As Canon shifts its product line toward mirrorless cameras, the EOS-1D X Mark III will be the company's final high-end DSLR. In a Tuesday interview with the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun, Chairman and Chief Executive Fujio Mitarai said as much, which Canon confirmed.

Mirrorless cameras are the way of the future, at least for those of us who want better image quality and lens versatility than smartphones can provide. Mirrorless cameras are becoming more popular, according to Mitarai.

Although Canon's move may not come as a surprise, it is a significant step forward in a technological transition that moves cameras further away from the film.

Canon's EOS line of single-lens reflex (SLR) cameras, which use a "reflex" mirror to bounce light into the viewfinder when composing a photo, cemented the company's film-era clout. When it's time to expose the film, or in the digital era, an image sensor chip, the mirror swings out of the way.

The camera industry, led by Sony and other Canon competitors, is moving toward mirrorless designs, such as Canon's new EOS R3. The image sensor is constantly illuminated here, and you compose the shot using either an electronic viewfinder or the camera's back display. Mirrorless cameras have advantages in terms of size, simplicity, quietness, shutter speed, and autofocus, but they lack the long battery life of DSLRs.

Sony had already abandoned DSLRs in 2021 and switched to an all-mirrorless product line. Canon and its longtime rival Nikon switched to mirrorless cameras later, but their products are still strong, with a growing family of compatible lenses.

Canon isn't quite as forward-thinking as Sony. Mitarai predicts that the company will stop producing flagship DSLRs in a few years. It is, however, continuing to develop and manufacture lower-end DSLRs, where demand remains strong.