Is it true that more megapixels mean more noise? (new camera)
 

I'm looking into getting a new (but cheap) digital camera. My initial reaction was to get as many megapixels as I can afford. But then I read that for a 6x4 photo, 10 megapixels is actually overkill and more megapixels can increase the level of noise in the photo.

Is this true? If all I want to do is print 6x4 photos, will I actually get better results (less noise) from, say a 5 megapixel camera??

Thanks.

It is true [u]everything else being equal.[u] As always it is not quite that simple, the argument is that more mega-pixels means more photo-sites therefore they are smaller so each one receives a smaller number of photons so more amplification has to be applied hence the introduction of noise. From there on it then depends on the cameras processing and of course the exact make and model of sensor. I am sure if manufacturers on all their compacts put in a high quality 10mp sensor you would get far better results than is available from the new 16mp (!) offerings but marketing dictates that is not generally going to happen. Note that the best quality compacts such as the Canon Powershot S95, G12 and similar do just that. 10mp is capable of printing out to a superb A3. My first ever digital camera, a Canon G5, has a 5mp sensor and made an excellent A4 print. So when you buy your cheap camera do not worry overly about mega-pixels but go for one that does what you want and feels good in your hand with easily navigated menus. Some cameras are better than others at noise so check out your choice on line for image quality which also very much depends on the lens and other factors.
Hope that helps.

I made loads of excellent 24x36" prints from a 7.1 megapixel camera. Viewing distance is to be considered, you look a bigger prints from further away hence pixellation and noise are less apparent.