Canon T6 Performance

Mostly entry-level performance.

Powering on and taking a shot was good, at about 0.5 second. Switching from Play to Record mode and taking a shot was faster, at about 0.3 second.

In terms of the Canon T6's ability to determine that it's properly focused when shooting the same target multiple times using the optical viewfinder and a Canon 50mm f/1.8 STM kit lens, its full autofocus shutter response was a bit slower than average for a DSLR these days. We measured 0.273 second for full AF lag using single point (center) AF. Enabling the flash added a delay to account for pre-flash metering, resulting in a capture lag of 0.343 second.

Shutter lag with manual focus was good at 0.120 second. "Prefocusing" the camera by half-pressing and holding down the shutter button before the final exposure resulted in a lag time of 0.112 second, which is fair.

The Canon T6's prefocused shutter lag time in Live View mode was a bit faster than using the optical viewfinder, measured at 0.097 second, which is very good. Note that we no longer test full AF lag in Live View mode for DSLRs, because the lens used makes such a huge difference that comparing is pointless. We'll try to comment on real-world Live View AF performance in our field tests.

To minimize the effect of different lens' focusing speed, we test AF-active shutter lag with the lens already set to the correct focal distance.

Single-shot cycle times were about average for a consumer DSLR at just over 0.5 second for JPEG and RAW+JPEG files. (Note that we no longer test single-shot mode with just RAW files, as the results are usually somewhere in between JPEG and RAW+JPEG modes.)

Full-resolution continuous mode speeds were sedate at about three frames-per-second, no matter the file type. That's slow even for an entry-level DSLR these days.

Buffer depth for best quality JPEGs was decent at 15 frames, and you may be able to do better with real-world subjects as our target for this test was designed to be difficult to compress. When shooting RAW files, however, buffer depths were quite shallow at only 6 frames for RAW, and 4 for RAW+JPEG frames. Shallow buffers when shooting RAW files isn't uncommon for its class, though.

Buffer clearing times were a bit sluggish ranging between 5 seconds after a burst of JPEGs to 9 seconds after a burst of RAW or RAW+JPEG frames.

The Canon T6's built-in flash took an average of 1.8 seconds to recharge after a full-power discharge, which is pretty good.

Bottom line, the Canon T6's performance is fairly typical for an entry-level DSLR, however its burst speed is below average these days. Still, it's capable of capturing some action, but don't be surprised if it can't keep up with active subjects.

Battery Life
Mediocre battery life for a DSLR.

The Canon T6 uses a custom LP-E10 rechargeable lithium-ion battery for power, and ships with a dedicated battery charger. Battery life is a little below average for an entry-level DSLR using the optical viewfinder, rated at 500 shots with 50% using flash, and of course Live View mode draws more power reducing battery life considerably. We recommend you pick up a spare battery and keep it freshly charged and on-hand for extended outings.

The table above shows the number of shots the Canon T6 is capable of (on a fully-charged rechargeable battery), based on CIPA battery-life and/or manufacturer standard test conditions.

(Interested readers can find an English translation of the CIPA DC-002 standards document here. (180K PDF document))