Quick Verdict
The Canon EOS 2000D is this year's update to the 1300D, and it's beginning to look seriously out of date compared to the competition, in almost every way.
+ Pros
- Wi-Fi and NFC built-in
- Good colour reproduction
- Good ergonomics and handling
- Easy to use
- Decent battery life
- Auto White Balance options of warm or white
- Cons
- Disappointing ISO range, with poor noise control
- Only 3fps continuous shooting
- Lacks auto-HDR shooting
- Horribly slow live view focusing
- Chromatic aberrations
The Canon EOS 2000D is an update to the Canon EOS 1300D, with the 2000D now featuring a 24mp APS-C CMOS sensor. There's built-in Wi-Fi and NFC as well as a number of scene modes and effects. The 2000D is available for £459 with kit lens with IS.
Canon EOS 2000D Features
The Canon EOS 2000D (known as the Canon EOS Rebel T7 in the US) uses a 24 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor, an improvement over the 18mp sensor in the 1300D. The new Canon EOS 4000D is introduced as the entry-level camera, with an 18 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor, and more basic camera body.
Built-in Wi-Fi and NFC connectivity which makes the camera much more appealing for entry-level and younger shooters. On the back, there is a 3inch screen, with 920K dots.
Continuous shooting speed is a rather pedestrian 3fps, and the ISO range is the same at ISO100 to ISO12800 (extended). The camera records FullHD video at 30,25,24fps, with mono sound, and there is no mic socket. The camera features 9 AF points.
The camera has full manual controls, as well as scene intelligent auto mode and a number of creative effects, including a grainy black and white effect. Wi-Fi and NFC are built in, which will make it quick and easy to connect to compatible smartphones. You can connect to Android smartphones using NFC, if they support it, and this makes it very easy to connect and transfer photos, as well as remotely control the camera.
The Canon EOS 2000D has access to all of Canon's EF and EF-S lenses, and when combined with one of the prime lenses, it becomes a quite compact Digital SLR and for those that want the smallest possible Digital SLR system, then there are a number of compact prime lenses available, such as the 24mm f/2.8 STM pancake lens, 40mm f/2.8 STM pancake lens, and 50mm f/1.8 STM prime lens.
We've compared the Canon EOS 2000D to other entry-level Digital SLRs from Canon, plus the next model up, the Canon EOS 200D:
| Canon EOS 1300D | Canon EOS 4000D | Canon EOS 2000D | Canon EOS 200D |
| 18mp | 18mp | 24mp | 24mp |
| 3inch screen, 920K | 2.7inch screen, 230K dots | 3inch screen, 920K | 3inch vari-angle touch-screen, 1040K |
| 0.80x OVF | 0.80x | 0.80x OVF | 0.87x OVF |
| DIGIC 4+ | DIGIC 4+ | DIGIC 4+ | DIGIC 7 |
| 1080p FullHD Video | 1080p FullHD Video | 1080p FullHD Video | 1080p FullHD 60fps |
| ISO100 to ISO12800 | ISO100 to ISO12800 | ISO100 to ISO12800 | ISO100 to ISO51200 |
| Wi-Fi / NFC built-in | Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi / NFC built-in | Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC |
| 3fps continuous shooting | 3fps continuous shooting | 3fps continuous shooting | 5fps continuous shooting |
| 9 AF points | 9 AF points | 9 AF points | 9 AF points (Dual-Pixel AF) |
| 500 shots | 500 shots | 500 shots | 650 shots |
| 485g inc battery and card | 436g inc battery and card | 475g inc battery and card | 453g inc battery and card |
| £329 with kit lens* | £369 with kit lens (non-IS) | £459 with kit lens (IS) | £559 with kit lens (IS) |
* While still available.
The 2000D is available body only, or with the 18-55mm IS kit lens and we'd recommend the 18-55mm IS kit lens for those likely to want to shoot in lower light conditions, or for those that want to record hand-held video, as the Image Stabilisation (IS) will help under these shooting conditions.
Key Features
- 24 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor
- Canon EF lens mount
- DIGIC 4+ image processor
- 3inch screen, 920k dot resolution
- 0.80x magnification, optical viewfinder
- Wi-Fi and NFC built-in
- FullHD 1080p video recording
- ISO100-ISO6400 expands to ISO12800
- 3fps continuous shooting
- 9 AF points
Canon EOS 2000D Handling
The Canon EOS 2000D features a solid plastic body and ample rubber grip surrounding the grip and rear thumb grip of the camera. This means it feels similar in value to an older EOS camera like the EOS 600D, although without the side access to the memory card slot. The memory card slot can be found under the camera, in the battery compartment.
