Use this Camera while being in Iraq and the clarity is amazing when talking to family back home ! Had an older Logicam and they said they could barley see me sometimes.... (even thought the net out here in iraq is CRAP) this camera really made a huge differnce !! Thank you amazon ! Logitech 720p Webcam C310
The VidHD is nice but can't be used with Skype, which is what I use.
After installing the software, my computer's performance did suffer (I do have Windows XP so maybe that was it?). The software is useful for taping videos and taking pictures - which the kids and I did.
As for the features of autofocus and motion detection and what-not, I found these features made the video conferencing on Skype freeze up. I used it with my parents on a good connection and it happened and when there was a low signal with my husband overseas it froze like crazy. I uninstalled the software and driver and the webcam worked great on Skype and had a great quality image and clear audio when used connecting to my husband and also with my family in country.
So it depends on what you need this camera for. In order to do plain old Skype with family and friends I would recommend NOT using the software.
I hope this is helpful to others. It is a nice camera and some of the features are useful for those who need them. The quality of the image was worth the purchase.
I've had this camera for about 12 hours, so although I'm still getting used to it, I've had plenty of time to play with it and look at most of its features. Overall, it's a nice camera for the price. However, it's not for everyone, and like my title says, it definitely has its share of pros and cons.
PROS:
* Excellent image quality
* Great microphone quality
* Software works great with it + nice features
* I find the LED light/position a lot more attractive than most other webcams.
CONS:
x It is not truly "widescreen". The lens is unfortunately more "fisheye" than wide angle. Although you can indeed make the ratio 16:9, your camera will not cover a wide span. Basically expect no other coverage other than your head and behind.
x The cord is quite short (5 ft). This of course depends on the person's circumstance. My tower is quite far from my monitor, and it just barely reaches the USB port. Would it have hurt to make the cord at least 7'? Of course, some people have laptops or monitors with USB ports; so once again, it depends on your circumstances.
x It's a bit bulky. Expect it to stick out about an inch or two infront of your monitor. Not exactly "attractive", but not hideous either.
x I had an AWFUL hard time getting this thing out of it's box. Jeez Logitech, you have this thing packaged like it's Fort Knox. Simply be careful not to break it when trying to get it out.
So although I'm not completely satisfied, I do find the pros exceptional for keeping. With those cons being said, I fully appraise Logitech and recommend no other brand better for a webcam. However, please know that you DO get what you pay for.
The Logitech HD Camara model C310 is one of the first line of HD webcams, coming out in 2010. I purchased this after buying off brand camaras on the cheap on amazon and ebay. This camara is a big jump from those at about $40 instead of $15-$25 cheapies. I opened it today and have used it for a couple hours with my girlfriend 2 timezones away, and despite that connection and her moderate speed (~3mb down, .5 up compared to my 28 down and 3 up) she gets a very clear image, much larger than that from so called 3, 5, and 8MP camaras. She showed me through Skype's 'share screen' function, which still showed a clear and vibrant image. Recording locally (on my laptop) provides very good video as well.
The driver CD has a lot of Logitech extras. The HD vid works as well as Skype, though I think you might have to pay for it beyond a certain amount of use if you don't own a Logitech camara. The typical gimmicky stuff is included as well, that is "personalization" add-ons, ie. fake backgrounds of nature, image mirroring and distortions, etc.
The camara is a lot smaller than I've used. The actual camara portion is just under 3in wide and just over 1in tall, and less than 1in deep. It gets fairly warm in use.
The clip/mount is terrible for laptops. I have it mounted on my LCD monitor fairly comfortably, but note that such a small camara and the non-spring loaded clip are subject to the weight and tug of the USB cord. There's a velcro strap on the cord presumably for organizational convenience. The camara pivots only on a y-axis joint (pitch). There is no movement for yaw or rotation.
Be careful opening out of the box. To detach from the cardboard, scissors are a guaranteed necessity. The box is ridiculously big for the product.
Here's a Gizmodo article discussing Logitech's new HD webcams: [...]
NOTE: Just because a webcam is advertised as HD, doesn't make it so. I believe only Microsoft and Logitech currently (Summer and Fall 2010) offer true HD webcams for consumer use. Regardless, it's much easier to return something to an established group like those 2 than many questionable online merchants that often sell on Amazon. - Webcam - Webcams - C310 - Skype'
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