Home
>
Photography
>
Megapixel Cameras: How Many Megapixels Do You Need?

Megapixel Cameras: How Many Megapixels Do You Need?

Knowing which megapixel camera to buy can be intimidating. There are literally hundreds of models of digital cameras out on the market today. How can you know how many megapixels you'll need?

Megapixels: The More the Merrier

For the most part, I would suggest that you get the highest megapixel rated digital camera you can afford. Having said that though, there are some considerations you need to keep in mind before you make your next digital camera purchase.

What are megapixels anyway?

Simply put, megapixels refers to how many millions of pixels make up the images a particular camera takes. The more pixels in the image, the more detail the camera can capture. More detail means better quality and better photos. The higher the megapixels, the larger the photograph that can be produced and still be photo quality.

How many megapixels do you need?

Over the last couple of years as digital cameras have been accepted by the masses and have gone mainstream, the cost of these cameras has gone down considerably. In the past, you had to pay big bucks for anything above 2 megapixels. Today, I wouldn't recommend you buy anything under 4 megapixels if you have any intentions of getting professional prints done from the pictures you take. 4 megapixel cameras allow you to achieve excellent photo quality for any picture size up to 8x10. For most people, this is the largest picture size they would ever get printed.

Is there any downside to lots of megapixels?

High megapixel cameras use up lots of memory. When each picture you take uses lots of memory, it means you fit less pictures on your camera for the same amount of memory. If you have a 3 megapixel camera, you should be able to fit up to 40 pictures on 32mb of RAM. If you have a 6 megapixel camera, for that same 32mb, you'll only be able to fit 20 pictures. Higher megapixels leads to higher storage card costs.

At the end of the day, the more megapixels your camera can do, the more options you have. I would highly recommend you also purchase the largest storage card you can afford to go along with your camera. That way, you're ready for anything life throws at you.

Joe Duchesne is the President of Gotocompare.com a computer hardware information site that provides easy access to device drivers, user manuals and tech support to a wide range of hardware. Reprint this article freely as long as you keep the keyword rich link found in this resource box pointing back to Gotocompare.com.

local house cleaners Park Ridge ..

In The News:

Kodiak Driver autonomous truck achieves perfect 98 safety score, matching top human fleets in groundbreaking AI evaluation by Nauto's VERA system.

New 401k catch-up contribution rules in 2026 will change taxes for high earners over 50. Learn how scammers exploit these changes and protect your retirement savings.

Kurt Knutsson's guide covers social media privacy protection through location settings, account privacy controls and two-factor authentication to prevent scams and data breaches.

Revolutionary retinal implant restores central vision in 80% of patients with advanced macular degeneration, offering hope where treatments once only slowed blindness.

Learn how to use passkeys on Windows and Mac computers without cameras or fingerprint readers. Discover secure authentication methods that replace passwords.

Tesla's FSD v14.1.2 update reintroduces Mad Max mode, enabling higher speeds and more frequent lane changes than the standard Hurry profile setting.

A phishing email scam targeting American Express customers shows how cybercriminals use fake urgent messages to steal personal and financial information.

Facebook's new Meta AI feature analyzes your camera roll photos to create polished collages automatically, but requires cloud processing and raises privacy concerns.

A New Jersey teenager filed a major lawsuit against AI/Robotics Venture Strategy 3 Ltd. over ClothOff, an AI tool that created fake nude images from her social media photos.

Microsoft reports Storm-2657 cybercriminals sent phishing emails to 6,000 addresses at 25 universities to steal payroll credentials and redirect funds.

Astronomers have discovered asteroid 2025 SC79, a skyscraper-sized space rock orbiting the sun in just 128 days. the second-fastest known.

The Fox News AI Newsletter delivers the latest developments form the world of artificial intelligence, including the technology's challenges and opportunities.

A cyberattack on SimonMed Imaging exposed personal information of 1.2 million patients, including medical records, financial details and identity papers.

Spotify's managed accounts for kids under 13 now available in at least seven countries, allowing parents to filter and block explicit content and songs.

Friendly text conversations about BBQs and social events can lead to WEEX gold trading scams that target older adults with fake investment opportunities.

California company Skyeports creates self-healing glass spheres from Moon regolith that generate solar power and support plant growth for sustainable lunar living.

Cleafy researchers discover fake VPN streaming app Mobdro Pro that installs Klopatra banking Trojan, giving attackers full control over Android devices.

Police departments across the U.S. and Canada are adopting virtual reality training to better prepare officers for high-pressure, real-world situations.

House Bill 469 would prevent AI systems from owning property, serving as executives, or gaining legal personhood in Ohio under Representative Thaddeus Claggett's proposal.

Public voter records expose retirees' personal details to election scammers who create targeted cons using names, addresses, and voting history data.

Instead of fearing what comes next with artificial intelligence, think outside the box. Here are high-earning AI jobs that don't require a computer science degree.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says polite words like "please" and "thank you" cost millions annually, while direct prompts may improve ChatGPT accuracy by several points.

Chattee Chat and GiMe Chat exposed intimate conversations and photos, revealing users spent up to $18,000 on AI companions before the breach.

New Instagram parental controls allow families to manage teen screen time and content limits through the Family Center with stricter safety settings.

Third-party security breach at Discord exposes sensitive user information including government IDs, highlighting cybersecurity risks from external service providers.

Megapixel Cameras: How Many Megapixels Do You Need?

Photography