The Canon EOS R6 could launch in May but won't ship until much later, rumors suggest

The rumored Canon EOS R6 could still be on course to launch next month alongside its more powerful Canon EOS R5 sibling, according to the latest speculation – but neither camera will apparently be ready to ship for a while yet.

The usually reliable Canon Rumors recently claimed that Canon plans to announce the EOS R6, which would be an entry-level companion to the EOS R5, “sometime in May”. 

This means it could arrive close to the EOS R5’s full launch – the latter is now official, but has only had a succession of teaser announcements so far. According to Canon Rumors, the R5 will also be officially announced sometime in May.

But it’s not all good news for full-frame mirrorless camera fans. Canon Rumors followed up those claims with a separate post stating that neither the EOS R6 or EOS R5 will begin shipping “until July at the earliest”.

Naturally, these delays have been put down to supply chain issues caused by the global pandemic, which is entirely understandable. If the rumors are true, it seems that rather than delay its big launches, Canon will be pressing ahead with the announcements, while perhaps tempering expectations around shipping dates.

When we asked Canon recently if the EOS R5 could be delayed, it was naturally non-committal on the topic – David Parry, Canon’s Product Marketing Specialist, said in March that “we’re in the same situation as all the other manufacturers in that we’re keeping an eye on things and seeing what we can do”.

But it seems highly unlikely that the launches of both cameras would be entirely unaffected by the knock-on effects of the coronavirus. On the plus side, those who are looking to upgrade their full-frame camera will at least know which Canon models are officially in the pipeline soon.

(Image credit: Canon)

Little brother

So what exactly can we expect from the rumored Canon EOS R6? Unlike the EOS R5, Canon hasn’t even confirmed that the camera exists yet, but a series of rumors have given us a good idea of what we can expect.

A more affordable version of the EOS R5, and a spiritual successor to the EOS 6D Mark II, the EOS R6 will apparently include in-body image stabilization (IBIS), dual card slots and the ability to shoot stills at 12fps (using its mechanical shutter) or 20fps (using its electronic equivalent). 

Impressively, the latter would be the same as the EOS R5, making it a potentially powerful performer for shooting action sequences, considering its lower expected price. There have been no rumors about the latter yet, but as a rough guide the EOS 6D Mark II arrived for $2,000 / £1,999 / AU$2,199.

So where might the Canon EOS R6 cut corners? The latest leaked specs from Canon Rumors suggest that compared to the EOS R5 it will have inferior build quality, a lower resolution EVF, no top down screen and a 20MP full-frame CMOS sensor. This apparently won’t be the same 20MP sensor as the one found in the Canon 1DX Mark III either.

Still, despite these differences, the Canon EOS R6 could well be the more appealing choice for YouTubers or those looking to upgrade to a full-frame stills camera. We’ll bring you more official news as we get it.

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