Canon W-E1 Camera Compatibility & Specifications

[Meatcurry]

Therefore the designers of the 5D3 would have had to have had foreknowledge of the W-E1 design/specification in 2011/12!

and the 5DS / 5DSR designers did hav that foresight, right?

It is just a few lines of firmware code, nothing else. ML can do it. Canon should be able to do it. They just do not WANT to. Because of GREED, GREED, GREED.

Errrr yeah, I guess as the 5DS/R was launched in 2015, and despite its apparent similarity to the 5D3 its a brand new design!

lol. well, as i wrote earlier, Canon does have a huge proportion of *very gullible* customers. Instead of demanding from their gear supplier the very best, they come up with excuses for that gear suppliers failures. They worry more about Canon's profit margin than about getting more bang for their own buck. Quite astounding!

Again, we are talking about straighforward WiFi capablities ... and it is late 2016. I am not asking Canon to retrofit my 5D3 with a lightfield imaging system or even lit active AF fields, heaven forbid!

Is this the 5 minute argument or the full half hour? As I said, I think there's a TECHNICAL reason it will only work with the 7D2/5DS, I stand to be corrected, there's also a marketing/financial reason but thats ok by me.

 

[Fatalv]

What? No 5D3 compatibility?? I hope this is an incomplete listing.

It remains a good camera without Wifi, but still...

+1

I would be interested if the price is right and works in the 5DMK3.

I think you're dreaming. Why add a key feature upgrade to a rig that is about to be effectively obsoleted by a newer model in the same brand name segment? Canon wants to sell new $3k+ 5D4 cameras, not sell a boatload of $40 SD adaptors to 5D3 owners who sit out this camera upgrade cycle.

I'm not surprised at all with the 5D3 being left out.

And for those who didn't see the other story, this is basically a $40 item that marries up with a firmware upgrade. Throw out any 'price is right' logic -- Canon is practically giving it away to extend the life of the 7D2 (destined for another 5 year life cycle?). I'm little surprised the 5DS got it, as WiFi could be the tipping point on future 5DS2 upgraders someday.

- A

I agree Canon likely did this as a move to get more 5DMK4 sales and bump up the 7D2 (which probably should have included WiFi from the start). However, I disagree with obsolete comment, the 5DMK3s are hardly obsolete and are a steal at the fire sale prices going on. Personally, I see no reason to upgrade my 5DMK3 -> 5DMK4 and judging by comments in the forum many people are in the same boat.

The WiFi module would at least get Canon some of my money this generation instead of none... I'm sure their marketing department has run the numbers and made the business decision as to what's more profitable. But I can still hope!

 

[Don Haines]

A wifi link works by sending information packets in BOTH directions. Even a "dumb card" like the EyeFi cards that just dump files in one direction have two way communications with the destination. It does not mater which camera this card is in, the card will be capable of two way communications with your destination.

Any camera with an SD slot is capable of 2 way communications to an SD card...... that's how it works!

Therefore, any camera from any manufacturer that can use an SD card is electronically capable of using this canon WiFi card.

What is missing is the software to do so. Canon has a firmware update coming out for the 7D2, 5DS, and 5DSR. So there is no update for the 5D3 to use the card? How terrible! There isn't an update for the 7D either! Could it be that Canon decided not to invest the time and effort to develop this for an obsolete camera that has been replaced by a newer model? Time and resources are not infinite.... it isn't just a case of throwing money at a problem, you need people too.

Give them a bit of time..... when you first found out about the card, it was for just the 7D2..... now it is also for the 5DS and 5DSR.... odds are that the firmware update will eventually come for the 5D3, but remember that the 5D4 is coming out now and that has to affect the resources available to upgrade the 5D3 firmware...

 

[ahsanford]

You're convinced its just a firmware issue and no hardware mods are required to make this work?

For the 7D2 and 5DS/5DS R, yes, that appears to be the case. Firmware + this adaptor is all that is needed. You don't need to buy a 'new' 7D2 or 5DS to get this functionality, so one would presume the original stock hardware in the 7D2 and 5DS can support this card.

...which might lead one to believe that this was entirely possible to do on a 5D3. I'm no I/O designer programmer / designer, and I defer to those on this forum that are, but as of now all my money is on "It was 100% possible to do this for the 5D3 as well, but Canon didn't want to spend the money / wants 5D3 owners to upgrade to the 5D4."

