Canon EOS 850D

The Canon EOS 850D, in summary

The Canon EOS 850D is an APS-C SLR released in February 2020 as an evolved model of the 800D. Light and easy to handle, it has a camera body of about half a kg, according to the current trends that require increasingly lighter SLRs, to approach mirrorless standards that are much lighter and more portable. In the hierarchy of the Japanese house, the Canon EOS850D ranks a step below the 90D and on par with the Full Frame mirrorless EOS RP, designed for an audience that is approaching SLRs for the first time.

Launched with an official price list of 850 pound, the Canon EOS 850D can now be purchased at a "real", slightly more accessible, price, and with some improvements compared to the 800D. The 24-megapixel sensor is the well-known APS-C dual pixel, the processor is the excellent Digic 8, video recordings reach 4K, even if in Ultra HD it stops between 24 and 25 frames per second, with crop. The Auto Focus system (45 Dual Pixel points in Live View) has intelligent tracking and an advanced exposure meter, derived from the upper 90D, which allows face tracking in the EVF (eye detection displayed on the monitor). The photo burst has also improved, with 7 frames per second, while the ISO range has an excursion from 100 to 25,600 (expandable to 51,200) and the shutter reaches 1/4000 sec. The optical viewfinder is a pentamirror with 0.87x magnification and a coverage equal to 95% of the field of view.

Lastly, before moving on to the details: The Canon EOS 850D is present on the American market but it’s called EOS Rebel T8i, while in Japan it is known as the EOS Kiss X10i.

Ergonomic aspects and design of the Canon EOS 850D

Inevitably compared to the 800D, the Canon EOS 850D shows no major differences from the previous model in terms of aesthetics, apart from a new AF-On button and a scroll ring around the D-Pad. Even the excellent three-inch display has not undergone any changes, although the mode selector has been made simpler, in an (increasingly) smarter perspective.

With its 515 grams of weight (battery included), the Canon EOS 850D has a very “Canon-ish” design, rounded and vaguely retro, nothing new. On the back, the LCD is adjustable up to 170 degrees and 1,040,000 dots. It is a nice monitor, which will especially please vloggers and selfie lovers, in other words... those who feel the need for shots outside the common standards. It is a panel that returns the viewed image in its entirety and with seven level brightness control.

The ergonomics of the Canon EOS 850D is slightly improved, with a better arrangement of the rings: one is located on the back and is intended for opening, while that of the shutter speed is located on the upper part of the camera body, it’s made of aluminium alloy and polycarbonate. Obviously not tropicalized, the Canon EOS 850D feels quite robust once grasped, although the not so pleasant plastic effect remains. The dimensions (131 x 102.6 x 76.2 mm) reflect the need to make SLRs smaller and smaller to counter the competition from mirrorless models.

The handle of the Canon EOS 850D has a decent depth that allows you to comfortably grip the camera with only three fingers, so the right thumb reaches the buttons and dials without problems. The body of the 850D still offers decent control over even the largest lenses.

Canon EOS 850D: main technical data

Sensor: 22.3 x 14.9 mm CMOS (24.1-megapixel APS-C), 3: 2 aspect ratio, 1.6x multiplication factor compared to FF sensor

Processor: Digic 8

ISO: Auto, 100-25600 (expandable up to 51200)

Auto Focus: Contrast Detection (Sensor), Phase Detection, Multi-Area, Centre, Single Spot, Tracking, Single Point, Continuous, Touch, Face Detection, Live View

Focus points: 45 (also crossed)

Manual focus: yes

Video mode: 4K (3840x2160p) @ 24 FPS, integrated digital 5-axis IS available

Interface: Hi-Speed USB Computer, Bluetooth 4.1, Wi-Fi, Video Out (PAL / NTSC), HDMI Mini Out, External Microphone (3.5mm Stereo Mini Jack)

Battery: Li-Ion (Canon LP-E17, capacity 7.48 Wh)

Canon EOS 850D ISO and video performance

The AF system of the Canon EOS 850D is up to par with some higher-level Canons, therefore fairly performing even for sports and nature photography, as well as (obviously) still life pictures and portraiture. The tracking is precise and snappy, thanks to the 45-point type AF sensor and Dual Pixel CMOS AF (with a range between -4 and 18 EV). On the display, the focus can be selected from 143 points in automatic mode or 3975 in manual mode. It is a system that provides AF eye detection and the so-called Intelligent Tracking (ITF) with 220,000 Pixel RGB + IR exposure meter.

The ISO settings of the Canon EOS 850D offer practically no digital noise when they coincide with the value of 100 and give some negligible interference with ISO 6400. At double the value, the digital noise is noticeable, at 25,600 very disturbing. The maximum extension (51,200) sees a collapse of details and unacceptable digital noise.

The 4K videos of the Canon EOS 850D are of good quality. With a maximum duration of half an hour the recordings of this machine offer an Ultra HD which, however, on some occasions, it suffers from the presence of an annoying rolling shutter effect, typical of CMOS sensors when capturing images in great motion. This distortion is the only real flaw in the videos of the Canon EOS 850D which on the other hand still offers time-lapse recording, self-timer for movies and (digital) image stabilization.

Canon eos 850D vs 800D

We have already talked about the novelties of the Canon EOS 850D compared to the previous model, but now a head to head is more interesting. 

The price difference is substantial, despite the viewfinder and the display being the same, as well as the sensor. The AF system has improved (but only in Live View mode) going from the 49 points of the 800D to the 143 of the Canon EOS 850D, but the real technical improvement is given by the Digic 8 processor which brings the burst to 7 frames per second and better management of digital noise.

About the videos, other novelties: The Canon EOS 850D records in Ultra HD - 24 or 25 frames per second, the focus only in contrast detected mode - instead of the more standard 2K of the previous model. And we must not forget the five-axis system, for stabilization, although not being the same as the most advanced models, it still makes very fluent videos.

The two models have the same battery but with better hardware the Canon EOS 850D achieves 800 shots, 200 more than the 800D.

Are over two hundred poundsbetween the two models effective? Over time, this gap will probably get smaller and smaller, fully justifying the launch of the Canon EOS 850D which, however, is already currently among the best options if you want to buy a low budget SLR that offers Ultra HD video recording.