Canon EOS 650D Review: The Best Budget DSLR Is Kind Of A Bummer
Published 9 years ago: September 5, 2012 at 1:00 pm -
Filed to:Cameras
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More than two years ago, the Canon EOS 550D set the standard for beginner DSLRs. The camera proved that for a little over $1000 you could get beautiful photos and slick HD video. It was incredibly popular, as was Canon's 2011 follow-up, the EOS 600D.
But things have changed. The Canon EOS 650D comes to the market at a time when the case for buying a sub-$1000 DSLR has never been weaker. Mini mirrorless cameras like the Sony NEX F3 and the Panasonic GX1 produce nearly identical image quality with less bulk.
With an autofocus video and an incredible touchscreen, the EOS 650D is the most refined version of this camera yet. But is is a mini DSLR still relevant?
A consumer DSLR with an 18-megapixel, APS-C sensor and 1080p video powers. The body only costs $900 in Australia. It's about $1050 with an 18-55mm lens, and $1350 with an 18-135mm STM lens.
The aspiring amateur looking for near-professional image quality in a body that feels and handles like a serious single-lens-reflex film camera.
The EOS 650D is as black and boring as any affordable DSLR. It's like the EOS 600D with a touchscreen.
The camera handles like the 600D. That new 3-inch LCD touchscreen lets you abandon most of the buttons. A new continuous autofocus system works while recording video.
The Best Part
The wonderfully responsive capacitive touchscreen. This smartphone feature, on this camera, has impressive results.
Tragic Flaw
The much-touted continuous autofocus for video takes several seconds to find its mark. It's annoying for video. For photography, it's excruciating, with its unpredictable, hugely disappointing performance.
Test Notes
We tested the EOS 650D for about a month, mostly using the tiny, lovely, new wide-aperture 40mm pancake lens.
We also used the new 18-135mm STM lens,and a standard Canon 18-135mm lens.
The 650D's image quality hasn't improved much from the 600D.
The camera's video quality is virtually identical to the performance on the EOS 550D. The noise at high ISOs is still a mess, the image could be sharper, and the aliasing and moire distortions haven't been fixed. Given that video is one of the selling points for this (and all Canon cameras), we expected better.
The 650D did get an upgraded Digic 5 processor, which will reduce noise and improve colour in certain shots. It also boosts the continuous shooting speed to five frames per second. But the change is so slight that the target audience for this camera probably wouldn't notice it.
The 650D uses its slow live-view autofocus any time you're in live-view mode. AF is annoying when you're shooting video, but using it for photography is disappointing. You can avoid this by using the optical viewfinder — in fact, this is one of the major advantages of using a DSLR over a mirrorless camera.
Canon introduced a new line of STM ("stepping motor") lenses with this camera, which are designed to focus quietly for video. As promised, they're quiet.
It's easy to say there's no difference between an affordable DSLR and a mirrorless camera. But the subtle differences are actually pretty significant. If you're going to use your camera as a way to just take high-quality snapshots, the limitations of mirrorless might not bother you. But if you really want to learn photography, there's no substitute for the controls afforded by a DSLR. These cameras teach you how fundamental concepts like ISO, aperture and shutter speed affect your photos. The manual focus on mirrorless cameras is a joke when compared to using an optical viewfinder to dial it in.
So if you're really serious about learning photography — like so serious that you're already dreaming of upgrading to a pro DSLR one day — you could consider the EOS 650D. But even then, to get the best value, you might as well go for the 600D.
If what you find enticing is the 650D's touchscreen, then before you make your decision, wait for the reviews of Canon EOS-M and the Sony NEX-5R. These two tiny touchscreen cameras will have APS-C sensors. We'll need to test them to be sure, but either could have comparable performance to the T4i in a cheaper, more compact package.
• Price: $900 (body only), $1050 w/18-55mm lens, $1350 w/18-135mm STM lens
• Sensor: 18MP, APS-C (23.4mm x 15.4mm)
• Max ISO: 12800 (standard)/25600 (expanded)
• Image: Up to 5184×3456 pixels
• Video: 1920×1080 30/25/24 and 1280×720 60/50
• Screen: 1,040,000-dot 3-inch capacitive touch LCD
• Weight: 510g (body only)
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Video by Michael Hession. Additional photography by Nick Stango.
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