Canon’s mirrorless R100, basically the successor the Rebel SL series DSLRs, is on sale this week at Walmart paired with a kit lens for $414 — that’s nearly 20% off the listed price. You still should not buy it.
It might be tempting to look at the R100 and see “entry-level Canon mirrorless camera” for under $500 and think it’s a great price to use Canon’s successor to the popular Rebel series cameras — perhaps exacerbated by the fact it may be featured on technology sites positioned as a great priced option this week — but that’s a a mistake. Even for this bargain basement price, it’s still not worth it. Sure, photographers will also get the RF-S 18-45mm f/4.5-6.3 kit lens, but that hardly improves the deal — it’s not a very good lens and it will be even worse in anything other than bright sunlight due to that very weak aperture range.
What anyone looking to buy the R100 or those who are thinking of getting it for a friend or family member needs to consider is that no matter how attractive that price looks, that there are simply other places that are better worth that investment, small as it might be.
“Using the R100 felt like going a few steps backward in camera technology. Yes, it’s simple in its intention and design, but maybe a little too simple,” Chris Niccolls wrote in his review last year.
“Even significantly older cameras than the R100 outperform it. I don’t think I would recommend this camera to many people unless the budget had to remain absolutely fixed at sub-$500. Even then, I would probably just stick to my smartphone.”
On a related note, Chris recently picked up a Sony a6300 ($488) and a 50mm f/1.8 ($128) used which, together, keeps the budget right around $500 and provides a ton more value than the Canon R100 does — and not just because that price includes a lens, which the Walmart deal does not. In addition to being a whole package, the a6300 simply offers a lot more technology for basically the same price as Canon’s R100 despite the fact that it’s several years older.
It’s counterintuitive to see a year-old Canon camera lose out to a Sony option that originally launched in 2016, but it does and as a result, even at the steep discount that Walmart appears to be offering, the R100 just isn’t worth it.
If a Canon is a must, the older Canon M50 Mark II kit makes a lot of sense given its similar price. Even though this lens mount is being phased out, there are still options available on the market, both new and used.
It might cost more, but the R50 is far more sophisticated. It’s worth the higher cost with its nicer controls, more advanced autofocus, and better video capabilities. Simply put, it’ll last longer and go further.
Note: The link to Walmart has been provided strictly for the sake of showing the deal and is not an affiliate link.