The new Canon EOS 650D dSLR will only be in the market this Friday but Izwan Ismail gets a chance to fiddle with it first.

Being a photography enthusiast, I am always looking forward to the day when consumer level DSLR comes with features and functionalites close to the pro-sumer ones.

Well, that day has come with Canon´s latest consumer DSLR, the EOS 650D, which it claims to offers the features of a pro-sumer level camera at a fraction of the price. According to Canon, it´s a replacement model for the soon-to-be discontinued EOS 550D.

Light and Easy
When it comes to DSLR, one of my first criteria is whether I like the feel of the body. I had tested and reviewed the EOS 600D and was pleased by how it felt in the hand and its performance as well. The 650D feels more or less the same. If I peel off the 650D label, it looks identical or almost similar to the 600D, just with the higher 18 megapixel resolution.

Being a consumer level DSLR, it means the 650D is lighter than the high-end models, which makes it suitable for carrying around.

Based on just holding the 650D, I believe the body is made of the same material as the 600D, which is polycarbonate resin casing with a matte black finish. It still feels plasticky to me, but hey... this is a consumer level camera, not a semi-pro or pro.

Touch and Go
What are the new features that make the 650D, targeted at advanced beginners, a worthy buy? Plenty! Canon has boosted some of the main features such as the LCD panel, processor, speed, video and some built-in photo-processing software.

It still maintains the popular three-inch vari-angle 1.04 million dot LCD, but this time, the screen is a touch panel - meaning you can operate the camera without pushing any of the usual buttons.

It´s a function quite common in many high-end point-and-shoot cameras, but among the first in the DSLR range.

Frankly, I feel a little skeptical about this new feature as a DSLR is not like a point-and-shoot camera. My worry is that the touch screen will jumble up the settings when it touches my cheek as I look into the viewfinder.

But this is not the case as Canon has placed a small sensor just above the viewfinder that automatically shuts off the screen if the camera is an inch from your face.

There are many things you can do with the touch screen panel, apart from viewing pictures with a slide of your thumb. By pressing the Q button just beside the LCD, you get to control the menu and features. This is a plus one to the cool factor!

Touch the screen to focus on your subject and once the subject is locked, the camera will automatically take the shot in live view mode. You can also control the white balance and adjust the colour output through the touch screen and see the effect live before you shoot.

Two new options included in the camera are the Art Bold and Water Painting filters in the menu. With this camera, you can produce creative pictures without the help of software like Photoshop.

More Add-Ons
Another new enhancement that I think makes the 650D a worthwhile buy is the cross-type focus points. Its nine focus points are all cross-type now compared to just one in the 600D, making the camera more sensitive for better focusing on the subject.

The processor has also been upgraded to DIGIC 5 with ISO sensitivity boost to 12,800 and expandable to 25,600. However, don´t take it literally that the pictures will stay clean up to ISO12,800. I suggest maintaining ISO level below 6400 for clean and usable pictures.

Many people upgrade from consumer-level DSLRs to semi-pro and pro because of speed.

What surprises me is that the shutter speed of the 650D is five frames-per-second (fps), which is 0.3 seconds behind that of the 60D at 5.3fps though it is a fast-enough machine for some serious action.

Canon has also added two new modes on the top dial: Handheld Night Scene and HDR Backlit Control.

The former is useful if you want to shoot in a dark environment and don’t have pictures in a backlit environment, is useful if I have no choice but to take photos of people with the sun or light at the back of their heads (which will cause faces to be dark). The HDR Backlit Control addresses this problem.

Video Too
I´m not a video guy, but the video capability of the 650D makes me want to try my hand at recording videos as well. The vari-angle screen is already a plus, but Canon has added AF tracking and continuous AF modes into it. Just point your finger at the subject on the LCD, and it will lock to it even if the subject is moving.

Canon also offers the Video Snap short movie function, which will record short clips of 2, 4 and 8 seconds and combine them all into one movie with the press of a button.

Verdict
Is the EOS 650D a worthy new camera or is it just an upgrade? Well, for those already who have an entry-level Canon DSLR like the 1000D or 1100D, it will be a significant upgrade, but those with the 600D or even the 550D may prefer to move up with the 60D or the 7D.

But if you´re getting your first DSLR and want some advanced features, then the EOS 650D is the way to go.

There is no official price tag for this camera yet. Canon will launch the new 18-105mm IS STM lens in mid-July, which will be one of the kit options of the EOS 650D.

You can also expect price of the 600D to drop when this new baby debuts.

Score: 5/5
Physical Design: 4/5
Documentations: 4/5
User-friendliness: 4/5
Performance: 4/5
Value for money: 4/5