In summary
The EOS R50 V is an interchangeable lens camera for content creators who want extended shooting controls for livestreaming, vlogging to cinematic projects and social media content.
Full review
Announced on 27 March 2025, concurrently with the PowerShot V1, the EOS R50 V is an interchangeable lens camera targeted at the same market sector: content creators and vloggers looking for a pocketable camera with better performance and more advanced video capabilities than their smartphones. Smaller and lighter than the similarly-specified EOS R50 (which we reviewed in April, 2023, thanks to the elimination of the EVF and flash, the EOS R50 V uses the same 24.2-megapixel sensor and DIGIC X processor and supports the same image and video file formats. The user interface also prioritises video over stills capture reflecting typical usage of its target market.
Angled view of the EOS R50 V with the RF-S 14-30mm f/4-6.3 IS STM PZ kit lens. (Source: Canon.)
Canon is offering this camera as a body-alone for an RRP of AU $1169 as well as in kit format with the RF-S 14-30mm f/4-6.3 IS STM PZ lens. We received the kit for this review and have reviewed the lens separately.
Who’s it For?
The size, weight and video capabilities of the R50 V – as well as its ability to accept interchangeable lenses – give it potential for use as a traveller’s camera, save for one serious flaw. It lacks a viewfinder and is so strongly biased towards video recording that it provides few features for stills shooting. The table below provides a summarised comparison of key features of the two cameras.
| EOS R50 V | EOS R50 | |
| EVF | None | 0.39-type OLED EVF with 2,360,000 dots |
| Flash | None | Yes GN 6 |
| Battery/capacity | LP-E17 / 480 shots or 2 hours of video per charge | LP-E12 / 320 shots/charge with EVF, 450 shots/charge with monitor |
| Controls layout | Video-orientated | Standard stills-orientated |
| Mode dial | A+ (fully automatic Scene Intelligent Auto mode), Movie for close-up demos, Movie IS mode, S&F movies, Advanced movies, C1, C2 & C3 Custom modes | A+ (fully automatic Scene Intelligent Auto mode), Hybrid Auto, Special Scene, Creative Filters, P, Tv, Av, M, Long (Bulb) exposures |
| Video | Oversampled 6K to 4K 25p, 50p with 1.56x frame crop, FHD 100p. 50p, 25p | Oversampled 6K to 4K 25p, FHD 100p. 50p, 25p |
| Log recording in movie mode | Yes, C-Log 3 | No |
| Headphone jack | 3.5 mm stereo mini-jack | No |
| Remote control terminal | Yes | No |
| USB port | Type C 10Gbps speed | USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) |
| Wi-Fi | 5 GHz & 2.5 GHz | 2.5 GHz only |
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth v5.1 | Bluetooth v4.2 |
| Kit lens | RF-S 14-30mm f/4-6.3 IS STM PZ | RF-S 18-45mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM |
| Dimensions | 119.3 x 73.7 x 45.2 mm | 116.3 x 85.5 x 68.8 mm |
| Weight | 373 grams with battery and card | 375 grams with battery and card |
Vloggers will doubtless be happy with the features and functionality the EOS R50 V offers, such as the extra front REC button and second tripod socket on the side panel for vertical video recording to meet the needs of some social media platforms.
Canon has also included support for Canon Log 3 to cater for more serious content creators who require flexible colour grading in post-production. However, many potential buyers could be unlikely to need (or want) it.
Basic features are there in abundance, among them a built-in stereo microphone and a dedicated headphone jack. The camera can also accept add-on microphones thanks to a mic-in jack that will override the built-in, three-capsule mic. Four-channel audio allows users to capture multiple sound sources for interviews, podcasts, or multi-mic setups.
Pickings are, however, sparse, when it comes to stills photography, where the EOS R50 has a much better set of controls as well as a viewfinder. It also costs less. Users of both cameras can choose between the JPEG, HEIF and CR3.RAW file formats for stills shooting, with the latter including both the regular and compressed, C-RAW, options.
Both cameras have the same 24-megapixel CMOS sensor, which records images with a maximum resolution of 6000 x 4000 pixels and a 3:2 aspect ratio. Square, 4:3 and 16:9 image crops are available when shooting stills.
However, the R50 V’s complete lack of any kind of viewfinder – or any way to attach one – will be a major drawback for anyone interested in shooting stills. So will the absence of a built-in flash – or any kind of continuous LED light source (which will also affect vloggers).
The lack of in-camera sensor-shift IS means both vloggers and stills shooters will be reliant on in-lens image stabilisation, along with a parallel lack of sensor-shake dust removal. However, subject tracking AF, which works for both stills and video, can help users to record steady movies that keep moving subjects in focus.
