Canon M6 Comparison Review

The Canon EOS M6 is a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera that was officially introduced in February 2017 and is equipped with an APS-C sensor. It offers a resolution of 24 megapixel.

Is the Canon M6 a good camera? The M6 has a Camera Elo of 2732. This rating puts the M6 among the top 30 percent of all mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (APS cameras), the M6 ranks among the top 10 percent. Based on its within category standings, the camera earns a 4.5-star performance rating.

Headline Specifications

Canon M6
Mirrorless system camera
Canon EF-M mount lenses
24 MP, APS-C Sensor
1080/60p Video
ISO 100-25600
Viewfinder optional
3.0" LCD, 1040k dots
Tilting touchscreen
9 shutter flaps per second
295 shots per battery charge
112 x 68 x 45 mm, 390 g

Read on to find out more about the camera's size, sensor, features, reception by expert reviewers, and how it compares to other digital cameras.

Body comparison with a credit card

An illustration of the physical dimensions of the Canon M6 vis-à-vis a credit card is provided in the side-by-side display below. Three successive views from the front, the top, and the rear are shown. All width, height and depth dimensions are rounded to the nearest millimeter.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the Canon M6 alongside a set of comparators. If you want to review a camera pair side-by-side, just select a right-side comparator from among the camera models in the table. Alternatively, you can also move across to the CAM-parator tool and choose from the broad selection of possible comparisons there.

Camera Body Specifications

	Camera Model	Camera Width	Camera Height	Camera Depth	Camera Weight	Battery Life (CIPA)	Weather Sealing (yes/no)	Camera Launch (announced)	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price (USD)	Used Price (USD)	Camera Model
	Canon M6	4.4 in	2.7 in	1.8 in	13.8 oz	295	n	Feb 2017	779	-		Canon M6
	Canon M6 Mark II« »	4.7 in	2.8 in	1.9 in	14.4 oz	305	n	Aug 2019	849			Canon M6 Mark II
	Canon M50« »	4.6 in	3.5 in	2.3 in	13.8 oz	235	n	Feb 2018	779			Canon M50
	Canon T7« »	5.1 in	4.0 in	3.1 in	16.8 oz	500	n	Feb 2018	449			Canon T7
	Canon 77D« »	5.2 in	3.9 in	3.0 in	19.0 oz	600	n	Feb 2017	899			Canon 77D
	Canon M100« »	4.3 in	2.6 in	1.4 in	10.7 oz	295	n	Aug 2017	499			Canon M100
	Canon SL2« »	4.8 in	3.7 in	2.8 in	16.0 oz	650	n	Jun 2017	549	-		Canon SL2
	Canon T7i« »	5.2 in	3.9 in	3.0 in	18.8 oz	600	n	Feb 2017	749			Canon T7i
	Canon G7 X Mark II« »	4.2 in	2.4 in	1.7 in	11.3 oz	265	n	Feb 2016	699	-		Canon G7 X Mark II
	Canon M5« »	4.6 in	3.5 in	2.4 in	15.1 oz	295	n	Sep 2016	979			Canon M5
	Canon M3« »	4.4 in	2.7 in	1.7 in	12.9 oz	250	n	Feb 2015	679	-		Canon M3
Convert to Metric
Note: Measurements and pricing do not include easily detachable parts, such as interchangeable lenses or optional viewfinders.

The listed prices provide an indication of the market segment that the manufacturer of the cameras have been targeting. The Canon M6 was launched in the US market at a price of $779. Usually, retail prices stay at first close to the launch price, but after several months, discounts become available. Later in the product cycle and, in particular, when the replacement model is about to appear, further discounting and stock clearance sales often push the camera price considerably down. Then, after the new model is out, very good deals can frequently be found on the pre-owned market.

Sensor comparison with a 35mm slide

The size of the imaging sensor is a crucial determinant of image quality. A large sensor will tend to have larger individual pixels that provide better low-light sensitivity, wider dynamic range, and richer color-depth than smaller pixel-units in a sensor of the same technological generation. Further, a large sensor camera will give the photographer additional creative options when using shallow depth-of-field to isolate a subject from its background. On the downside, larger sensors tend to be associated with larger, more expensive camera bodies and lenses.

