Canon EOS R100 Camera Review

The Canon R100 is very portable. It's almost identical in size, shape, and weight to the pricier Canon EOS R50, which makes it one of the smaller interchangeable-lens APS-C cameras we've tested. While it's a tad too big to fit in a pants pocket, you could easily slip it into a small bag or hang it from a sling for hours with minimal fatigue.

Build quality is good. It's similar in feel to the Canon EOS R50, with a body made mostly from hard plastic. It's got a textured rubber grip that provides a secure hold on the camera, and all its controls, from the shutter button to the command dial, offer a good amount of physical feedback. However, the built-in flash feels cheap, and you must pop it up manually when necessary. Unlike the R50, its screen is built into the body.

Unlike the Canon EOS R50, the Canon R100 doesn't have the new multi-function hot shoe also found on pricier models in the company's lineup, allowing for added functionality like data and power transfer to accessories like flashes or microphones. Instead, the R100 has a traditionally four-pin shoe that's directly compatible with accessories like separately-powered EX-series flashes.

It's worth noting that this camera uses Canon's RF lens mount and that there are only a small handful of dedicated RF-S APS-C lenses with no third-party options currently available. Thankfully, the camera is fully compatible with full-frame RF lenses, too. Do note that if you choose to move onto a full-frame RF-mount Canon body later on, using it with an RF-S APS-C lens will block a portion of the larger sensor, resulting in a crop to your image.

• Canon R100 camera body
• Sensor cap
• Shoulder strap
• 1x Canon LP-E17 battery
• Battery charger
• Quick start guide

The Canon R100 has decent ergonomics. It's very lightweight and has a textured hand and thumb grip, helping you keep a secure hold on the camera. Its small size also makes it easy to reach all of the controls with your thumb, even if you have fairly small hands, though it's likely to feel cramped if your hands are large, especially when using larger lenses. If you aren't careful when grabbing it, it's easy to accidentally press the directional pad with your palm. With just a single control dial and no touch compatibility, it's also harder to quickly adjust the aperture and shutter speed if you prefer shooting in manual mode.

The electronic viewfinder (EVF) has a 2.36 million dot resolution, which is typical and gives you a fairly sharp image. Its somewhat low magnification makes it feel like your view of the scene is far away. The eyecup is fairly stiff, but thankfully, the EVF protrudes pretty far from the body, giving you more space to comfortably hold the camera to your eye.

The screen is fixed, making it harder to take photos from waist level or shoot from unusual angles. While it does get fairly bright, it's highly reflective, which makes it hard to see what's being displayed when shooting outdoors. It's also noticeably less sharp than the Canon EOS R50's display and isn't touch-sensitive, so you can't select the focus point, navigate the menu, or use the touch shutter.

The menu system is easy to use. Its tab-based layout is similar to many other Canon menu systems but emphasizes explaining features to novices; you can use the built-in guide mode to see detailed explanations of more complicated features. You can also view the full user manual on your smartphone through a QR code that you can display from the menu. Unfortunately, the menu system's streamlined interface can make accessing slightly more advanced features harder. For instance, you'll need to navigate to a separate 'Custom Functions (C.Fn)' sub-menu to enable the extended ISO mode. Key beginner aids like the depth of field preview or electronic level are off by default. You'll need to delve pretty deep into the menu to turn them on, which could be a hassle if you're new to using dedicated cameras to begin with.

If you want to transfer photos to your phone easily, the Canon Camera Connect app connects the camera to your phone via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi; you can see a sample of the interface here. You can transfer files or control the camera remotely with a Wi-Fi connection. Unlike many other camera apps, you can still use and adjust the settings on the camera itself while using the app for Live View/remote control. That said, the Live View function and even shutter release through the app have a significant lag. If you own a compatible Canon printer, like the Canon SELPHY Square QX10, you can also connect directly to the SELPHY Photo Layout app and print your photos right away.

The camera has many auto-shooting modes, helpful info, and guide functions. The 'A+' (Scene Intelligent Auto) mode is the fully automatic shooting mode, in which the camera assesses the scene and automatically chooses the right settings for you. You can also access the 'Creative Assist' mode here. The Creative Assist mode lets you adjust aspects of the image in simplified terms, like 'Background Blur' and 'Brightness'. Finally, there's a 'Hybrid Auto' mode, which captures anywhere between 2-4 seconds of video before you take a shot and automatically adds it into a time-lapse video. There are also many creative scene modes in the 'SCN' mode on the mode dial. You can choose settings like 'Landscape', 'Panning', and 'Close-Up', among others listed here in the product manual.

