Cameras with USB-C ports are often able to power the camera and/or charge the battery of
USB. While this is a convenient feature, this can sometimes cause connection issues during
tethering. Therefore, we always recommend turning USB Power Delivery / Charging OFF
during tethering in order to ensure the most stable connection possible. Canon R-Series
(mirrorless) cameras do not provide the ability to turn off USB Power / Charging. This limitation
is known to cause connection issues on some setups.
While Canon may address this issue in forthcoming firmware updates and/or future camera
models, it remains a potential issue for many users. In some cases, it is not an issue that will
arise immediately, but can emerge months after the initial use.
As a temporary work-around for this issue, we recommend that Canon R-Series cameras be
connected via one of the following methods to avoid the known issue connection issue
described above:
TetherPro USB-C to USB-C, 31′ (9.4m), Straight to Right Angle Cable
With dedicated data transfer and uni-directional throughput of 5 Gbps there are no conflicts with power. Using the TetherPro USB-C to USB-C 31′ results in fast and steady connection without the issues talked about above. If your computer has a USB-C port, you would be able to use the cable directly with your computer. If your computer does not have a USB-C port, please see the information below.
USB-A Cable
Power Delivery is not supported over USB-A style connections. Therefore, using the
TetherPro USB 3.0 to USB-C cable would prevent the issue described above and will
result in a stable and consistent connection. If your computer has a USB-A port, you
would be able to use the cable directly with your computer. If your computer does not
have a USB-A port, please see the information below.
Third-Party Adapter
If you already have a USB-C to USB-C cable, it is possible to use an adapter to convert
the connection to USB-A and thereby avoid the known power issue described above. A
Female USB-C to Male USB-A adapter would provide this conversion. Tether Tools
does not make the adapter necessary to convert the connection, but these adapters are
readily available at electronics resellers. This is one example of the item available on
Amazon (though please note we have not tested this item, it is only meant as an
example).
Depending on the computer, it may or may not be possible to connect to a USB-A port
on the computer. If it is not, we recommend a two-cable solution (please see below).
If your computer only has USB-C ports available, we recommend the following cable pairing:
TetherPro USB-C to USB-A Female Adapter
— AND —
TetherPro Right Angle Adapter USB 3.0 to USB-C
This approach will convert the computer side of the connection to USB-A and therefore resolve
this issue. Please note, the Female Adapter extension cable must be positioned on the
computer-side of the connection.
We will use this page to communicate any new best practices and/or updates from Canon
regarding this issue. We also recommend checking Canon’s support pages for potential
firmware updates that may address this issue in the future.
A few notes to consider in connection to the behavior described above:
- Shorter connections are less prone to the known issue described above, so using a
shorter cable may avoid the issue in some cases. Users may find that a shorter cable
works fine, while a longer cable experiences the behavior described above. In general,
we would recommend using the shortest connection possible for the setup.
- Some Canon R-Series camera models use ports that support USB-C 3.1 (Gen 1), so
users will not observe a noticeable difference in transfer speed when converting to USB-
A 3.0. Other cameras support USB-C 3.1 (Gen 2), so there may be a noticeable
difference in transfer speeds when using the USB-A method described above.
