For the $550 Rebel T6, Canon sprinkles a tiny bit of update dust on T5

For the EOS Rebel T6, Canon updates its cheap, entry-level T5 dSLR with features that bring it into parity with older but similarly priced cameras. It will cost $550 for a kit with the EF-S 18-55mm f3.5-5.6 IS II lens; I don't have pricing for the UK or Australia yet, but that converts to £397 and AU$732 at today's exchange rates. Canon plans to ship it in April.

What's new

• Connectivity. It gets Wi-Fi and NFC for connecting to a mobile device for remote shooting and wireless file transfer.
• Image processor. According to Canon, updating to 2014's Digic 4+ from 2008's Digic 4 brings slightly better noise reduction at higher ISO sensitivities for marginally better low-light photography. It also provides a user-selectable option for more neutral white balance in incandescent light -- less of that urine-yellow color cast -- and a new Food scene mode which boosts brightness and saturation.
• Design. The back LCD's resolution doubles, and the buttons have been slightly tweaked.

My take

With its entry level models, it seems like Canon banks on the fact that people generally prefer cheap and new over cheap and better, albeit older. That, plus Canon uses the nomenclature of the more modern models to give it a more recent vibe. But despite dubbing it "T6", the camera has far more in common with the T5 series than the T6i/T6s; it uses the sensor, autofocus and metering systems of the older generation of cameras. The other T6 models use newer, more sophisticated sensor technology, autofocus and metering systems, among other things.

Those strategies have been working pretty well for the company, though. For instance, based on past history the T6 will probably be very popular despite the fact that the two year old T5i looks like a much better camera in almost every way and it's not much more expensive -- which makes it insanely annoying that you'd have to downgrade to the T6 just for Wi-Fi on the cheap. Or you could buy the three-year-old Nikon D5300. Based on the T6's specs, both the T5i and D5300 offer better performance, flip-and-twistable LCDs and likely better photo quality.

Comparative specs