There are literally thousands of webcams currently on the market from a whole host of manufacturers. This makes the process of choosing a good webcam a time consuming and confusing experience for shoppers. The most frequent use of a webcam is for video chatting through applications such as MSN Messenger, Yahoo Instant Messenger, Skype or Google Talk. These applications allow you to communicate with other people from all over the world easily and cheaply (or for free in most cases). With this usage in mind, we’ve compiled some tips to help you choose the best webcam.
Quality. The quality of a webcam refers to both the video quality and the durability or construction quality. Most good webcams today use CCD technology for picture capture, while many older or poor quality webcams use the archaic CMOS technology. It is important to choose a webcam that offers a good enough picture quality that you person you are chatting with can clearly see you. The best indication of quality is the resolution provided by the webcam. For video chatting, you don’t need a super-high end web camera, so even a low-end resolution of 640×480 should be sufficient. Most webcams classify this resolution as “VGA”. Note that if the webcam you are looking at includes both Video Sensor and Photo Size information, you should focus on the Video Sensor information. If you want a higher quality picture, look for a Video Sensor of 1.2 MegaPixels or above. Also keep in mind that you will require a better internet connection to support a higher quality video, so if you’re on a basic DSL package it doesn’t make any sense to get a super high quality web camera because you won’t be able to transmit all that data.
Simplicity. Most webcams on the market today are USB webcams, so ensure that your computer has the required connection (99% of computers do). You should also keep in mind if you are using the webcam with a laptop or a desktop, as you will want a different stand. For laptops, ensure that the webcam can clip on to the top of your screen, and for desktops ensure that the webcam has a good desk stand. You should also check for if the webcam is plug and play compatible, or if you will need to fuss with drivers. Most Microsoft webcams are extremely easy to use in this regard, and start working within seconds of being plugged in.
Price. The price of a webcam can vary considerably, from under ten dollars to hundreds of dollars. For video chatting, you don’t need to spend more than $50 at the very highest. Most web cameras in the range of $20-$30 will meet your needs sufficiently. Some webcams include features like face tracking, zooming, or auto focusing capabilities. In 99% of cases, you don’t need any of that and it’s just wasted money. If you must have the absolute best, then go ahead, but you’re just throwing away money.
Right now, my highest recommended cheap webcam is the Microsoft LifeCam VX-3000
, which has a good balance of video quality, simplicity, and price. If you want something with better video quality while still being relatively cheap, I recommend the Microsoft LifeCam Cinema
.