Subject-tracking AF combined with video stabilisation makes it easy to record smooth movies of moving subjects. (Source: Canon.)
Neither camera includes a mechanical shutter. Instead, users must choose between a regular electronic shutter and an electronic front-curtain shutter, with a selectable silent mode that covers a range from 30 second exposures to a maximum shutter speed of 1/8000 second.
Build and Ergonomics
Like most entry-level cameras, the R50 V’s body is made mainly of plastic to keep its weight as low as possible. Its LP-E17 battery is also small, although the claimed shooting capacity is greater than expected at approximately 480 shots or up to 2 hours of movie recording per charge. Unlike many modern cameras, the R50 V comes with a separate battery charger, although it can also be charged directly via USB.
Front view of the EOS R50V with no lens fitted. (Source: Canon.)
The front panel on the camera body has a shallow grip moulding that users with larger hands will probably find uncomfortable. The only other control on this panel is the second movie recording button on the lower left corner, although there’s also an AF-assist/ red-eye-reduction/self-timer/remote control LED between the top of the grip and the lens mount, a tally lamp on the opposite side of the mount and the standard lens-release button.
The top panel of the EOS R50V with no lens fitted. (Source: Canon.)
The top panel carries most of the camera settings and they’re mainly clustered on the right-hand side of the hot-shoe. The shutter/movie recording button, which is surrounded by the zoom lever, is located towards the front of the grip moulding. Behind it, towards the rear of the panel is the main dial, which is used for many adjustments.
The power on/off lever is located on the rear corner of the panel to the right of the main dial. To the left of this dial sits the mode dial, which has eight settings, split into two groups: Basic Zone and Creative Zone. The Basic Zone has two settings: Scene Intelligent Auto movie and Special Scene movie, the latter covering smooth skin movie, close-up and Movie IS modes. Stills shots can also be recorded in any of these modes when you select the camera icon on the dial.
Selecting the movie mode changes the menu to prioritise video shooting. (Source: Canon.)
The Creative Zone settings cover Slow & Fast motion movie settings (auto exposure, Shutter priority, aperture priority and manual exposure modes) and Advanced movies with the same exposure priority options. There are also three Custom recording modes where users can store pre-set shooting modes.
Just above the mode dial is the Live streaming/ movie-photo playback button, while to its right is a button that acts as a multi-function lock. The built-in microphone and speaker are located on the left side of the hot-shoe. Strap lugs are inset into the panel on either side to accept the supplied neck strap that comes with the camera.
The rear panel of the EOS R50V. (Source: Canon.)
The rear panel is mostly covered by a fully-articulating touch-screen, which is the main interface for framing shots and movie recordings. No viewfinder is provided and there is no way to add one, so users are entirely dependent on this screen.
The hinge for the screen is close to the left-hand side of the camera body and the screen can be reversed, as shown in the illustration above. covers almost all of it. Above the monitor screen on the left-hand side are Menu and Playback buttons, while the remaining controls are aligned down the right-hand side.
A small, ribbed thumb rest is located on the upper right corner with two button controls between it and the monitor. The upper button is the AF-on control, which also doubles as a way to send images to a smartphone. The lower button is a colour mode selector, which doubles as an image search button.
Below the thumb rest is a standard arrow pad with cross keys for selecting ISO/delete, drive/self-timer, white balance and AF/MF focus modes. A central SET button also accesses the Quick menu display, while an Info button is located below it.
The interface ports are located on the left side panel remain with separate compartments for the microphone and headphone ports and the USB-C and HDMI connectors. A tripod socket is embedded in the right-hand side panel to allow vertically-orientated recordings.
Like most entry-level cameras, the battery shares a compartment with the single SD card slot and there’s the standard tripod socket in the base panel aligned with the optical axis of the lens.
Sensor and Image Processing
Although the EOS R50 V uses the same sensor and image processor as the EOS R50 and supports the same file formats and recording settings as the older camera, it is much more video-orientated. For stills capture, users can choose from JPEG, HEIF (High Efficiency Image File) format, each with seven sizes and compression levels, as well as both CR3 and C-Raw formats.
Four aspect ratio crops are available, with the 3:2 aspect ratio the default recording setting. Aspect ratio markers are displayed on the screen when aspects other than 3:2 are selected and they can be displayed on the movie screen during standby and recording.
Video is always recorded in the XF-HEVC S file format with standard Long GOP compression. No All-i options are provided. Both H.264 and H.265 codecs are available with a choice between YCbCr 4:2:2 and YCbCr 4:2:0 colour sampling and 10-bit depth for three of the four options.
