Which Webcam Should I Buy?

In online video, whether live video chat or recorded video email, it is important to use a high quality camera to capture image detail, color, and smooth movement. Having a high quality camera will make all the difference between a negative user experience, and an excellent user experience. If you are using video mail for business marketing you certainly want to give a good impression to your prospects with a high quality image. Netbooks and laptops have built in webcams, but the quality can often be poor as 0.3Mp lens are frequently used (an exception is the Mac). At mailVU, we are frequently asked “What factors are important in selecting a webcam, and specifically what webcam should I buy?” We wrote this article for anyone who wants to know more about the features and specifications to look for in a webcam, and to provide a list of recommended webcams we have tested on mailVU’s video email service that offer the best balance between price and performance.

Webcam Image Resolution is one of the most important factors in a good video experience. The more megapixels (Mp) the better right? Not necessarily. A screen resolution of 1440×900 (the highest setting for my laptop) requires just 1.3Mp to fill an entire screen with a high quality image. You may find webcams on Ebay that advertise 10-12Mp, but that resolution is going to be wasted. Broadband Internet connection upstream limits will result in discarding excess pixels, and your monitor will not be able to show any improvement in video quality. If you have less than 1.3Mp you will see quality deterioration, so we recommend selecting a webcam with 1.3Mp or 2.0Mp. We do recommend getting an HD webcam if your budget allows, giving you 720p or 1080p resolution. If you really want to see what a high quality camera can do, try recording and sending a free video email from mailVU.com from your computer webcam. Now record and send a video mail from the free mailVU iPhone/iPad app. The difference in quality is amazing. Deciding between a CCD camera and CMOS? Despite what technology pundits might say, CCD cameras are no better than CMOS cameras for everyday Internet video applications. CMOS cameras are less expensive and will work fine. Just make sure the image resolution is 1.3Mp or higher.

Frame Rate. The smoothness of motion is determined by the Frames Per Second (fps) rating. A 30fps rating provides smoother motion than 15fps, with less trailing of movement. The North American television standard for video is 30fps. A “talking” head doesn’t have a lot of motion, and generally 15fps will work fine. Most video mail or Skype calls with your face on the screen work great at 15fps. If you want to broadcast someone moving, like a person writing on a chalkboard, then higher fps improves the image. We don’t recommend a camera with less than 15fps as motion delays become obvious. Your best bet is to look for the full 30fps specification. Webcam fps can make a big difference in the image quality. The webcam fps test site provides lots of useful information on what impacts fps, how to test your webcam fps, and things you can do to improve it.

Auto Focus is a very useful feature to have in keeping image quality sharp. There are a lot of manual focus webcams on the market, particularly on the low end of the pricing spectrum. Manual focus webcams work, but constantly adjusting the focus ring around the lens can be a pain, and you may forget to do it when you move to a different position. Since auto focus webcams can be found in the $20 price range, we recommend only purchasing auto focus cameras.

Built-In Microphones are another very useful feature that allow you to talk without a headset. I would be the first to agree that if you want the best audio quality possible, a headset should be used, but if you are simply having a video chat, the webcam mic works just fine. The built-in webcam mic is also nice to have when recording videos. After all, who wants to see the headset covering your ears, and a boom mic blocking the lower part of your face? If you are recording a video resume you don’t want anything on your head in the video. Buy a webcam with a built-in mic. You can always supplement it with a headset if needed for a particular application.

Face-Tracking is a feature where usefulness depends on your application. For “talking head” use of a webcam, such as recording a video or video chat, this feature is not required. If a person is moving, the constantly changing view on the webcam can be very annoying to the viewers. However if you are writing on a whiteboard, or doing something else that requires a lot of movement, then having the face tracking feature can be useful.

Webcam Viewing Angle.  A basic webcam comes with a 58 degree viewing angle, placing your face in the middle of the screen. However, sometimes you want to include multiple people in the video and need a wider angle. The lens is what determines the viewing angle on webcams. If you need a wider view, try using one of the wide angle webcams. Creative Labs claims a 78 degree viewing angle on the Ultra series, and Logitech claims a 76% viewing angle on their C-910 and C-905 models. For a low cost wide angle webcam you can try Microsoft’s LifeCam VX-6000 which claims a 71 degree angle.

