It all rests on an improved version of the flexible rubberised foot found on the LifeCam VX5000 we looked at a while back. The camera is mounted on a ball-and-socket joint that can tilt forward and back approximately 60 degrees and rotate indefinitely (though the attached cable puts a practical limit on this). The silver ‘lip’ at the front is plastic but does extend outward a little to protect the lens. It has a solid aluminium body – the only Microsoft webcam to do so – making it light weight yet durable. Once you manage to get it out of Microsoft’s fiddly-as-always packaging, the webcam itself is a neat little affair. However, keeping in mind webcams are cheap as chips these days, it’s not surprising that this amounts to a very reasonable £45.
However, if you’re happy with how you look and are ready to go all-out HD, Microsoft’s LifeCam Cinema, which claims to offer smooth 720p video at up to 30fps, might be just the thing.Īs the only HD-capable webcam Microsoft sells, theLifeCam Cinema (surely there needs to be an HD suffix in there?) sits at the top of the company’s range and thus demands top dollar – or in this case, pound.
Mainly, though, it’s because many people just don’t care – especially since HD can highlight your less favourable features or those bags under your eyes. Partially, this is because of the limited Internet connection bandwidth to which many people are still subjected, and partially it’s the fault of limited ‘chat’ software support. In this high definition era, where hardware from consoles to monitors and entertainment from games to films is in HD, one area that’s been consistently lagging behind has been the humble webcam.
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