The Canon R100's battery performance is alright. It uses the same LP-E17 battery pack as the Canon EOS R50 and delivers similar overall battery for photography, which puts it in fairly good standing for an entry-level mirrorless model. It has a CIPA-rated battery life of about 340 shots when using the viewfinder. When using the flash for 50% of your shots, the advertised battery life drops to about 320 shots using the viewfinder or 400 when shooting via the screen. That said, CIPA figures tend to be pretty conservative, so your real-world experience will likely differ. It pulls ahead of its pricier sibling when recording video, though not for a particularly good reason: while the R50 can shoot uncropped 4k video at up to 30 fps, the R100 can only shoot in 4k at 24 fps with a severe 1.54x crop, lessening the processing load and extending its runtime when compared to its pricier stablemate. Unfortunately, it doesn't support charging or an external power supply via USB, so you'll have to recharge its battery using the included external charger.

The Canon R100 has a sub-par shooting speed. There's only a single electronic first-curtain shutter mode with no continuous electronic shutter mode like there is on the Canon EOS R50. It tops out at 6 fps, which is slower than not only the pricier R50 but also the older Canon EOS Rebel SL3, with which the R100 shares its sensor. Worse yet, shooting with full autofocus tracking drops its continuous burst rate to an abysmal 3 fps, so you'll likely miss out on brief moments. It also has a small buffer when shooting in RAW, though thankfully, it empties pretty fast. Still, you're much better off shooting in JPEG if you plan to fire off a lot of extended bursts.

The Canon R100 uses Canon's Dual Pixel autofocus system, borrowed from older DSLR models. Unfortunately, it's not up to par with the more advanced systems found in pricier mirrorless cameras, as it can sometimes lock onto the wrong subject and lose track of things that are moving in an erratic pattern. Even worse, the system doesn't allow you to manually select what you want to track, so you're effectively at the mercy of the system's whims when shooting in environments with a variety of subjects. There are no settings for adjusting sensitivity or tracking speed, though this isn't expected for a beginner-oriented camera.

The R100 also has a 'Sport' scene mode that can be enabled when the camera is in 'Auto'. However, you can't adjust the shutter speed manually in this setting, which could result in your subject being obscured by motion blur if it isn't set high enough. Regardless, testing AF-C tracking in this mode didn't result in any noticeable improvement in performance.

The AF-C is quite effective when using a single center focus point instead of tracking. It's smooth and stays with the target behind the focus point.

The Canon R100 doesn't have in-body image stabilization, but you can use optically stabilized lenses like the RF-S 18-45mm F4.5-6.3 IS STM kit lens. We managed to get great results while using that lens, with clear handheld shots at very slow shutter speeds. That said, stabilization can vary depending on many factors, including the camera's size and weight, the lens's focal length, and how steady your hands are.

The camera has good RAW dynamic range, especially for an APS-C sensor. You can capture a fairly wide range of highlight and shadow detail within a shot.

Note: LibRaw, the software we use to convert RAW files to TIFF files for analysis in Imatest, is currently unable to process the CR3 RAW files that the Canon R100 outputs, leaving us unable to show conclusive results for the 'Dynamic Range At Base ISO', 'Dynamic Range At 1/500s Exposure Time', 'Dynamic Range At 1/2000s Exposure Time', and 'Dynamic Range At 1/4000s Exposure Time' tests. Instead, as a temporary measure until the LibRaw software is updated to be able to process these files, the results for this tests are taken from those we measured from the Canon EOS Rebel SL3: it and the R100 share the same 24.1 MP sensor and DIGIC 8 processor, so we fully expect all-but-identical results in terms of dynamic range.

The camera can capture sharp, detailed images. It does a good job of resolving fine details, but you won't have as much leeway to crop your photos as you would when using a camera with a higher-resolution sensor.

The Canon R100's noise handling capability is decent. It does a fine job of keeping noise fairly low in areas with less light but will obviously struggle more than most full-frame cameras in this regard.

