The Future of EOS M [CR1]

[infared]

I think everyone with a Canon DSLR kit would pick one up just for a back-up body...and then be drawn in to buying some of the smaller lenses.

Everyone? Wanna bet?

yeah...if Canon can keep the price reasonable (good luck with that, tho), make it focus uber fast, have a great viewfinder and and comes out with some small fast primes people would want it to complement their FF or CF kit...but certainly as I mention in my post (you cut and copied the above out of context just to bash!) as the M is now...I cannot see many people who come to this site considering it for anything.

 

[dickgrafixstop]

None as far as I'm concerned. Rather have a G1X for a 'small' body (which seemed to be the tune canon itself was playing before the M was announced) - and if you put a regular eos mount on it you'd have a winner.

 

[RGomezPhotos]

I really want to like the EOS M, but it just doesn't have it. At this point it would have to be 2x as good for me to get interested...

 

[SonomaTim]

I've got the Fuji x100s which really is a jewel. I'm not a since-I-got-my-mirrorless-I-don't-ever-use-my-dslr-gear-again-guy, but there are at least two things Canon seems to turn a blind eye to. Street photography is what many people seek in times of a suffocating trend towards photographic perfection. And it's such a joy to use a tool made by a company listening to customers.

I used a friends EOS M for a weekend, but it just didn't do anything for me. I wanted a viewfinder. I tried the X100 and while it was quirky, the hybrid viewfinder sold me. Now I have the X100S which is even better. The ironic thing is that the X100S reminds me so much of my old Canon Canonet rangefinder. I've been a Canon user for over 40 years, but Canon lost me with the M. I'm not giving up my 5DIII (yet) but the X100S has become my everyday go-to camera.

 

[tallrob]

The real problem with Canon and the M is that they threw it out like it was gold and just left it hung out to dry when it didn't receive accolades. They never released a firmware update to address the AF (later claiming it wasn't possible -BS) or the lack of a true Servo AF, or the fact that switching to MF required a trip through the menus. Any of that would have been a gesture of support. So they've abandoned the current model and early adopters who had high hopes for this potentially great but flawed camera. Now it's on extreme clearance sale to underscore the abandonment.

I bought mine during the first discount wave. It's a good camera with great IQ and the touch screen is amazing. The AF is just barely sometimes a problem. Learn it's quirks and you can get around them. The MF switching is just stupid. Servo drives me a little nuts. Otherwise I love it and just wish Canon would have shown a little more support. I probably won't buy another one and might just ditch my 5Dii and L lenses for a Fuji system. Canon's and Fuji's next moves will decide it for me. Fuji seems dedicated to customers. Canon not so much.

 

[expatinasia]

Where did canon admit anything? It's not in their DNA.

And launching a new camera or expanding a range, isn't that the norm?

And the successors price? It won't be $50 more. Not for the first 6 months at least. So that wait becomes 9 months.

This is a CR1, so nothing may happen, but if it is true then that in itself is Canon basically admitting they made a mistake. This is not a new model in a series, like going from 5D Mark 1 to II to III, this is a replacement. That is also why I do not think it would be that much more expensive than it is now. Yes, Canon has a trend of new lenses, bodies being expensive when they first come out etc., but this is not a new camera, its a replacement. If the CR1 is true, I would expect the replacement to be of a similar price to the current M, the new M - that second body - will be more of course, but that is to be expected.

 

[Lee Jay]

I think everyone with a Canon DSLR kit would pick one up just for a back-up body...and then be drawn in to buying some of the smaller lenses.

Everyone? Wanna bet?

yeah...if Canon can keep the price reasonable (good luck with that, tho), make it focus uber fast, have a great viewfinder and and comes out with some small fast primes people would want it to complement their FF or CF kit...but certainly as I mention in my post (you cut and copied the above out of context just to bash!) as the M is now...I cannot see many people who come to this site considering it for anything.

