Firmware 1.8.0, released in October 2026, links tracking to presets: recalling a lectern position can switch tracking on, and recalling a wide of the room switches it off. That on/off command is also exposed through Standard Communication. A room-control processor or a macro on the vision mixer can therefore pass a council session or an AGM to automation. Since version 1.7.0, IP control over Standard Communication keeps working while USB delivers video to a meeting-room PC. The main tracking controls are within reach on the RC-IP1000 and in the Remote Camera Control Application.

Galleries that still cut on baseband can take the tracked shot on 3G-SDI (SMPTE 424/425, ST 299-2), up to 1080p59.94, with VITC/LTC timecode and embedded audio. 4K UHD leaves the HDMI port at 23.98, 25 or 29.97p in 4:2:2 10-bit; both outputs share one video format, and choosing 2160p for HDMI turns SDI off. The network port handles NDI|HX, SRT, RTMP/RTMPS and RTSP/RTP, and as many as three IP streams run simultaneously; 4K over IP (4:2:0 8-bit) is unavailable at 50 or 59.94 Hz system frequencies. NDI 6, SRT adaptive bitrate and automatic SRT/RTMP reconnection all arrived as free firmware. At a hybrid conference, the tracked lectern shot can feed an SDI mixer in the gallery while SRT carries it to a remote hub.

Canon's 20x optical zoom, built from 12 elements in 10 groups with two aspherical, opens at f/1.8 and runs from roughly 29.3 mm to 601 mm equivalent in 4K. From 3 metres, the 65.6° wide end covers close to 4 metres, enough for a four-seat panel table. From 20 metres, the 3.6° tele end narrows to roughly 1.25 metres: a mid-shot of a keynote speaker. Optical-shift stabilisation settles truss vibration at that long end. Tracking is only as good as the focus behind it. Hybrid AF pairs an external distance sensor with contrast detection, so sharpness keeps pace as a presenter walks toward the lens. A gradation ND to 1/8, gain to 36 dB and a minimum illumination near 1.5 lux cover bright stages and dim lecture halls.

Pan travels ±170° with speeds from 0.2 to 300°/s, and tilt runs from −30° to +100°. Presets, 100 of them, are listed as thumbnails, and each can be given a travel time so multi-camera moves finish together. Canon's XC protocol links the camera to the RC-IP100 (up to 100 cameras) and to the RC-IP300 and RC-IP1000 (up to 200 each). The free Remote Camera Control Application drives 20 heads from a PC, and Canon's iOS app, Multi-Camera Control, works over Wi-Fi. Other makers' joystick panels and AV control systems connect over Standard Communication, on IP or serial RS-422. An IR remote is supplied, and FreeD sends camera data to as many as four virtual-studio or AR engines.

PoE+ power arrives over a single Gigabit RJ45 port (IEEE 802.3at, class 4, roughly 16.2 W), and the bundled 24 V adaptor steps in wherever a switch cannot supply class 4. Ceiling hardware and safety wires are packed with the camera, the white housing stays discreet on pale ceilings, and Canon's A-SWD5WB2-CR wall bracket comes in matching white. USB-C acts as a driver-free UVC webcam up to 1080p30. On Windows, Canon's free Webcam Driver exposes up to five Canon heads on the network as virtual webcams (4K30 maximum), and the Multi-Camera Management Application administers up to 200 Canon devices.

At Oxford's Saïd Business School, two CR-N300 heads supply alternative angles beside an auto-tracking CR-N700 under one RC-IP1000, wired into the school's existing SDI and Ethernet. Reliability was the AV team's main reason for choosing Canon. With the licence on board, a Canon CR-N300 White Auto Tracking can take on that tracking role itself in lecture-capture rooms that do not call for a 1.0-type sensor. Procurement stays simple too: one item per camera position and no licence to order later, while one technician supervises several automated shots.

This version has a full Canon RA-AT001 Auto Tracking App license.

Specifications