SINGAPORE — Canon today announced the latest addition to its flagship Digital Single-Lens Reflex (DSLR) range, the Canon 70D.

At the heart of this innovative product is its Dual Pixel CMOS AF technology. The jargon behind the sensor goes like this: It is a phase-difference auto-focus (AF) technology on the image sensor plane that employs a CMOS sensor on which all of the effective pixels are able to perform both imaging and phase-difference AF to achieve dramatically improved AF performance during Live View shooting and when shooting videos, explained its press release.

In layman terms: Phase difference capture light information bouncing off subjects into two images. It then measures the difference in the focus point positions, which lets the AF sensor determine the direction and amount of lens adjustment needed. By having dual pixels that can both apply phase difference and process images at the same time, the autofocus feature is dramatically improved.

As the first media in Singapore to witness this feature, I can attest to the veracity of its claims. In a video demonstrating the capability, Japanese cinematographer Nobuyuki Yanagibashi showed how he was able to keep focus on a moving object during a video shoot and change the focus to another spot instantaneously by touching a spot on the LCD panel. I was also able to try out the feature in a classroom setting with pretty dim lighting to impressive effect.

The idea behind this is Canon’s belief that more users are shooting via the Live View function instead of using the viewfinder exclusively, and also shooting more videos with their DSLR cameras.

When asked if the 70D might cannibalise Canon’s range of Legria camcorders, Canon Singapore’s Assistant Director Edwin Teoh said there may be some overlap but there will still be camcorder users who will prefer features such as a longer optical zoom range over DSLRs.

The camera offers an effective 20.2 megapixels with a Digic 5+ image processor. It also have a vari-angle LCD panel, an all cross-type 19-point AF feature, ISO of up to 12800 — with improved noise reduction quality — and built-in wireless LAN and GPS. This means you can use your smartphone as a remote shutter and transfer images to your mobile devices with a simple touch of a button.

Also new in the camera is the mode dial, which can now rotate 360° freely. At 675g (body-only), the camera feels lighter and more manoeuvrable too.

The Canon 70D is slated for sale in end August, pricing will be announced closer to date.