Logitech Quickcam for Notebooks Web Cam Review
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Written To Better Inform Our Visitors Regarding These Deals: • Logitech QuickCam for Notebooks $4.99 [INSTANT SAVINGS] |
If you’re in the market for a new webcam there are quite a few options out there on the market. Most are now affordable, but they are not all the same when it comes to terms of quality and use. Let’s take a look at the new Quickcam for Notebooks Deluxe from Logitech. The company is already well known for their other peripherals and cameras, but will this one hold up?
This camera is actually quite pretty and the first thing you’ll notice is the sleek design and the tiny size. It’s a cute little device that will clip on to the top of your laptop, provided that you have a surface on the top that is not too big or has a lip. Most of the newer laptops are designed to work with cameras like this so finding one to fit should not be a big problem for most users. The camera has a small onboard mic and the front has a yellow light that will glow when the camera is being used.
The camera base does tilt up to 45 degrees vertically so you can get a pretty good shot with it. In addition, it does come with a little carrying case, which is great since it is meant for portable computers. Overall, we liked the look of the camera and its small footprint.
The most reported use for this camera is for digital conferencing, although it can be used to take regular pictures. It’s great for video chat or for just sending your friends a quick video note. With the right software, you can use this camera to create your own video blog. The quality is actually pretty good so it will work well for this use.
To install the camera, you’re going to need to first use the included CD to install the drivers. It is meant for PC, so Mac users will need to find another solution. Once you’ve got the software and driver installed, just plug in the camera and you’ll be ready to go. In order to actually use the camera, you will need to open the software application. The software includes the ability to connect with your instant messenger client and most major IM clients, such as AIM, MSN and Yahoo are supported.
If you do decide to use the IM client with the camera, you will need to configure your video options inside of that particular client. MSN has some great options for this, but all will allow you to make basic adjustments. It is a good idea to keep in mind that if you will be chatting for a while on video IM, your computer will need to have a good amount of RAM and diskspace since video files are quite large. It’s not actually saving the video, unless you want it to, but you’ll still need to have plenty of RAM to ensure better transfer time and picture quality.
The feature list for this camera is actually pretty long. The resolution is 640x480, which for a camera of this size is actually pretty impressive. It comes with face tracking capabilities, which eliminate ghosting and other common quality issues that occur during a video chat. An automatic gain control is included and the software provides further features that enhance the camera. As mentioned previously, there is an onboard mic and we found that it was actually pretty good. There was some line noise, but overall, the quality of the sound was decent for a camera of this size.
It can be used as a still camera as well and the software provides extra features for handling low light. The pictures were actually pretty sharp and we found that the colors were true in most cases. The brightness of colors is degraded a bit when the lighting isn’t the best, but that is true of any camera.
The included software really extends this camera’s capabilities. You’ll be able to set up features for handling low light situations, as well as optimizing your files. When you launch the application, the UI is actually very easy to use and makes it very simple to get started. You can choose the IM features mentioned above, or create a video email, still picture or capture an image with just a click. Everything is well laid out and easy to follow, and even a novice should be able to get started without any problems.
Videos are recorded using the AVI format, which is compatible with most players. If necessary, you can always get a converter to change that over to mpeg or mov if you prefer. Still images can be saved as gifs or jpegs and whenever you’ve created a file, it will be moved right into the software’s photo album so you don’t lose track of it.
The software also provides zooming features, as well as the ability to turn on the face tracking options and fixing the colors, hue or saturation of your video or image.
The included manual is incredibly basic and really didn’t offer much help. You can go to Logitech’s website for additional support and driver files. We would have liked to have seen a better guide, especially for first time users that are completely unfamiliar with video chat applications and the abilities of a camera like this.
If you’re looking for a mid-priced webcam that takes great images, has plenty of features and is dependable, look no further. Brand new, this one should cost less than $60, but you can find it cheaper on discount sites like ours. It is a bit more expensive than the average webcam, but you do get what you pay for. If you need this camera for business, or if high quality video really matters to you, then this camera is well worth the money. For the occasional user that is not really concerned with quality, then this camera might be overkill, especially if you are on a budget.