The Canon M6 features an APS-C sensor and has a format factor (sometimes also referred to as "crop factor") of 1.6. Within the spectrum of camera sensors, this places the Canon M6 among the medium-sized sensor cameras that aim to strike a balance between image quality and portability.

For most cameras, data on sensor performance has been reported by DXO Mark. This service is based on lab testing and assigns an overall score to each camera sensor, as well as ratings for dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), color depth ("DXO Portrait"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports"). The adjacent table reports on the physical sensor characteristics and the outcomes of the DXO sensor quality tests for a sample of comparator-cameras.

Many modern cameras are not only capable of taking still images, but can also record movies. The M6 indeed provides movie recording capabilities. The highest resolution format that the M6 can use is 1080/60p.

Feature comparison

Apart from body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a range of features. The following tables report on some other key feature differences and similarities of the Canon M6 and comparable cameras.

One convenient feature of the M6 is the presence of an on-board flash. While this built-in flash is not very powerful, it can at times be useful as a fill-in light to brighten deep shadow areas.

Connection comparison

For some imaging applications, the extent to which a camera can communicate with its environment can be an important aspect in the camera decision process. The table below provides an overview of the connectivity of the Canon EOS M6 and, in particular, the interfaces the cameras (and selected comparators) provide for accessory control and data transfer.

It is notable that the M6 has a microphone port. Such an external microphone input can help to substantially improve the quality of audio recordings when a good external microphone is used.

Expert reviews

While the specs-based evaluation of cameras is instructive in revealing their potential as photographic tools, it says nothing about, for example, the handling, responsiveness, and overall imaging quality of the M6 in practical situations. At times, user reviews, such as those published at amazon, address these issues in a useful manner, but such feedback is on many occasions incomplete, inconsistent, and unreliable. This is why hands-on reviews by experts are important. The adjacent table relays the overall verdicts of several of the most popular camera review sites (cameralabs, dpreview, ephotozine, imaging-resource, photographyblog).

Review Scores

	Camera Model						Camera Launch (announced)	Launch Price (USD)	Street Price (USD)	Used Price (USD)	Camera Model
	Canon M6	-	80/100	4/5	4.5/5	4/5	Feb 2017	779	-		Canon M6
	Canon M6 Mark II« »	-	-	-	-	-	Aug 2019	849			Canon M6 Mark II
	Canon M50« »	+	79/100	-	4/5	3.5/5	Feb 2018	779			Canon M50
	Canon T7« »	o	-	3.5/5	-	3.5/5	Feb 2018	449			Canon T7
	Canon 77D« »	-	82/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	4/5	Feb 2017	899			Canon 77D
	Canon M100« »	+	-	4/5	-	3.5/5	Aug 2017	499			Canon M100
	Canon SL2« »	+ +	78/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	4.5/5	Jun 2017	549	-		Canon SL2
	Canon T7i« »	-	80/100	4.5/5	4/5	4/5	Feb 2017	749			Canon T7i
	Canon G7 X Mark II« »	+ +	81/100	4.5/5	4/5	4.5/5	Feb 2016	699	-		Canon G7 X Mark II
	Canon M5« »	+	82/100	4/5	4.5/5	4/5	Sep 2016	979			Canon M5
	Canon M3« »	o	75/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	4/5	Feb 2015	679	-		Canon M3
Notes: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (-) not available.

Care should be taken when interpreting the review scores above, though. The assessments were made in relation to similar cameras of the same technological generation. A score, therefore, has to be seen in close connection to the price and market introduction time of the camera, and rating-comparisons among cameras that span long time periods or concern very differently equipped models make little sense. Also, kindly note that some of the listed sites have over time developped their review approaches and their reporting style.

Camera to camera comparisons

In case you would like to check on the differences and similarities with other camera models, just use the search menu below. An an alternative, you can also directly jump to any one of the listed comparisons that were previously generated by the CAM-parator tool.

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