confused about sensor size

I am looking at a Nikon camera (D5100) which has a sensor size of 23.6mm x 15.6 mm (or .93" x .61"). I also have looked at an Olympus camera (SP-810 US) which as a sensor size of 1/2.3" sensor size. I take that latter to mean that the Olympus sensor size is 1" x 2.3".

I am confused. The Nikon D5100 is supposedly a much better camera, at least by price, yet it seems the Olympus sensor's size is bigger, and further i thought the larger the sensor size the better the camera.

So, i must be mistaken about something here. Can someone straighten me out?

Thanks for any help.

You're comparing apples to oranges here. The Olympus SP-810 UZ is a compact camera, unlike the D5100. The Olympus has a fixed lens...non changeable. The D5100 is a much better camera, in that lenses can be changed for your style of photography. The build quality of the Nikon is far superior to that of any compact camera. Many more reasons, of which I'm sure others will chime in with.

Snapsort website does a comparison between the two. You might want to check that out.

Nikon D5100 vs Olympus SP-810 UZ

I'm glad you posted that snapsort comparison because it clears up the sensor size. The D5100 sensor is larger:

APS-C 23.6x15.6mm vs 1/2.3" 6.2x4.6mm Around 13x larger sensor