Purpose: Compared with traditional CR storage phosphor plates, CR needle crystal technology used in mammography claims  to allow for better image quality using less dose.Image quality and dose behaviour is evaluated for multiple breast thicknesses (simulated with 50 mm and 70 mm PMMA slabs) on the Agfa DX-M System with needle crystal detectors (HM5.0) and compared to results with DR as well as powder-based CR systems. 
Methods and Materials: Technical image quality was determined by using the CDMAM phantom with subsequent „Automatic Readout“ by considering limiting values as specified in the EUREF guideline. For dose, the calculated average glandular dose was used. 
Results: For achieving acceptable image quality as specified in EUREF, storage-phosphor based CR systems require about 100 % more dose than DR. With CR needle crystal detectors, comparable image quality can already be achieved with about 40 % less dose as required for the traditional CR plates.In addition, CR needle crystal technology allows for reaching also the EUREF achievable limiting values for image quality without exceeding the dose limiting values specified in EUREF.It was also found, that, especially for thicker breasts, the usage of W/Rh instead of Mo/Rh is beneficial with regards to better image quality and less dose. 
Conclusion: The needle crystal technology with the Agfa DX-M system supports equivalent CDMAM image quality with about 40 % lower AGD compared to powder based CR.