Are a few hot/dead pixels on a new Olympus OM-D normal, and should I use pixel mapping or request a warranty replacement?

Question

I bought a new Olympus OM-D and, after about 2,000 photos over two weeks, I noticed a few white/pink hot pixels appearing in images. Olympus support advised me to run the camera’s built-in pixel mapping function, which removed them.

Is it normal for a new camera sensor to show a small number of hot/dead pixels this soon? At what point should this be treated as normal sensor behavior versus a fault worth pursuing under warranty or asking for a replacement?

user1943 · Accepted Answer

This is completely normal. Unlike many makers, though, Olympus includes the hot-pixel mapping function on all their cameras, so you can just use that.

Remember, a full resolution JPEG from this camera has 15,925,248 pixels. If, say, a dozen of them are defective, that will have a 0.000075% impact on your final results. It's really a non-issue, and not something to worry about.

I know it doesn't feel nice to discover scratches on your brand new car. But fortunately, this paint job is self-healing.

Now, if after running the mapping, you're still getting hot pixels, or new ones crop up regularly, or if we're talking thousands, I'd get an exchange. (Even though, really, a thousand is still a drop in the bucket in terms of overall effect.)

Are a few hot/dead pixels on a new Olympus OM-D normal, and should I use pixel mapping or request a warranty replacement?

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