Canon EOS R100 vs Nikon Z50

In this comparison, we will evaluate the Canon EOS R100 and the Nikon Z50, highlighting the advantages of each over the other, discussing their pros and cons, shared strengths and weaknesses, and providing a rating based on their available features and specifications to assist you in choosing the one that best suits your needs.

Canon EOS R100 was introduced in May 2023 and Nikon Z50 was introduced in October 2019. Let us first list highlights of the models.

Now that we've looked at the most essential specifications and gained a basic understanding of these cameras, we can delve into more details and see the differences between them.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Canon EOS R100 over Nikon Z50.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Nikon Z50 over Canon EOS R100.

We already listed pros and cons of each model. However, you may also find useful to look at their common strengths and weaknesses shown side-by-side.

Screen

Canon EOS R100 has a 3.0" Fixed screen with 1,040k dot resolution and Nikon Z50 has a 3.2" Tilting screen with 1,040k dot resolution. Tilting screen makes Nikon Z50 very useful for photography purposes but not so useful for video shooting. Nikon Z50 also features touchscreen which has advantages such as easy menu navigation, intuitive controls, quick setting adjustment and most importantly a Touch-to-Focus functionality allowing users to select a specific point on the screen where they want the camera to focus. This feature can be helpful for achieving precise focus in both photo and video recording.

Viewfinder

Cameras have built-in 0.39" Electronic (OLED) viewfinders with 2,360k dot resolution. They both have 100% coverage.

Canon EOS R100 features a 24.1 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor with dimensions of 22.3 x 14.9 mm and a total area of 332.3 mm². Its native ISO range is 100 - 12,800 and expands to 100 - 25,600 in boosted mode. Nikon Z50 features a 20.9 megapixel APS-C BSI-CMOS sensor with dimensions of 23.5 x 15.7 mm and a total area of 246.5 mm². Its native ISO range is 100 - 51,200 and expands to 100 - 204,800 in boosted mode.

Nikon Z50 has BSI-CMOS sensor, short for Backside Illuminated Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor sensor. In traditional CMOS sensors, the wiring and circuitry are located on the front side of the sensor, which can block some of the incoming light. BSI technology flips this design by placing the photosensitive elements (pixels) on the backside of the sensor, allowing more light to reach the pixels. This significantly enhances light sensitivity and improves low-light performance. BSI-CMOS sensors are particularly effective in low-light conditions, as they can capture more light, resulting in brighter and less noisy images. This makes them well-suited for indoor and night photography. BSI-CMOS sensors deliver a higher SNR and reduced cross-talk.

Here is a sensor size comparison chart where you can see how different sensors compare with each other:

Sensor size chart

	Sensor	Dimensions	Area	Aspect Ratio	Crop Factor
	Medium Format	44 x 33 mm	1452 mm2	4:3	0.79x
	Full Frame	36 x 24 mm	864 mm2	3:2	1x
	APS-H	27 x 18 mm	486 mm2	3:2	1.3x
	APS-C	23.6 x 15.6 mm	368.2 mm2	3:2	1.5x
	APS-C (Canon)	22.3 x 14.9 mm	332.3 mm2	3:2	1.6x
	Micro Four Thirds	17.4 x 13 mm	226.2 mm2	4:3	2x
	1-inch	13.2 x 8.8 mm	116.2 mm2	3:2	2.7x
	1/1.7-inch	7.44 x 5.58 mm	41.5 mm2	4:3	4.7x
	1/2.3-inch	6.17 x 4.55 mm	28.1 mm2	4:3	5.6x

Canon EOS R100 is equipped with DIGIC 8 processor and can take pictures up to 6000 x 4000 resolution. Nikon Z50 is equipped with EXPEED 6 processor and can take pictures up to 5568 x 3712 resolution.

Lens Mount

Canon EOS R100 has Canon RF lens mount and Nikon Z50 has Nikon Z lens mount. They both have APS-C sensor but because of a small size difference their crop factors (also called lens multiplier) differ from each other. Canon EOS R100 has the crop factor of 1.6x which means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length times 1.6. Nikon Z50 has the crop factor of 1.5x which means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length times 1.5.