And, as I said before, I'm not crying boohoo that we didn't get it. This. makes. perfect. sense.

- A

 

[ahsanford]

Very petty of Canon not to make this available for 5D Mklll users...

Canon is giving away the card to new buyers of the 7DII, so it's eating the cost to those customers. The retail price tag is probably at or below cost for existing owners of the 5D S and the 7D II. With retailer discounts it's unlikely they are making any money on the cards.

So, looking at it another way, they decided to cut their losses by not opening it up to owners of a discontinued model. Petty? Or, maybe just a way to hold down their losses.

It's a matter of product lifecycle. Canon is replacing the 5D3 with the 5D4 (yes, yes, they'll sell alongside one another for a while, but it's a next gen of that brand name), so there is no need to jazz up the 5D3's capabilities -- Canon wants 5D3 people to buy a 5D4.

However, with the 7D2 and 5DS, you have two very different situations:

• The 7D2 is not going to be replaced anytime soon. If you use the 5 year lifecycle of the 7D1 in comparison, the 7D2 is only about half way through its time on the market. So Canon is doing exactly what they did 5 years ago and are offering a fresh breath of life into a midcycle product on a longer timeline with this firmware + super cheap add-on piece of hardware.
  
  
• The 5DS getting this functionality is trickier but you could attach some logic to it. Canon has bifurcated the 5D brand into 'detail' (5DS) and 'all-rounder + video' (5D3/5D4). It would appear that Canon does not want to alienate 5DS users (or have them nag Canon for 3 more years for Wifi) and reassure them that their rigs are on parity with the 5D4 in terms of esteem, feature set, etc.

The first assertion on the 7D2 seems obvious based on the 7D1 mid-cycle firmware update. But my theory on the 5DS is just a guess.

- A

 

[rrcphoto]

Therefore the designers of the 5D3 would have had to have had foreknowledge of the W-E1 design/specification in 2011/12!

and the 5DS / 5DSR designers did hav that foresight, right?

It is just a few lines of firmware code, nothing else. ML can do it. Canon should be able to do it. They just do not WANT to. Because of GREED, GREED, GREED.

wow .. imagine that .. a company wanting to make money.

what the hell is with that?

 

[mackguyver]

The 7DII and 5DS(R) models have a different SD card interface that supports UHS-I. I seriously doubt Canon is worried that selling 5DIII and 7D owners this card will prevent them from upgrading. I'm sure it must be a technical limitation, most likely the data bandwidth of the older SD card interface.

 

[ahsanford]

I agree Canon likely did this as a move to get more 5DMK4 sales and bump up the 7D2 (which probably should have included WiFi from the start). However, I disagree with obsolete comment, the 5DMK3s are hardly obsolete and are a steal at the fire sale prices going on. Personally, I see no reason to upgrade my 5DMK3 -> 5DMK4 and judging by comments in the forum many people are in the same boat.

Don't mistake me, I'm keeping my 5D3 and skipping the 5D4. But the 5D3 production will be shut down and global inventory will be consumed in the near to mid term. That's what I meant by 'obsoleted'.

- A

 

[Talley]

A wifi link works by sending information packets in BOTH directions. Even a "dumb card" like the EyeFi cards that just dump files in one direction have two way communications with the destination. It does not mater which camera this card is in, the card will be capable of two way communications with your destination.

Any camera with an SD slot is capable of 2 way communications to an SD card...... that's how it works!

Therefore, any camera from any manufacturer that can use an SD card is electronically capable of using this canon WiFi card.

What is missing is the software to do so. Canon has a firmware update coming out for the 7D2, 5DS, and 5DSR. So there is no update for the 5D3 to use the card? How terrible! There isn't an update for the 7D either! Could it be that Canon decided not to invest the time and effort to develop this for an obsolete camera that has been replaced by a newer model? Time and resources are not infinite.... it isn't just a case of throwing money at a problem, you need people too.

Give them a bit of time..... when you first found out about the card, it was for just the 7D2..... now it is also for the 5DS and 5DSR.... odds are that the firmware update will eventually come for the 5D3, but remember that the 5D4 is coming out now and that has to affect the resources available to upgrade the 5D3 firmware...