The mode dial has a metallic finish, giving the camera a more premium look and feel, compared to plastic mode dials. The layout of controls on the camera will be familiar to anyone who's used an entry to mid-level Digital SLR from Canon, such as the 1300D or 800D cameras.
The buttons are clearly labelled and a good size, with easy access to a number of useful settings, including ISO, AF, WB and Drive mode on the 4-way controller. With good controls and rubber grip, the 2000D feels good in your hand, with a relatively compact camera body.
The optical viewfinder has a soft rubber surround making it more comfortable to use, and there is a dioptre adjustment dial next to it. The optical viewfinder is clear and shows the focus points so that you know where the camera has focused. There are 9 focus points and these are quite central, which means you'll need to master focusing and re-composing if you want your subject off-centre.
Menus – The menus on the 2000D are well designed and easy to use with each main section colour coded and the screen is clear and easy to read. Although unfortunately, it's not a gapless screen. There's a Q button to give quick access to controls on the rear screen so that you don't have to go into the menus.
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Using Canon's Camera Connect app, (available for Android and iOS devices), you can view and transfer images on the camera, shoot remotely as well as change camera settings. Setting up the connection is particularly easy if you have an Android smartphone with built-in NFC.
>Battery life - Battery life is rated at 500 shots according to Canon / CIPA test results, which is reasonably good for a Canon Digital SLR, although other Digital SLRs sometimes offer longer battery life.
Canon EOS 2000D Performance
The performance section is where we look at the image quality performance of the camera. Additional sample photos and product shots are available in the Equipment Database, where you can add your own review, photos and product ratings.
Speed - We took a number of shots to test the camera's responsiveness, from switch on to first photo, shot to shot, focusing speed etc. We take a number of shots and then use the average to ensure accurate and consistent tests, making it easy to compare with other cameras.
| Shutter Response | <0.1secs - (same for live view) |
| Wide - Focus / Shutter Response | 0.15secs - live view: 1.75s |
| Full zoom - Focus / Shutter Response | 0.175secs - live view: 1.55s |
| Switch on Time to Taking a Photo | 0.4secs |
| Shot to Shot without Flash | 0.45secs |
| Shot to Shot with Flash | 0.6secs |
| Continuous Shooting - JPEG (shots before slow down) |
3fps (~) |
| Continuous Shooting - Flash | 2fps |
| Continuous Shooting - RAW | 3fps (9 shots) |
Focus and shot to shot times were both good, although the 3fps continuous shooting is looking a little dated, with competitors offering faster continuous shooting speeds. Tested with the EF-S 18-55mm lens. Live view focus remains horribly slow, which makes it both frustrating and annoying to use.
Canon EOS 2000D (Rebel T7) Sample Photos
Sample Photos - As you would expect from a Canon camera, the images produced have very pleasing colour reproduction, with colours that are saturated, but not too saturated. Exposure is reliable, and there is a good level of dynamic range in photos, thanks to the Auto Lighting Optimiser (ALO) option. Unfortunately, there is no automatic HDR shooting mode. If there isn't enough dynamic range captured in your photos, then you'll need to process the raw files.
For better portraits, you're likely to want a brighter lens than the standard kit lens for softer, blurred backgrounds (with "Bokeh"), and lenses like the 50mm f/1.8 or 50mm f/1.8 STM (£92), would make an excellent second lens.
Canon EOS 2000D (Rebel T7) Lens test images
Lens Performance - Detail and sharpness of the kit lens, the 18-55mm IS II, is quite good. The biggest problem with this lens, is that Chromatic aberration is not good, and is visible in a range of images. Image stabilisation is effective. Macro performance is reasonable, with it possible to get quite close to your subject. Peripheral illumination correction is available in camera, based on whether there is data on the attached lens, but the camera doesn't offer as much correction as models higher up in the EOS range. This means that chromatic aberrations and purple fringing can often be seen, and will need correcting later in software if it annoys you.
Canon EOS 2000D (Rebel T7) ISO test images
ISO Noise Performance - Noise is well controlled up to and including ISO1600 and detail remains fairly good. At ISO3200 noise becomes more noticeable and colour saturation drops which means results are a little disappointing. Things get worse at ISO6400 and above with higher noise and random white dots in images. Unfortunately, there's little improvement in noise performance compared to the 1300D.