Software Drivers. One feature we really like is the plug & play aspect of the USB 2.0 webcams. Eliminating the need to load software drivers from a disk is a nice plus as it makes it easy to move the webcam between computers. USB devices work off the 2.0 standard and can be used interchangeably on Macs and PCs on various levels of the OS (XP, Vista, Windows 7, etc.). A USB camera is also great if you upgrade your computer (say from Vista to Windows 7) since you don’t have to worry about updating driver software; your plug & play USB webcam will continue to work just fine.

Internal vs. External Webcams. Internal webcams are great for ease of use and since they are located at the top center of the screen they give the appearance of looking directly into the camera. I wouldn’t buy a laptop without a built-in webcam due to this convenience. Sometimes the built-in webcams are minimum acceptable quality, and may only have an image resolution of 0.3Mp. They are OK for some applications, but we like external webcams with the specifications recommended in this article. The benefit of better video is worth it. Closing the laptop screen repeatedly could eventually result in a small crack in the lens or a sensor misalignment due to the shock. Having an external webcam is a good safety net as well as a means of getting a higher quality image and motion.

Laptop vs. Desktop. If you have a desktop computer you may need a webcam that accommodates sitting on a flat surface, and has a long USB cable to reach a CPU that could be sitting on the floor. A laptop requires the opposite characteristics. A clip-on webcam with a short USB cable is ideal, and the small is better for carrying the device while traveling. Be sure to select a webcam that matches your needs.

You can use a Digital Camera or Video Camera as a Webcam. A little known fact is that you can use a video camera, and some digital cameras, as a webcam. If you don’t have a special sound card (I didn’t in my HP laptop) you will need a video capture cable to connect your computer to the video camera (sources provided below). With a digital camera or video camera you can mount it on a tripod and show everyone in the room. We’ve used a video capture cable to turn a Canon PowerShot digital camera, a Sony video camera, and a Panasonic video camera into webcams.

Test Your Webcam. No one wants to purchase a webcam with good specifications only to find out it doesn’t work on Vista 64 bit machines, or that it has an interoperability issue with Macs. You can use mailVU as a free webcam test to make sure your webcam is working properly. Simply go to mailVU.com, click Allow, and then click record. You can share this site with friends by using the Tweet, Facebook, and Google+ buttons on the home page.

Note: If you have a Mac and want to use iMovie, Apple apparently only wants you to use (internal or external) Apple iSight or firewire cameras. You can try to find USB webcams that will work with iMovie, but it might be difficult. More info on this page: http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1059

Webcam recommendations and sources. After several years of experience with webcams we recommend the following units for their quality and features:

Webcam Model Online Source Recent Price

Overall we’ve had excellent results from the High Definition Logitech webcams:

Logitech HP Pro Webcam C-910 – Shop for Webcams at Logitech – $99.99

Logitech HP Pro Webcam C-310 – VideoInterviewKits – $39.99

For an alternative to Logitech we like these inexpensive HD webcam from Microsoft:

Microsoft LifeCam HD-5000 - VideoInterviewKits.com – $39.99

Microsoft LifeCam VX-6000 - VideoInterviewKits.com – $49.99

For a low cost basic 1.3Mp webcam we recommend:  mailVU 8019 $19.99
It works on Macs and PCs.

Cable to use a Digital/Video Camera as a Webcam

Grandtec USA Video Capture Cable www.newegg.com $64.99

C1000 Video Capture Cable www.videointerviewkits.com $24.99

Whatever equipment and price point you choose, we trust you will have a high quality experience!  We wrote another blog titled Five Ways To Send Video Email Free. Before falling for a sales pitch on how much money you can make by selling video mail, try out the free options. Want to try video email for free? Simply go to mailVU’s home page and allow camera access. Record a video message for up to 10 minutes, then select the email option which will prompt you to enter the email addresses, and then sends the recipient an email with a video image. It doesn’t send the actual video which would clog up email boxes due to size. Instead, it sends a thumbnail image that when clicked plays the video from mailVU’s website. Give it a try. If you like the power of video mail, but want additional features such as adding a video recorder to your website for capturing video testimonials, or adding your logo to the video emails, or embedding videos on your website, check out the Business Plan version.

Good luck in your webcam selection decision!

Want to go directly to the manufacturer? Shop for Webcams at Logitech