New Rumor: Two new EOS R camera for 2021

The latest rumors from CanonRumors has that Canon has on their internal roadmap two EOS R cameras for 2021.

No details were given as far as the rumor, however, CanonRumors suggests that it's a high-resolution EOS R model and yet another cheap model that replaces the RP.

However, we feel a bit different here, and here's our reasoning.  

High Resolution R - Canon EOS R5s

This is pretty much a given, we've heard about it coming now for the last 12 to 18 months.  There is also no way that Canon allows Sony to keep the high MP crown with a 61MP sensor.  As a matter of fact, I'll be very surprised if this is not announced in 2020.   Having the same ergonomics as the R5, and called the same name as the R5 makes the most sense.  But it could be that there was some market confusion between the R5 and R5s - perhaps an entirely different name makes the most sense here.  We're still thinking it's called an R5s, but anything is possible when it comes to Canon's naming convention ;)

Canon EOS R1

This, if you remember was leaked or stated last September by a very reputable news organization in Japan as coming in 2021.

I'm going to go out on a limb here that Canon will want to keep its Olympic momentum that got a clean miss this year because of COVID-19.  Let's assume for a moment, that the world will have returned to some form of normal by next summer and the Olympics will go for 2021.  While the 1DX Mark III and the R5 will be a formidable combination, so would a 1DX Mark III and an R1 ;)  The R5 is a technology marvel, however, it's not in the same class of camera as a 1DX Mark III or even a Sony A9.  Would Canon, having an extra year to prepare not go into the 2021 games without a mirrorless professional camera? I just can't see it happening.

Personally I think even with the current technology there's a lot of goodness that Canon could add to an R1 that simply is not there with an R5. This is pure speculation but given where Canon is, its entirely possible with what they have now.

• EOS 1 ergonomics. 
• 1DX Mark III Joystick
• Sports/Professional optimized 24MP sensor with much faster sensor readout speed
• 4K120p oversampled perhaps even 4K240p line skipped.
• Interconnectivity - ie: Gigabit LAN, faster transfer rates,etc
• Dual CF Express cards
• Faster sensor readout speed than the R5
• 30 fps with AF (yes I'm saying this)
• Integrated portrait grip
• LP-E19 battery support
• HEIF image support?

But we'll see as the year goes on. This kind of article always get me into trouble ;)

We've always maintained that we expect a 1 series RF camera in 2021.  With Canon keeping its announcement schedule (so far) we can't see that changing much. However, the shape of the global economy and most importantly the shape of the Yen versus global currencies could change Canon's plans entirely.  The Yen is usually considered a safe-haven currency, which means it's values rises as things turn ugly with economies around the world.  If the yen rises too much, coming out with a $5000 or $6000 camera just may not be feasible next year.

Richard CanonNewsRichard CanonNews

Richard has been using Canon cameras since the 1990s, with his first being the now legendary EOS-3. Since then, Richard has continued to use Canon cameras and now focuses mostly on infrared photography. Richard is the founder and editor of CanonNews since 2017, and has worked as a writer on CanonRumors and other websites in the past.

Other posts by Richard CanonNews

Contact author Facebook page