Note: LibRaw, the software we use to convert RAW files to TIFF files for analysis in Imatest, is currently unable to process the CR3 RAW files that the Canon R100 outputs, leaving us unable to show conclusive results for the 'SNR 18% At 1/8 Exposure Time (125 ms)', 'SNR 18% At 1/125 Exposure Time (8 ms)', and 'SNR 18% At 1/1000 Exposure Time (1 ms)' tests. Instead, as a temporary measure until the LibRaw software is updated to be able to process these files, the results for this tests are taken from those we measured from the Canon EOS Rebel SL3: it and the R100 share the same 24.1 MP sensor and DIGIC 8 processor, so we fully expect all-but-identical results in terms of noise handling capability.

Regarding video features, this camera is pretty bare-bones. It can shoot video in not only FHD and 4k but also in HD (1280x720) at 60fps. You can see a sample frame from our test scene here.

The camera doesn't have IBIS but does include two digital video stabilization settings, though they incur very severe crops. When shooting in 4k, the regular stabilization mode incurs a 1.72x crop, while the 'Enhanced' mode incurs a 2.24x crop. When shooting in FHD, the regular stabilization mode incurs a 1.11x crop, while the 'Enhanced' mode incurs a 1.43x crop.

You can only see the microphone level display after toggling over to the fifth menu display screen, as opposed to the main shooting screen. You can see what that interface looks like here.

The Canon R100 is a terrible choice for recording 4k video and is a significant downgrade from the Canon EOS R50 in this regard. Compared to its pricier stablemate, which could shoot uncropped 4k video at up to 30 fps, the R100 can only shoot in 4k at 24 fps with a severe 1.54x crop.

The Canon R100's internal recording capability is good. Its max bitrate isn't bad for an entry-level camera, but it is limited to 8-bit recording, giving you less leeway to color-grade your videos. Compared to the pricier Canon EOS R50, which could record for up to an hour, the R100 is stuck with a 30-minute recording time limit. Thankfully, we experienced no overheating-related interruptions when shooting in 4k.

The 4k autofocus performance is sub-par. The camera uses relatively antiquated contrast-detect autofocus instead of its Dual Pixel CMOS system when recording 4k video. It's very slow to acquire focus on moving subjects, even those moving in a predictable pattern, and loses track of human subjects when they turn around, acquiring focus in jerky, disruptive pulses.

Its 4k video quality is mediocre. It's reasonably detailed and low in noise when shooting in well-lit environments, but quality degrades sharply when shooting in low light, with plenty of noise and grain as well as a significant loss in object detail.

Unfortunately, the rolling shutter effect is extremely noticeable in 4k. Its slow sensor readout speed leads to significant skewing and wobbling with vertical lines whenever you pan the camera quickly to the side.

The Canon R100 can record standard 1080p video at up to 60 fps, which is great for capturing smooth footage of fast action.

It also has a 'High Frame Rate' setting for slow-motion videos recorded at 120 fps, but only when shooting in HD (1280 x 720) resolution, with playback being limited to 30 fps and no audio, continuous autofocus, or digital stabilization. You can see an excerpt of a video shot in this mode here.

The FHD internal recording capability is good. It's still stuck with a 30-minute recording limit, but thankfully, thermal management is good, with the camera being unlikely to overheat.

The Canon R100 makes full use of its Dual-Pixel autofocus when shooting in FHD, resulting in significantly better tracking performance than 4k recording. When it comes to human subjects, this camera acquires focus quickly and doesn't lose track of the subjects when they move out of frame. That said, it has a little more trouble with moving inanimate objects.

Video quality in FHD is poor. Recorded video is grainy and lacking in detail, even when shooting in well-lit environments.

Note: The sample test scene extract photo posted within the review is slightly compressed, resulting in a worsening of quality compared to the original image. You can see an uncompressed version of the test scene extract here.

There's less rolling shutter distortion in FHD compared to 4k, but you'll still see some skewing with very quick camera movements.

There's just a single SD card slot, rated for slower UHS-I cards. It's inside the battery compartment on the bottom of the camera, so you can't switch out cards while the camera is mounted on a tripod.

The camera has a USB-C port to connect to a PC for file transfer or streaming, although it doesn't come with a USB-C cable in the box. If you want to use the camera as a webcam or for streaming, you must change the 'Choose USB connection app' setting to 'Video calls/streaming'. It allows certain conferencing/streaming programs to automatically detect the camera as a webcam. However, it's worth noting that the camera doesn't support power delivery or charging via USB-C, so you can only stream for the duration of the camera's internal battery life.

The camera also has a Micro HDMI port, with which you can also connect the camera to a PC and use it as a webcam. There's a microphone and remote control inputs on the other side of the camera, but no headphone jack.