First Look
This camera is actually quite pretty and the first thing you’ll notice is the sleek design and the tiny size. It’s a cute little device that will clip on to the top of your laptop, provided that you have a surface on the top that is not too big or has a lip. Most of the newer laptops are designed to work with cameras like this so finding one to fit should not be a big problem for most users. The camera has a small onboard mic and the front has a yellow light that will glow when the camera is being used.
The camera base does tilt up to 45 degrees vertically so you can get a pretty good shot with it. In addition, it does come with a little carrying case, which is great since it is meant for portable computers. Overall, we liked the look of the camera and its small footprint.
Main Use
The most reported use for this camera is for digital conferencing, although it can be used to take regular pictures. It’s great for video chat or for just sending your friends a quick video note. With the right software, you can use this camera to create your own video blog. The quality is actually pretty good so it will work well for this use.
Getting Started
To install the camera, you’re going to need to first use the included CD to install the drivers. It is meant for PC, so Mac users will need to find another solution. Once you’ve got the software and driver installed, just plug in the camera and you’ll be ready to go. In order to actually use the camera, you will need to open the software application. The software includes the ability to connect with your instant messenger client and most major IM clients, such as AIM, MSN and Yahoo are supported.
If you do decide to use the IM client with the camera, you will need to configure your video options inside of that particular client. MSN has some great options for this, but all will allow you to make basic adjustments. It is a good idea to keep in mind that if you will be chatting for a while on video IM, your computer will need to have a good amount of RAM and diskspace since video files are quite large. It’s not actually saving the video, unless you want it to, but you’ll still need to have plenty of RAM to ensure better transfer time and picture quality.
Features – Camera
The feature list for this camera is actually pretty long. The resolution is 640x480, which for a camera of this size is actually pretty impressive. It comes with face tracking capabilities, which eliminate ghosting and other common quality issues that occur during a video chat. An automatic gain control is included and the software provides further features that enhance the camera. As mentioned previously, there is an onboard mic and we found that it was actually pretty good. There was some line noise, but overall, the quality of the sound was decent for a camera of this size.
It can be used as a still camera as well and the software provides extra features for handling low light. The pictures were actually pretty sharp and we found that the colors were true in most cases. The brightness of colors is degraded a bit when the lighting isn’t the best, but that is true of any camera.
Features – Software
The included software really extends this camera’s capabilities. You’ll be able to set up features for handling low light situations, as well as optimizing your files. When you launch the application, the UI is actually very easy to use and makes it very simple to get started. You can choose the IM features mentioned above, or create a video email, still picture or capture an image with just a click. Everything is well laid out and easy to follow, and even a novice should be able to get started without any problems.
Videos are recorded using the AVI format, which is compatible with most players. If necessary, you can always get a converter to change that over to mpeg or mov if you prefer. Still images can be saved as gifs or jpegs and whenever you’ve created a file, it will be moved right into the software’s photo album so you don’t lose track of it.
The software also provides zooming features, as well as the ability to turn on the face tracking options and fixing the colors, hue or saturation of your video or image.
Support
The included manual is incredibly basic and really didn’t offer much help. You can go to Logitech’s website for additional support and driver files. We would have liked to have seen a better guide, especially for first time users that are completely unfamiliar with video chat applications and the abilities of a camera like this.
Overall Opinion
If you’re looking for a mid-priced webcam that takes great images, has plenty of features and is dependable, look no further. Brand new, this one should cost less than $60, but you can find it cheaper on discount sites like ours. It is a bit more expensive than the average webcam, but you do get what you pay for. If you need this camera for business, or if high quality video really matters to you, then this camera is well worth the money. For the occasional user that is not really concerned with quality, then this camera might be overkill, especially if you are on a budget.
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