No Low-Pass Filter

There is no optical low-pass filter (OLPF), also known as an anti-aliasing filter, in front of the sensor on either of the cameras. This results in a slightly sharper image but may also introduce moiré patterns and aliasing artifacts when photographing subjects with fine, repetitive patterns or details.

No Image Stabilization

The cameras do not have image stabilization. On Canon EOS R100 it means that you need lenses with optical image stabilization for vibration reduction. As for Nikon Z50 nothing can be done. On Nikon Z50 it means that you need lenses with optical image stabilization for vibration reduction. As for Canon EOS R100 nothing can be done.

Built-in Wi-Fi

Cameras have built-in Wi-Fi (802.11b/g 2.4 GHz on Canon EOS R100, Wi-Fi 5 802.11ac/b/g/n 2.4/5 GHz on Nikon Z50) which allows to easily transfer photos and videos from the camera to other Wi-Fi-enabled devices, such as smartphones, tablets, printers, or computers. This eliminates the need for cables and allows for quick and convenient media sharing and social media integration. It gives you the ability to control your camera remotely using a smartphone or tablet. This is particularly useful for taking self-portraits, group shots, or capturing images in challenging conditions without having to touch the camera. Firmware updates can also be downloaded and installed wirelessly.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in WiFi.

Bluetooth

Canon EOS R100 and Nikon Z50 have built-in Bluetooth which lets you to connect the camera to a smartphone or a dedicated remote control device. This allows you to remotely trigger the camera, adjust settings and controls remotely through a paired mobile app. While Wi-Fi is generally faster for transferring larger files, Bluetooth can be used for small, selective transfers, it can provide real-time information about your camera's battery status, memory card capacity, and other key settings directly on your paired smartphone or smartwatch.
  Check out the cameras in our database that have built-in Bluetooth.

USB Inputs and HDMI Outputs

Both models have USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) inputs for data transfer. Canon EOS R100 has a Micro HDMI and Nikon Z50 has a Micro HDMI connector for video signal output.

Battery

Canon EOS R100 comes with LP-E17 battery pack with battery life of 370 shots and Nikon Z50 comes with EN-EL25 battery pack with battery life of 320 shots.

External Storage Slots

Cameras have a single SD/SDHC/SDXC (UHS-I) card slot.

Shutter

Canon EOS R100 has Electronic 1st curtain shutter and Electronic shutter. Nikon Z50 has Electronic shutter and Mechanical Focal Plane shutter. Shutter speed can go up to 1/4000 sec on Canon EOS R100, and up to 1/4000 sec on Nikon Z50. Canon EOS R100 can shoot continuously up to 6.5 fps. Nikon Z50 can shoot continuously up to 11.0 fps.

Focusing

Canon EOS R100 has Dual Pixel CMOS AF system with 143 focusing points and Nikon Z50 has Hybrid phase-detection/contrast AF system with 209 focusing points. Canon EOS R100 has detection range from -4 to +20 EV and Nikon Z50 has detection range from -2 to +19 EV.

Exposure

Exposure meterings of Canon EOS R100 and Nikon Z50 range from -2 to +20 EV and -4 to +17 EV respectively and you can set the exposure compensation within the ±3 EV range on Canon EOS R100 and ±5 EV range on Nikon Z50. You can also do exposure lock, exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Canon EOS R100 and exposure lock, exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Nikon Z50.

Flash

Cameras have built-in flash with maximum range of 6m at ISO 100 on Canon EOS R100 and 7.00 m at ISO 100 on Nikon Z50. They also accept external flash which can be connected via Hot Shoe. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/250 sec on Canon EOS R100 and 1/200 sec on Nikon Z50.

Canon EOS R100 body has dimensions of 116 x 86 x 69 mm (4.57 x 3.39 x 2.72") and Nikon Z50 body has dimensions of 127 x 94 x 60 mm (5 x 3.7 x 2.36"). Canon EOS R100 weighs 356 g (0.78 lb / 12.56 oz) and Nikon Z50 weighs 450 g (0.99 lb / 15.87 oz).

Canon EOS R100

Nikon Z50

116 mm

86 mm

127 mm

94 mm

86 mm

94 mm

69 mm

60 mm