The R50V provides all the expected video settings and shooting aids, including a tally lamp, auto level, digital image stabiliser (which slightly crops the frame), time coding, HDR and Log view assist (to display recordings as they would appear on non-HDR display screens) and false colour displays. Zebra stripes can be superimposed to show out-of-gamut recordings and the camera can be set to rotate the on-screen data display when it is vertically orientated. The display can also be set to Reverse to show what’s recorded when you’re pointing the camera towards you.
Vertical vlogging with Reverse view. (Source: Canon.)
The native sensitivity range is ISO 100-32000 with extension to ISO 51200 available, if required. When Highlight tone priority is enabled, the minimum ISO jumps to ISO 200 and in Movie mode, the top ISO setting drops to ISO 12800 with extension to ISO 25600. However, sensitivity is only adjustable for movie recording in the Manual shooting mode.
Oversampled 6K to 4K UHD movie recording is available at up to 25p for PAL system users. Full-HD High-frame rate movies can be recorded at up to 100 fps with Dual Pixel CMOS AF tracking. Vertical videos are recorded by rotating the camera to portrait format and using the tripod mount on the side of the camera body.
Unfortunately, the camera includes some restrictions on resolution and frame rate that will affect how it’s used. Full-frame 4K recordings are restricted to 25p; if you want 50p recording you must select the 4K Crop mode. (But that prevents you from recording at 25p.)
Similarly, the digital zoom can only be used for Full HD (1920 x 1080) 25p movies. It’s not available with either of the 4K recording modes, which is somewhat limiting, although it can provide up to 10x magnification (with the associated loss of image quality).
Like the R50, the R50V’s SCN recording mode includes selectable Smooth Skin Movie and Movie for Close-up Demos settings, which automatically adjust camera settings for specific end results. A special Movie IS setting is also available for reducing camera shake when recording movies with the camera hand-held.
Live streaming options provided by the EOS R50 V. (Source: Canon.)
The R50V can also be used for streaming video thanks to UVC/UAC compatibility, which allows it to act as a webcam when connected through its HDMI port. Users can also stream wirelessly to popular platforms such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Skype without requiring additional software or via Canon’s Live Switcher Mobile app (which requires a subscription).
Performance
The review camera and RF-S 14-30mm f/4-6.3 IS STM PZ kit lens failed to produce the same high resolutions in our Imatest assessments as we obtained from the EOS R50 we reviewed in April 2023. This is surprising since both cameras have the same sensor and image processor, although the lens may have played a role.
JPEG files from the R50 V fell slightly short of meeting expectations for the 24-megapixel sensor near the centre of the frame, while CR3.RAW files only just surpassed them (but, again, only in the centre of the frame). Resolutions declined towards the periphery of the frame, falling well below expectations by around 60% of the distance from the centre.
Interestingly, colour accuracy for JPEG files was slightly better for the newer camera, although barely enough to signify. We found the expected slow decline in resolution across the ISO sensitivity range from ISO 100 through to ISO 12800, with a sharp drop thereafter to ISO 25600 and ISO 51200. The graph below shows the results of our Imatest tests across the camera’s sensitivity range.
Recording our usual set of low-light shots to assess high ISO performance was, unfortunately, fraught with difficulties. Our normal practice is to select TV (shutter priority) mode, adjust ISO settings and let the camera’s processor handle aperture values. However, in this mode, the review camera repeatedly switched across to a highly-automated mode that defaulted to the smallest aperture setting.
Things only became worse when we swapped to Manual exposure mode because it was well-nigh impossible to change both aperture and shutter speed settings and re-adjust the focus all at the same time. Focusing was tricky because the screen often went dark unpredictably and, even when we got the focus close to sharp, by the time the shutter was triggered (using a 2-second self-timer delay) the focus had inexplicably drifted off-course.
One of the more successful ways of getting around the exposure problems was to adjust the exposure compensation until the screen brightened up enough for the lens to focus. But, even then, it often took two or three attempts before we obtained a usable shot.
Further confirmation that the camera is not ideal for night time work came through the repeated hunting that preceded each attempt at focusing on the subject; which occurred even after the lens was brough close to focus through manual adjustment. This is the first camera we’ve encountered in many years that was so difficult to use in dim lighting.
The results of our tests confirmed our general findings. Very little noise was evident in shots taken between ISO 100 and ISO 400 (inclusive) with noise increasing progressively thereafter.
We found a wide discrepancy between JPEG and CR3.RAW files at the highest ISO settings, which is illustrated in our Samples section below. JPEGs became soft and lost colour saturation, while raw files converted into TIFF format in Adobe Camera Raw maintained most of the colour depth but were seriously noise-affected and had a few colour casts.]