Remember the canon card is not a memory card so technically it will only work in cameras w/ dual slots. and with the release of a new model it's not hard to see them NOT wanting to redo this for the 5D3. It's being replaced the minute the W-E1 is announced (via 5D4) therefore older model. 7D2, 5Ds/r are all models that are current and are probably not slated for replacement for 2 more years.

 

[Loswr]

...all my money is on "It was 100% possible to do this for the 5D3 as well, but Canon didn't want to spend the money / wants 5D3 owners to upgrade to the 5D4."

And, as I said before, I'm not crying boohoo that we didn't get it. This. makes. perfect. sense.

+1

"Just add it to the firmware," sure it sounds simple...but it's not, despite all the 'experts' (looking at you, AvTvM) who claim, "It's just a few lines of firmware code."

Many newer Canon high-end bodies have a function called orientation-linked AF point, where the AF point active by default changes as you rotate the camera from landscape to portrait. Most current non-entry level bodies have autofocus microadjustment. What do those two features have to do with one another? One would think...nothing. And yet...when the 1D X was released, turning on the setting for orientation-linked AF point resulted in AFMA not working properly.

So, no...it's not just adding a few lines of code. It's adding a few lines of code and then thoroughly testing the new verison of the firmware, even for apparently unrelated functionality (and obviously even then, bugs are missed). That means cost and time.

Nothing is stopping people from wishing for free stuff...but like me ol' Irish Da used to say, "Wish in one hand, sh!t in the other, and see which fills up first."

 

[ahsanford]

Remember the canon card is not a memory card so technically it will only work in cameras w/ dual slots. and with the release of a new model it's not hard to see them NOT wanting to redo this for the 5D3. It's being replaced the minute the W-E1 is announced (via 5D4) therefore older model. 7D2, 5Ds/r are all models that are current and are probably not slated for replacement for 2 more years.

+1. Those pining for Canon to do a handstand and smash their longer-term lifecycle model of the 7D brand with a quick 7D3 followup to the D500 are mistaken on the impact the Nikon has had on Canon's long-term vision of that market segment.

By the announcement of this firmware refresh and offering of this wifi functionality, Canon is basically saying 'Nikon D five hun-what?' and sticking to its guns. No 7D3 will happen any time soon, IMHO.

- A

 

[rrcphoto]

Remember the canon card is not a memory card so technically it will only work in cameras w/ dual slots. and with the release of a new model it's not hard to see them NOT wanting to redo this for the 5D3. It's being replaced the minute the W-E1 is announced (via 5D4) therefore older model. 7D2, 5Ds/r are all models that are current and are probably not slated for replacement for 2 more years.

+1. Those pining for Canon to do a handstand and smash their longer-term lifecycle model of the 7D brand with a quick 7D3 followup to the D500 are mistaken on the impact the Nikon has had on Canon's long-term vision of that market segment.

By the announcement of this firmware refresh and offering of this wifi functionality, Canon is basically saying 'Nikon D five hun-what?' and sticking to its guns. No 7D3 will happen any time soon, IMHO.

- A

a 1 series camera takes 3 years from inception to production.

the 7D Mark II and the 5D series are basically built as 1 series cameras used to be in terms of mechanical and electronics.

so I doubt it would take much less time.

 

[ahsanford]

a 1 series camera takes 3 years from inception to production.

the 7D Mark II and the 5D series are basically built as 1 series cameras used to be in terms of mechanical and electronics.

so I doubt it would take much less time.

Oh, goodness, they can make a camera that quickly -- no one is debating that. I'm saying that a super high end crop camera will not be made / built / launched that often. Canon has used a longer lifecycle for the 7D, and it appears that they will do so again with the 7D2. I've seen zero data to suggest that the D500 is stealing business from Canon in this segment, and that's what it will take to get a 7D3 more quickly.

So Canon is 'pulling a 7D1' and refreshing the brand with a firmware update. Just like before. Because the 7D3 is 2-3 years way.