I wouldn't want it if it could walk on water. I hate EVFs and non-TTL OVFs, and I hate bodies that are too small for my hands. This one is too small for my 9-year-old's hands.

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

Dilemmas dilemmas. I'm about to buy an M+22mm+Adaptor.

Do I wait and see if the new model makes the current M drop even further in price?

I'd hold off unless you have need for one. the SL-1 would be a better choice until they come out with something better.

 

[Hobby Shooter]

I think this sounds interesting. It often take these big companies a while to get it right.

I have an outdoor portrait session booked for next weekend. I will shoot with my 5D3, but will also try an M with the 22mm. It'll be interesting to compare.

 

[moreorless]

yeah...if Canon can keep the price reasonable (good luck with that, tho), make it focus uber fast, have a great viewfinder and and comes out with some small fast primes people would want it to complement their FF or CF kit...but certainly as I mention in my post (you cut and copied the above out of context just to bash!) as the M is now...I cannot see many people who come to this site considering it for anything.

The ironic thing for me is that dispite only having two lenses this is the area where Canon seems already to be to have an advanatge over Sony. Obviously the lineup is smaller but in terms of lenses I'd actually want to use the 22mm is both cheaper and faster than the Sony equivilent while the kit lens seems like it outperforms the Sony to a considerable degree aswell.

Personally I'd say the M's failiure thus far seems to partly be down to Canon's very SLR like approach to the market being a mismatch for mirrorless. Its a market where "sexy" rather than "dependable" sells IMHO, the casual user probabley has no idea of lens performance while the more serious user probabley looks past cheaper lenses.

The AF is obviously an issue but the original X100 was by all accounts hardly a speed demon but we heard much less about it because the camera had more in the way of "sexy" features.

 

[RGF]

But the problems folk have found aren't necessarily problems for me.

I have my 7D for the fast stuff. Even with a shorty forty my 600D wouldn't fit in my pocket. And the reviews I've seen all rate the M quite highly for video. Which is very useful for me. And the price is getting very right.

That's all good, but when a company like Canon admits that there are issues with the current model and decides to relaunch it, then why not wait a couple of months. I personally do not see the price going up that much, if at all, as it is not a new model but a replacement of a model that had issues.

Look upon it a different way, if they do release a nice new replacement with brand new AF and other improvements and it is only US$ 50 more then you can either splash out or still buy a probably even cheaper original version. You win either way.

+1000. Fix AF, no need for FF for me. I'd be happy with a mirrorless camera which will take my EF lenses (not EF-S) and has good AF. I good use as a backup in a pinch.

 

[gmrza]

Well that gives me some comfort that I did not sink my money into the current version, coz on many occasions I thought of getting the EOS-M but just kept putting it off as it wasn't a priority for me ... maybe the newer version(s) might lure me into buying one :-\

If they fix the AF, bring out a model with a viewfinder and a wired shutter release socket, and also introduce a better sensor, I will be very inclined to look at it.

 

[sanj]

I think everyone with a Canon DSLR kit would pick one up just for a back-up body...and then be drawn in to buying some of the smaller lenses.

Everyone? Wanna bet?

yeah...if Canon can keep the price reasonable (good luck with that, tho), make it focus uber fast, have a great viewfinder and and comes out with some small fast primes people would want it to complement their FF or CF kit...but certainly as I mention in my post (you cut and copied the above out of context just to bash!) as the M is now...I cannot see many people who come to this site considering it for anything.

I wouldn't want it if it could walk on water. I hate EVFs and non-TTL OVFs, and I hate bodies that are too small for my hands. This one is too small for my 9-year-old's hands.

I have a need for a small body with EVF. Yes do.

 

[ecka]

A new autofocus system will come with the new cameras and promises to be “class leading”.

If so, then why did Canon put the crappy old CDAF in their 700D/T5i?.. or, maybe, 700D/T5i CDAF is “class leading” as well, but they are just too humble to call it that way ?