Interestingly, in normal room-level lighting, JPEGs shot at the highest ISO settings were quite easy to focus and showed little in the way of noise. In-camera high ISO noise-reduction did, however, produce slight softening at the two highest ISO settings.
Autofocusing performance in normal lighting was much better for both stills and video, although at times we detected some minor lags with low-contrast scenes and also occasionally when recording video in backlight situations. Subject tracking for video was reasonably good, including when the digital zoom was used.
Soundtracks recorded with the camera’s built-in microphone were similar to those we recorded with the EOS R50 and adequate for basic vlogging. As anticipated, no interference was recorded from lens adjustments during autofocusing or zooming because both adjustments are small and carried out internally.
For our timing tests we used a 32GB SanDisk Extreme Pro SDHC II U3 card with a rated speed of 300 MB/second. The review camera powered-up in roughly half a second and we measured an average capture lag of 0.3 seconds when moving from severely out-of-focus to sharp focus. This delay was reduced to less than 0.1 seconds when the camera had a shorter focus range to cover and then eliminated by pre-focusing the lens.
It took an average of 1.3 seconds to process a single file regardless of whether it was a JPEG, HEIF file or a CR3.RAW file or a RAW+JPEG or RAW+HEIF pair. Shot-to-shot times averaged 0.35 seconds.
The high-speed continuous shooting mode is only available with the electronic shutter and claims a maximum speed of 15 fps. In this mode we recorded 96 JPEG frames in 10 seconds without the camera pausing, which equates to 10 fps. No display was shown to allow us to time how long the burst took to process.
When using the same settings for raw file capture, the camera recorded 94 frames in 10 seconds, which is only marginally slower. Once again. We were unable to time the processing of this burst. A further slowing to 91 frames in 10 seconds occurred when recording RAW+JPEG pairs.
Conclusion
Login or Register to access the full article.
SPECS
Image sensor: 22.3 x 14.9 mm APS-C sized CMOS sensor with 25.5 million photosites (24.2 megapixels effective)
Image processor: DIGIC X
Lens mount: Canon RF-S
Focal length crop factor: 1.6x
Digital zoom: 2x and 4x available
Image formats: Stills: JPEG (DCF, Exif Ver. 2.31), HEIF (YCC422 10 bit / YCC420 10 Bit), CR3.RAW, C-RAW, DPRAW, RAW+JPEG; Movies: XF-HEVC S / XF-AVC S)
Audio: LPCM / 24 bit / 4CH, ACC / 16 bit / 2CH
Image Sizes: Stills – 3:2 aspect ratio: 6000 x 4000, 3984 x 2656, 2976 x 1984, 2400 x 1600: Movies (PAL system): 4K, 4K crop and Full HD resolutions at 50p, 25p with standard ALL-Intra and Long GOP compression, Slow & Fast Motion movies supported
Aspect ratios: 4:3, 3:2, 16:9, 1:1
Image Stabilisation: IBIS plus Movie digital IS
Shutter (speed range): Electronic shutter: 1/8 to 1/4000 second; 30-1/8000 seconds plus Bulb modes available; flash sync at 1/240 second
Exposure Compensation: +/-3EV in 1/3EV steps
Exposure bracketing:. +/-3 EV in 1/3EV steps
Self-timer: 2 or 10 seconds delay
Interval recording: Yes at 12p, 6p, 3p for 4K and Full HD time-lapse movies
Focus system: Dual CMOS AF II system with 651 points for stills, 527 points for movies
AF selection: Spot AF / 1 point AF (with expansion), Flexible Zone AF 1 / AF 2 / AF 3, Whole area AF
Focus modes: One-shot (Single) / Servo (Continuous) / AI Focus AF; Subject detection modes: Auto, People (with people registration priority) / Animals / Vehicles; Eye Detection options: Auto, Right eye / Left eye
Exposure metering: 384-zone multi-pattern sensing system with Multiple, Centre-weighted average, Spot and Highlight Weighted metering patterns
Shooting modes: A+ (fully automatic Scene Intelligent Auto mode), P, Tv, Av, M plus Bulb exposure, Self Portrait, Portrait, Smooth skin, Panoramic shot, Food and Handheld night scene
Recording options: Picture Style, Custom Picture (Movies), Colour Filter, Clarity, Auto, HDR shooting (stills/movies), Lighting Optimiser, Highlight tone priority, Focus breathing correction (movies), Anti-flicker shooting, False colour (movies)
