I have here something of an oddity. It takes many design cues from a full sized DSLR, and yet is about the size of a compact. It weighs about as much as one of the popular mirrorless cameras, however, it definitely isn’t one. After having some trouble parsing the existence of the Canon EOS M, I just decided to go with it and see what happens.

I am reminded of a brick. Not by the shape, but the heft and build quality. There’s quite a bit of weight on this, which is great for stability while taking shots. None of that plasticky material that occasionally tries to pass as premium quality exists on the camera. One can imagine holding a miniaturised version of a professional camera. Which this effectively is.
There is a certain amount of modern elegance to the design. I personally like it. But that could be because it’s heavy for a change. Like you are getting your money’s worth in terms of camera.

When actually taking pictures you will be pleasantly surprised. The EOS M is similar to the 650D, although a little smaller. Our review unit only showed up with the 22mm lens, which limited the shooting options of the camera. On the other hand, it did come packed with the adapter.
Bear in mind that fitting full-sized lenses to the camera will horribly unbalance the entire setup. Thus, while it can be done, it shouldn’t.

There is a sense of simplicity around the EOS M; so many dials and buttons are missing. Even for a mirrorless. Therein lies the error in the design. Canon has made what is effectively the best camera is the smallest package that they can manage. And they succeeded in doing so. The sensor and body combination is top notch.

However, they moved most of the physical controls into the electronic menus. Which is fine if you have time to set up, but a pain to dig through while everyone is having fun around you. Design concepts are good, but losing some functionality to fit the form is not always the way to go. Still, it does take some very nice pictures.