 

[mb66energy]

I think that a compact EOS M with a FF sensor and EF mount would be a very interesting camera. Perhaps the cube shaped design of ancient medium format cameras will help to make it even more compact (not smaller in terms of volume) and help to stow away that camera easily. I think about a cube of roughly 80 x 80 x 80mm³ which too is compact with the 2.8 40 attached and fits in lens compartments with e.g. a 2.8 16-35 lens.

An EF-M-mount system EOS M with the 2.0 22 might find a way into my hands if it has a EVF and a RAW mode with 10 or 12 MPix.

 

[Marsu42]

At least this [CR1] together with other rumors or facts tells us where the Canon r&d resources go:

Into the emerging mirrorless market and high-end video, so there's little left to develop new "old-school" dlsrs (see 550d, 600d, 650d, 700d, ...) or replace the old L-lenses except for cash-cows like the delayed 200-400L.

 

[ecka]

At least this [CR1] together with other rumors or facts tells us where the Canon r&d resources go:

Into the emerging mirrorless market and high-end video, so there's little left to develop new "old-school" dlsrs (see 550d, 600d, 650d, 700d, ...) or replace the old L-lenses except for cash-cows like the delayed 200-400L.

Obviously, the new EF-S 18-55'IS'STM kit lens feels cheap and plasticky compared to EF-M 18-55'IS'STM. It's almost like Canon's marketing management is going bananas since 7D and for an average user all the progress can be described in 3 words - touch-screen, Digic5, 40STM. I think I will be boycotting their "affordable/entry level" FF offering this year. Going back to crop may be painful, but the EU prices for an underspeced 6D are just stupidly high (body only ~$2400 in my area). I've sold my 5D2 already :-\, so I may try the mirrorless thing after all.

 

[Singsling]

I think the M is a dead duck, just went out and bought the 100D/SL1 for my Girlfriend and wow, what a lovely little Camera, sure winner for Canon and a delight for us shooters when it gets going. Trouble is I am going to have to get another one for myself now. Mounted a "shorty forty' 24-70 mk 2 and 70-200 love it. Tried to buy just the Body in Singapore, no stock yet so I had to take it with the kit Lens, which is really nice too.

 

[serpicolugnut]

I just bought one new on eBay for $340 with the 22mm lens. They are also available with the 18-55 lens for $370. I picked one up, and have been playing with it for a couple of days. It's well worth the money.

For the dude saying it looks cheap/plasticky... the shell is metal. It's a very well made, sturdy compact.

Overall, I'm pretty happy with it so far. The 3 things you should be aware of with it are:

1) It is much slower to focus than a DSLR with a viewfinder. If you want to get an idea of how slow, put your DSLR in Live View and spend some time setting your focus that way. The EOS-M behaves in the same manner. This could be sped up with a firmware update, but honestly, so long as you aren't shooting sports or wildlife, you'll be fine.

2) AEB is limited to 3 shots. I do a lot of HDR, so this is kind of a let down.

3) In my very quick test of recording video, the STM lens makes quite a bit of noise and was actually louder than the audio I was trying to record. Granted, the audio was quiet, but still, the STM noise was very loud on the recording.

Overall, for a camera of this price and size, and capability, I'm very happy. I ordered the 18-55 lens (which can be found for about $180 on ebay new as well), and will be taking this as my only kit on my trip to Tokyo later this.

It's not a 5DMIII in features, but it's a capable camera that won't require you to lug a huge bag around with you either.

Well that gives me some comfort that I did not sink my money into the current version, coz on many occasions I thought of getting the EOS-M but just kept putting it off as it wasn't a priority for me ... maybe the newer version(s) might lure me into buying one :-\

Although if it drops below 400 with the prime kits lens, I'd get it to replace the P&S...

 

[ecka]

For the dude saying it looks cheap/plasticky... the shell is metal. It's a very well made, sturdy compact.

No offence, but please read again, dude . I was talking about the EF-S being cheap/plasticky compared to EF-M metal shell.
Any comments on EOS-M battery life? How many spares are you taking on a trip?