The ISO range is limited to ISO100 to ISO6400, which can be extended to ISO12800 (in Custom settings). This is quite limited compared to almost every other camera in this class, and even cameras with smaller sensors, which also give better noise performance.
Noise compared to the competition...
You would expect a higher resolution sensor to produce images with more noise, but you'd also hope that a newer generation sensor would produce cleaner images. Noise performance is no worse than the 18mp 1300D, but also no better, which is unfortunate, because the 1300D's noise performance wasn't particularly good.
If we compare the 24mp 2000D to the 2-year-old Nikon D3400 (also 24mp), the Nikon gives better noise performance. If we compare the 24mp 2000D to the nearly 4-year-old Sony Alpha A6000 (24mp), whilst the Sony gives softer results, it also gives images with significantly lower noise, particularly chroma noise.
Canon EOS 2000D (Rebel T7) White-balance test images
White Balance Performance - The camera has two options for auto white balance (AWB) one that retains ambient lighting conditions, and one that has a white priority. This option is designed to work under tungsten lighting, but also works with mixed lighting, and fluorescent lighting, so that you can choose what results you want, for example choosing warm results for portraits or white results for product shots. Thanks to this, it's possible to get very good results, even in mixed lighting.
Canon EOS 2000D (Rebel T7) Digital filters
Digital Filters - In playback there are options for Photobook Set-up and Creative Filters (Grainy B+W, Soft Focus, Fish-eye effect, Toy camera, Miniature). You can also use Creative Auto to apply a number of different effects, with the camera guiding you through the settings. Creative Auto shooting modes are: Standard, Vivid, Soft, Warm, Intense, Cool, Brighter, Darker, Monochrome.
Video - Video quality is good, recording FullHD at 1080p at 30, 25 or 24fps. You can also select from ISO100 to ISO6400 for movie shooting. The camera records mono sound, and there isn't a microphone socket on the camera. Video recording benefits from the use of a lens with image stabilisation, or alternatively a tripod or steady surface is recommended.
Value For Money
The Canon EOS 2000D is available for £459 with kit lens (with IS), in comparison, the Canon EOS 1300D is available for £329 with kit lens with image stabilisation (IS), which makes the 1300D excellent value for money. Alternatives to consider include the following entry-level DSLR cameras:
Canon EOS 200D, 24mp, 3inch screen, 5fps, Mic socket, £559 with kit lens
Nikon D3400, 24mp, 3inch screen, 5fps, £420 with VR kit lens
Pentax K-S2, 20mp, Wi-Fi, NFC, 3inch vari-angle screen, weather resistant, 5.7fps, IS, Mic socket, £479 with kit lens
You could also look at the following mirrorless cameras with an electronic viewfinder (EVF), although these tend to have a higher price:
Panasonic Lumix G7, 16mp, 3inch vari-angle touch-screen, Wi-Fi, 8fps, 4K video, £499 with lens
Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III, 16mp, 3inch tilting touch-screen, Wi-Fi, 8.6fps, 4K video, £649 with lens
Fujifilm X-T10, 16mp, 3inch tilting screen, Wi-Fi, 8fps, £549 with lens
Fujifilm X-T20, 24mp, 3inch tilting touch-screen, Wi-Fi, 8fps, 4K video, £799 with lens
Sony Alpha A6000, 24mp, 3inch tilting screen, Wi-Fi, 11fps, £480 with lens
Canon EOS M50, 24mp, 3inch vari-angle touch-screen, Wi-Fi, 10fps, 4K video, £649 with lens
Have a look at more DSLRs in our Top 10 Best APS-C DSLR Cameras 2015. You'll also need to buy a memory card and a case or bag to keep your camera safe and protected - have a look at our complete guide to camera bags.
Canon EOS 2000D Verdict
The Canon EOS 2000D is a minor update to the Canon EOS 1300D. Whilst the 1300D was (and still is) a budget DSLR, with built-in Wi-Fi, as an entry level model its basic specification could be accepted due to the low price. Two years later, the Canon EOS 2000D is no longer the entry level model from Canon, and its basic specification is looking horribly outdated and downright apathetic compared to the competition. It doesn't matter which alternative camera you buy, it is going to be BETTER, and FASTER, and could be cheaper (or a similar price), and have newer features (face detection, 4K video, faster continuous shooting, more focus points, better noise performance). If you want a cheap, budget DSLR from Canon, and can cope with slow live-view focusing, get the 1300D (while stocks last), or increase your budget.
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