There has been a rumor and ample forum buzz about a possible EOS R-series camera with an APS-C sensor. Is that likely?
TL;DR…no.
There seem to be two camps promoting the idea. One camp is looking for a ‘budget’ option in the EOS R line, an inexpensive body that’s compatible with the RF lens lineup. Personally, I think that would not be an APS-C camera. The main reason is that the EOS M line exists and is a global best-seller, providing entry-level and somewhat more advanced bodies with a lens lineup from 11-200mm, including some high-quality, low-cost lenses.
The other reason is the also-rumored $800 FF EOS R body, which would be a very affordable FF camera. Canon seems to be headed this way with their recent lens releases: there is already the RF 24-105 f/4-7.1 at $400 and RF 50/1.8 at $200, and they’ve recently added the RF 100-400 f/5.6-8 at $650 and the RF 16/2.8 at $300. There are also wide and telephoto macro primes at $500 and $600, respectively. These lenses appear geared toward a budget-friendly FF system. All that’s needed is that sub-$1000 FF MILC.
For a budget APS-C R-series camera to be viable, Canon would likely need to develop a set of RF-S (or whatever moniker) lenses in the wide and normal range at least. Not sure they would want to add yet another mount to the mix. The leaked roadmap does have an RF 18-45mm zoom on it, and that is a potential standard zoom for an RF APS-C camera. But it’s also a very viable ultrawide zoom for a FF MILC, and would fill a significant gap in the budget-friendly FF system.
The other camp (which seems more vocal here) is looking for a high pixel density sensor for ‘more reach’. Given that an APS-C crop from the R5 yields a 17 MP image, an APS-C sensor with a higher MP count (like the 32 MP sensor in the 90D and M6 II) would yield significantly more ‘pixels on duck’ for applications where focal length is limiting and for macro shooters wanting more (digital) magnification. These folks are looking for a ‘high end’ APS-C RF-mount camera, the obvious analogy being the EOS 7D and 7DII, leading to speculation about an EOS R7.
Although I can see the utility of such a camera (in general, not for me personally), I think both history and Canon’s current strategy argue against it. On the history side, consider the 7D and 7DII. Every other Canon series, from the xxxD and xxD models below the 7-series to the 5- and 1-series models above it received more frequent updates. In many ways, the 90D was the real successor to the 7DII – although a step down in some ways, it was a step up in others and obviously there has not been a 7DIII. Beyond the 7-series itself, consider also the EF-S lens lineup aimed at APS-C users. The three EF-S lenses considered ‘high end’ and favorites of 7-series users were the 17-55/2.8, the 15-85/3.5-5.6 and the 10-22/3.5-4.5. Of those, the first two were released in 2006 and 2009, respectively, and never updated (though it could be argued that the 15-85 was itself an update to the 17-85). The 10-22 was replaced with the cheaper, slower all-plastic 10-18/4.5-5.6. Meanwhile, the 18-55mm, 18-135mm, and 55-250mm lenses all saw at least three versions, and all were updated in the last decade.
So, history suggests that the ‘high-end’ APS-C body and the best-matched ‘high end’ EF-S lenses were low on Canon’s priority list. To me, that is evidence that the market for those lenses is not very significant as far as Canon is concerned. So, when people claim, “The market wants a high end R7 with an APS-C sensor,” what they really mean is they want one, and maybe a couple other people they know want one, too. It’s important to realize that the microcosm of forums like this one, or the small circle of people someone knows, are not representative of the broader market. Canon has knowledge of the desires of that broader market through a variety of methods.
Alternatively, it is possible that there was a substantial demand for a 7DIII that Canon chose to leave unfulfilled, in an attempt to push those people wanting ‘more’ from their top-shelf APS-C camera into buying a FF camera system. If that’s true, then that logic applies even more to the R-series. The R5 and R6 offer very good performance, and Canon have also provided the RF 600/11 and 800/11 for those wanting ‘more reach’ on a FF camera.
Someone will probably bring up the ‘Nikon just did it so Canon must follow’ rationale, but Nikon doesn’t have anything like the EOS M line. Their initial foray into MILCs, the Nikon 1, was a flop that was last updated in 2015 and formally discontinued in 2018. Nikon’s Z 50 (and the Z fc – did they not learn from the Df?!?) are their late attempt to capture some of the APS-C MILC market that’s dominated by Sony and Canon.
Overall, I think that despite the wishes of some people, we won’t be seeing an APS-C sensor in an RF-mount camera.
