-Webster dictionary definition of a megapixel is one million pixels. Therefore, 4.2 megapixels equal 4.2 million pixels, the number of pixels a 4.2 megapixel camera has.

    Definition of Pixel

    A pixel is a tiny dot, which comprises part of an image. A photo taken with a digital camera is made up of many small dots of different colors. In this case, a photo taken with a camera with 4.2 megapixels is an image made up of 4.2 million tiny dots, called pixels.

    Function

    The term "megapixels" describes the number of sensors a digital camera has, which ends up being the number of pixels (little dots) making up photos taken with this camera. A 4.2 megapixel camera has 4.2 million tiny sensors in the camera. More sensors mean more small dots (pixels), which makes a better quality image that can be blown up to larger proportions.

    Significance

    A high quality print has about 300 dpi, defined in the dictionary as dots (or pixels) per inch. If a 4.2 megapixel camera produces images with 1,740 x 2,420 pixels (1,740 x 2,420 = approximately 4.2 million), then you divide each of those numbers by the number of pixels per inch you want (300 in this case) to get the number of inches the picture can be and still have a resolution of 300 dpi or higher. 1,740 divided by 300 = 5.8 inches, and 2420 divided by 300 = 8 inches, so 5.8 by 8 inches is the maximum size print a 4.2 megapixel camera can produce at 300 dpi.

    Value

    Digital cameras today usually come with more than 4.2 megapixels. In fact, on Bestbuy.com, the lowest number of megapixels you can search for is a lumped category of under 9 megapixels, and most of the cameras in that category have over 4.2 megapixels. If you want a camera that you do not need for making large prints, a 4.2 megapixel camera might be good enough. You can find a 4.2 used megapixel camera pretty cheap, and on ebay.com most cameras with 4.0 to 4.9 megapixels sell for around $50. If, however, you need a camera that you can use to take pictures for large prints or posters, 4.2 megapixels is not enough.

    Source

    Merriam-Webster Definition of Megapixel

    Merriam-Webster Definition of dpi

Copyright 2023, Wired Ivy, LLC

Answerbag | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy