The Canon EOS 6D: A lovely camera, but watch the tradeoffs
-In some respect, it's hard to tell who Canon's targeting with the EOS 6D, its budget full-frame camera.
On one hand, it's got some fairly consumery features.
GPS?
Check.
Built-in Wi-Fi?
Check.
Single SD card slot?
Check.
Viewfinder with less than 100 percent coverage?
Check.
Wimpy autofocus system?
Check.
On the other hand, it's missing things like a built-in flash that you'd expect in a non-pro camera.
But it's not that the 6D isn't a really nice camera.
I happen to like it a lot.
It's got great photo and good video quality, a relatively fluid operational design with a soft shutter action, and a solid but not weatherproof build.
Photos are everything you'd expect from a full-frame model, sharp with good tonal range and their usable well into the higher ISO sensitivities with lots of details in the highlight and shadow areas.
The Wi-Fi implementation fares pretty well as long as you bypass all the stuff that requires a Canon Image Gateway membership, such as direct uploads to other web sites.
The camera remote app lets you change shutter speed and aperture, ISO sensitivity, and exposure compensation, which is a lot more than you get with other apps.
As usual, the GPS operation was pretty spotty here in New York City.
I could get a signal while shooting in Union Square, but practically nowhere else.
And if I forgot to turn it off, it
drained the battery by incessantly hunting for a signal.
That's par for the course, though.
My biggest gripe is probably the somewhat sluggish autofocus performance.
While the camera performs pretty quickly in good light and it has a reasonably deep buffer to maintain its 4.5-frame-per-second continuous shooting rate, the autofocus really slows down in dim conditions.
I think what's most frustrating is that the 6D should be clearly better than the older, cheaper 7D, and it's not.
While the 6D's full-frame photo quality noticeably outshines its APS-C-based siblings and it has a much broader feature set in checkbox ways, the 7D has a better viewfinder, faster autofocus, a more durable shutter mechanism, and an extra custom setting slot, just to mention a handful of things.
If you're thinking of moving up from one of Canon's APS-C-based models, like the 60D, it's definitely worth it for the photo and video quality.
If you're considering it instead of one of the more expensive full-frame models,
it's a fine alternative if you don't mind the 97 percent coverage viewfinder, single card slot, less durable shutter, lack of a headphone jack, fewer customizations, and all those other little ways in which you might have to compromise.
I'm Lori Grunin and this is the Canon EOS 6D.
Up Next
Panasonic Introduces New Lumix S5 Mark II and Mark II X Cameras
Up Next
Panasonic Introduces New Lumix S5 Mark II and Mark II X Cameras
GoPro Hero 11 Black Hands-on: Super-sized Sensor for All Your Socials
GoPro Hero 11 Black Hands-on: Super-sized Sensor for All Your Socials
GoPro Hero 10 Black Creator Edition Makes Vlogging So Much Better
GoPro Hero 10 Black Creator Edition Makes Vlogging So Much Better
GoPro Hero 10 Black ramps up resolution, frame rates to 5.3K60, 4K120
GoPro Hero 10 Black ramps up resolution, frame rates to 5.3K60, 4K120
Insta360 Go 2 review: A lot of fun, a lot of confusion
Insta360 Go 2 review: A lot of fun, a lot of confusion
GoPro's Hero 9 Black bulks up on power and performance but not price
GoPro's Hero 9 Black bulks up on power and performance but not price
Digitizing my old Hi8 tape collection
Digitizing my old Hi8 tape collection
iPhone SE or Galaxy A51: Battle of the $400 phone cameras
iPhone SE or Galaxy A51: Battle of the $400 phone cameras
The Mevo Start is a compact cam aimed at HD event streaming
The Mevo Start is a compact cam aimed at HD event streaming
Snap Spectacles 3 bring AR to sunglasses
Snap Spectacles 3 bring AR to sunglasses
Tech Shows
Latest News All latest news
What AirPods Rumors Tell Us About Apple's Health Ambitions
What AirPods Rumors Tell Us About Apple's Health Ambitions
Robosen's Megatron Transformer Is Too Much Fun for an Evil Robot
Robosen's Megatron Transformer Is Too Much Fun for an Evil Robot
Apple May Give FineWoven Accessories One More Season
Apple May Give FineWoven Accessories One More Season
US vs. TikTok: What Happens Next
US vs. TikTok: What Happens Next
Battle of the Humanoid Robots: MenteeBot Is Ready
Battle of the Humanoid Robots: MenteeBot Is Ready
What to Expect at Apple's May 7 iPad Event
What to Expect at Apple's May 7 iPad Event
Most Popular All most popular
First Look at TSA's Self-Screening Tech (in VR!)
First Look at TSA's Self-Screening Tech (in VR!)
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Review: More AI at a Higher Cost
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Review: More AI at a Higher Cost
'Circle to Search' Lets Users Google From Any Screen
'Circle to Search' Lets Users Google From Any Screen
Asus Put Two 14-inch OLEDs in a Laptop, Unleashes First OLED ROG Gaming Laptop
Asus Put Two 14-inch OLEDs in a Laptop, Unleashes First OLED ROG Gaming Laptop
Samsung Galaxy Ring: First Impressions
Samsung Galaxy Ring: First Impressions
Best of Show: The Coolest Gadgets of CES 2024
Best of Show: The Coolest Gadgets of CES 2024
Latest Products All latest products
Robosen's Megatron Transformer Is Too Much Fun for an Evil Robot
Robosen's Megatron Transformer Is Too Much Fun for an Evil Robot
Battle of the Humanoid Robots: MenteeBot Is Ready
Battle of the Humanoid Robots: MenteeBot Is Ready
2025 Audi Q6, SQ6 E-Tron: Audi's Newest EV Is Its Most Compelling
2025 Audi Q6, SQ6 E-Tron: Audi's Newest EV Is Its Most Compelling
Hands-On with Ford's Free Tesla Charging Adapter
Hands-On with Ford's Free Tesla Charging Adapter
Nuro R3 is an Adorable Self-Driving Snack Bar
Nuro R3 is an Adorable Self-Driving Snack Bar
First Look: The $349 Nothing Phone 2A Aims to Brighten Your Day
First Look: The $349 Nothing Phone 2A Aims to Brighten Your Day
Latest How To All how to videos
Tips and Tricks for the AirPods Pro 2
Tips and Tricks for the AirPods Pro 2
How to Watch the Solar Eclipse Safely From Your Phone
How to Watch the Solar Eclipse Safely From Your Phone
Windows 11 Tips and Hidden Features
Windows 11 Tips and Hidden Features
Vision Pro App Walkthrough -- VisionOS 1.0.3
Vision Pro App Walkthrough -- VisionOS 1.0.3
Tips and Tricks for the Galaxy S24 Ultra
Tips and Tricks for the Galaxy S24 Ultra
TikTok Is Now on the Apple Vision Pro