Canon's bestselling camera just leveled up: meet the Canon EOS R50

The Canon EOS R50 is here, effectively folding Canon's bestselling (and brilliant) EOS M50 into the R system while adding some of the stunning upgrades only made possible on RF-mount cameras. 

As you might expect, the Canon EOS R50 in many ways takes the Canon EOS M50 / Canon EOS M50 Mark II and adds the RF mount. So you get essentially the same teeny tiny body that was the M50's calling card, but now you get to use the best Canon RF lenses – a list that dwarfs the number of available EF-M optics (and you can, of course, adapt your EF DSLR glass as well). 

• Check out our hands-on Canon EOS R50 review to see our first impressions

This should be music to the ears of the casual photographers, travel shooters, smartphone upgraders and, crucially, vloggers and content creators for whom the M50 was always the first option.

However, the R50 really is more than just an M50 with a new mount; sitting below the Canon EOS R10, it's the smallest and lightest camera in the lineup – in fact, it's even lighter than the M50 Mark II. 

It retains its forebear's simple button layout, but adds the latest tech – such as the 24.2MP sensor from the R10, the new generation Digic X processor, and the Multifunction Shoe. In short, it's a better M50 with more lenses to choose from, better low light performance and better autofocus.

As an entry level camera this doesn't possess all of Canon's cutting-edge tech, so don't expect in-body image stabilization or the clever subject detection of the rest of the R family. 

However, it does boast a formidable 15fps continuous shooting top speed (electronically, or 12fps mechanically) as well as the new Dual Pixel CMOS AF II – though we're awaiting a full test to see if that remains active when shooting 4K.

Speaking of, given that this camera will take up the M50's mantle as the vlogging go-to, it's good to know that the R50 now offers uncropped 4K 30p video (oversampled from 6K), along with 1080p 120p. Vertical video is supported, and social media-friendly aspect ratios can be selected for seamless uploading to the likes of TikTok and Instagram.

The Canon EOS R50 will be available in white or black, body only for £789.99 (US pricing TBC) or £899.99 in a kit with the new Canon RF-S 18-45mm lens. Kits are what you'll get if you're in Australia (body alone not unavailable) – the RF-S18-45mm bundle is set for an RRP of AU$1,399 while a twin-lens kit with the RF-S18-45mm and the new RF-S 55-210mm will set you back AU$1,699.