- A

 

[SteveM]

7 or 8 months after the release of the Mklll, Canon released the 6D….which has wifi (alleged range of 100’). I can’t believe there is that much difference inside the cameras that prevents the Mklll from being ‘enabled’ – they’ve enabled the 5D R/S via the card port. I’m disappointed as opposed to angry, I use a CamRanger with an alleged range of 150’ so I’m not left high and dry….far from it. But I would have bought one of these, if only for fun. I don’t see an adaptor for the Mklll appearing…not logical. A little perplexed though, the lack of a Mklll adaptor would not affect my buying decision at all, only ‘performance’ will do that.
Cynically, I wonder if this adaptor would ever have seen the light of day were it not for Nikon’s D500. I firmly believe, rightly or wrongly, that this adaptor targeted the 7D Mkll in order to keep in touch with the D500….very coincidental time lines otherwise, D500 – a few months later (development time) appears this adaptor. One assumes a 7D Mklll is nowhere near completion.
I also believe, (and in the tooth fairy seemingly), that feedback from these sites finds its way back to Canon. So, if people don’t speak out negatively periodically, nothing will ever change.

 

[unfocused]

I can’t believe there is that much difference inside the cameras that prevents the Mklll from being ‘enabled’

Someone pointed out that the 5DIII card slot used a older, slower SD protocol. I have no idea if that would make any difference or not, but I do know that the SD card slot was painfully slow on the 5DIII.

Still, the main reason is probably the fact the the 5DIII has now been replaced with a new model.

Cynically, I wonder if this adapter would ever have seen the light of day were it not for Nikon’s D500. I firmly believe, rightly or wrongly, that this adapter targeted the 7D Mkll in order to keep in touch with the D500…

Nothing cynical about it. Of course Canon rushed this product to market in response to the D500. What's wrong with that? The competition offered a feature that Canon's research showed could make a difference, so Canon found a way to offer a bolt-on, low-cost work-around. Good for Canon. Now the only question that remains is what the firmware implementation will be like. If it will be a smooth, intuitive interface.

 

[Dave Wellington]

I'm reading a lot of hate for the Eye-fi, and while I know it's not perfect, what are your main complaints? I typically use it to allow for posting during events, to show images while teaching, and to show clients during location shoots where I can't physically tether to my laptop. I don't bother with RAW trasnfer (too slow).

What don't you like? I'm not being sarcastic, I'm actually curious...

I had 2 cards, first one worked ok but broke in half whilst removing from the camera, the replacement never worked at all in several cameras and network with no response from customer service

I too have had 2 Eye-FI cards and they both broke in half. great idea but poor build quality of the product. CamRanger is very expensive. I have the canon 5D3 and would love for this new product to work with the 5D3.

 

[mackguyver]

I can’t believe there is that much difference inside the cameras that prevents the Mklll from being ‘enabled’

Someone pointed out that the 5DIII card slot used a older, slower SD protocol. I have no idea if that would make any difference or not, but I do know that the SD card slot was painfully slow on the 5DIII.

Still, the main reason is probably the fact the the 5DIII has now been replaced with a new model.

Yes, that was me, and I don't know if that's why, but it is a significant difference between the 5DIII and 5DS(R). The UHS I interface is shockingly faster than the old Class 10 interface.

I pre-ordered this even if the firmware won't be out for a month or so after I get it for the 5DSR. It's a no-brainer for me and is about the cheapest accessory I can think of that Canon's ever put out for a prosumer anything .

 

[ahsanford]

I pre-ordered this even if the firmware won't be out for a month or so after I get it for the 5DSR. It's a no-brainer for me and is about the cheapest accessory I can think of that Canon's ever put out for a prosumer anything .

It's less an accessory than it is a key to extending the 7D2's lifecycle and (to a lesser extenet) reassuring 5DS users that there's more than one great offering in the 5D camp amidst all this 5D4 fanfare.

I would argue that's why Canon is effectively giving this adaptor away.

- A

 

[mackguyver]

It's less an accessory than it is a key to extending the 7D2's lifecycle and (to a lesser extenet) reassuring 5DS users that there's more than one great offering in the 5D camp amidst all this 5D4 fanfare.

I would argue that's why Canon is effectively giving this adaptor away.

- A

Very true and no complaints here.

 

[ahsanford]

It's less an accessory than it is a key to extending the 7D2's lifecycle and (to a lesser extenet) reassuring 5DS users that there's more than one great offering in the 5D camp amidst all this 5D4 fanfare.

I would argue that's why Canon is effectively giving this adaptor away.

- A

Very true and no complaints here.

Unless you have a 5D3, but Canon has a special website for those folks who want this card to work with their 5D3 cameras.

- A