Colour space options: sRGB
ISO range: Auto, ISO 100-51200 with expansion to ISO 100 to 32000
White balance: AWB, AWBc, AWBw, Daylight, Cloudy, Shade, Incandescent, Flash, White Set (x 4), Colour temperature setting (x 4)
Flash: Multi-function shoe for external flashguns
Flash exposure adjustment: +/- EV in 1/3EV steps
Sequence shooting: Max. 15 frames/sec. with electronic shutter
Buffer capacity: Max. 140 Large/Fine JPEGs, 59 RAW files with Electronic 1st curtain shutter
Storage Media: Single slot for SD, SDHC, SDXC cards (UHS-I / UHS-II UHS Speed Class 3 standard compatible)
Viewfinder: None
LCD monitor: Vari-angle 3.0 inch TFT screen with 1.04 million doats, 7 levels of adjustments
Weather sealing: No
Interface terminals: USB Type C, HDMI Type D, E3 remote control terminal, microphone and headphone ports
Wi-Fi function: Built-in Wi-Fi; Bluetooth v5.1 (Bluetooth Low Energy); live streaming via USB, HDMI connections, Camera Connect and Live Switcher Mobile
Power supply: rechargeable Li-ion battery; CIPA rated for approx. 480 shots or up to 2 hours of movie recording per charge; supports USB charging
Dimensions (wxhxd): Approx. 119.3 x 73.7 x 45.2 mm
Weight: Approx. 373 grams with battery and card
Distributor: Canon Australia
TESTS
Based on JPEG images recorded with the RF-S 14-30mm f/4-6.3 IS STM PZ lens.
Based on CR3.RAW files recorded simultaneously and converted into 16-bit TIFF format with Adobe Camera Raw.
SAMPLES
All images and video captured with the RF-S 14-30mm f/4-6.3 IS STM PZ lens.
ISO 100, 30-second exposure at f/6.3; 30mm focal length.
ISO 400, 30-second exposure at f/6.3; 30mm focal length.
ISO 1600, 15 second exposure at f/6.3; 30mm focal length.
ISO 6400, 10-second exposure at f/8; 30mm focal length.
ISO 12800, 5-second exposure at f/8; 30mm focal length.
ISO 25600, 3-second exposure at f/8; 30mm focal length. (Top -JPEG file, below – CR3.RAW file.)
ISO 51200, 2-second exposure at f/9; 30mm focal length. (Top -JPEG file, below – CR3.RAW file.)
14mm focal length, ISO 200, 1/320 second at f/9.
30mm focal length, ISO 200, 1/200 second at f/10.
30mm focal length with 2x digital zoom; ISO 200, 1/250 second at f/10.
30mm focal length with 4x digital zoom; ISO 200, 1/320 second at f/8.
ISO 32000, 1/400 second exposure at f/10; 14mm focal length. JPEG file.
ISO 25600, 1/400 second exposure at f/10; 14mm focal length. JPEG file.
ISO 12800, 1/320 second exposure at f/9; 14mm focal length. JPEG file.
Panorama shot; 30mm focal length, ISO 1250, 1/200 second at f/6.3.
14mm focal length, ISO 125, 1/400 second at f/11.
14mm focal length, ISO 200, 1/500 second at f/11.
Backlighting; 30mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/60 second at f/11.
14mm focal length, ISO 800, 1/60 second at f/5.
30mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/80 second at f/7.1.
30mm focal length, ISO 200, 1/60 second at f/6.3.
30mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/125 second at f/9.
19mm focal length, ISO 320, 1/60 second at f/5.
Still frame from oversampled 4K 25p video clip at full frame size.
Still frame from 4K Crop 50p video clip, recorded with a 1.56x frame crop.
Still frame from flare-affected 4K 25p video clip at full frame size.
Still frame from 4K 25p video clip recorded at 14mm focal length.
Still frame from 4K 25p video clip recorded at 30mm focal length.
Still frame from 4K 25p video clip recorded at 30mm focal length with digital zoom.
Close-up frame from 4K 25p video clip.
Still frame from FHD 50p video clip.
Still frame from FHD 25p video clip at 30mm focal length.
Still frame from FHD 50p video clip recorded at 30mm focal length with digital zoom.
Four frames from a FHD 50p video clip showing the effectiveness of subject tracking AF.
Additional image samples can be found with our review of the RF-S 14-30mm f/4-6.3 IS STM PZ lens.
Rating
RRP: AU $1169 (body only); $1499 (with RF-S 14-30mm f/4-6.3 IS STM PZ kit lens)
- Build: 8.8
- Features: 8.5
- Ease of use: 8.8
- Autofocusing: 8.5
- Still image quality JPEG: 8.7
- Still image quality RAW: 8.8
- Video quality: 8.8
BUY
