Let's not forget the algorithms implemented in the DSLRs are far more sophisticated. A large DSLR body houses a fast 32bit chip fast enough to run a quadratic interpolation while a compact digicam has to settle with simpler algorithms.
Speaking of this, let us not forget also how heavily the images are processed in the today's digital cameras, and how far from reality the results are sometimes. For instance, those "pure color" skies that have nothing to do with the real thing. I guess this is the result of the video culture... BTW, I hear the output of the Foveon X3 chip needs very little postprocessing and indeed the images are more film like. I do hope I'll see it some day in a Pentax body. Servus, Alin Heiko wrote: HH> A 3MP DSLR picture is better than that of a compact consumer digicam. HH> The primary reason is the chip size: DSLR use larger CCDs (or CMOS) HH> than compact digicams. Larger chips mean larger pixel-size, i.e. each HH> pixel can capture more light and there is less noise. So an important HH> criterion when buying a digicam is the chipsize - even compact digicams HH> may use very different sizes.
