Home News Reviews Forums Shop


Anyone got a webcam?

General discussion. Come introduce yourself. Talk about whataver you want!

Anyone got a webcam?

Postby F1Pilot on Sun Mar 14, 2004 7:06 pm

Heya all...
My daughter just turned 2, and my folks are bitching about how they never get to see her. Instead of putting my little girl through the stress of dealing with the grandparents by flying to see them (folks are Westies), I considering getting a webcam so that they can see her. I hoping that we have a lotta tech junkies here that use webcams. Any sugestions? What I'm looking for:
01) I know you pay for what you get, but I want something on the cheap end.
02) Smooth vid capabilities (yes, grandparents and myself are on broadband feeds).
03) Nice still captures.
04) Not a requirement, but it it's portable for a notebook, that would be a bonus!
Thanks!
F1
I teach Music 101
User avatar
F1Pilot
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 628
Joined: Sun Jan 05, 2003 5:41 pm

Postby jase on Sun Mar 14, 2004 10:28 pm

Think it's all in the software isn't it?

I'm pretty sure 99% of webcams have the same 100K CMOS as each other. The lenses vary in quality but generally there isn't much difference.

If you want optimum quality, I'd suggest using your digital camera as a webcam. With the right software should give better results than most webcams.
jase
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 965
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2001 8:00 pm

Postby BuddhaTB on Sun Mar 14, 2004 10:37 pm

Can't go wrong with Logitech. :D

It'd probably be much better looking if you just shot some videos with a camcorder and just uploaded them to your computer.
User avatar
BuddhaTB
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 1865
Joined: Thu Aug 22, 2002 8:50 pm
Location: Southern California (LA & Orange County)

Postby UALOneKPlus on Mon Mar 15, 2004 1:20 am

I've got an Intel webcam that I bought for about $80 or so. It works really well with Yahoo messenger. The grand parents can see my little one pretty well on the web.
"Life is a great big canvas, and you should throw all the paint you can on it."
-Danny Kaye
User avatar
UALOneKPlus
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 1082
Joined: Sun Jan 05, 2003 8:28 am

Postby hoxlund on Mon Mar 15, 2004 1:23 am

I have a creative webcam pro, works great on msn, yahoo, aol
Thermaltake Core X5 Snow Edition TG Case
Corsair RM1000 Power Supply
MSI X399 Gaming Pro Carbon AC
AMD Threadripper 1950x @ 4.1GHz
Custom Loop w/ EK MSI x399 Monoblock
G.Skill 4x8GB DDR4 3200 RGB Memory
MSI 1080Ti Lightning X Video Card
User avatar
hoxlund
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 3708
Joined: Mon May 27, 2002 12:55 am
Location: Idaho

Postby pranav81 on Mon Mar 15, 2004 3:06 am

I have a Logitech Wbcam Pro 4000 which has a 1.3 MeagPixel CMOS and it works as a beauty.I dont know it's proice though as my brother bought it for me.
I can also hook up my Sony MiniDV Handycam DCR-PC330E to work as a webcam.Works as a charm.

::Pranav::
pranav81
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 1160
Joined: Thu Dec 05, 2002 6:57 am
Location: Sunnyvale, CA

Postby F1Pilot on Mon Mar 15, 2004 6:52 am

Heya jase, B, UALOneKPlus, hox and pranav81...thanks for posting!

I've had webcams in the past that looked like absolute crap, but this is about 6+ years ago...just wondering what's out there now. Anyone got links to still sample shots on the web?

At one point, I had the Intel Pro Cam...imaging was really good. I had a Creative and Alaris that were horrible, although I'd like to try Creative again...maybe that specific notebook one that they have.

Good idea with the upload, B. The prob is that my folks are such pain in the asses, they'll want to see her live.

Thanks all! Any more 411 is appreciated!

F1
I teach Music 101
User avatar
F1Pilot
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 628
Joined: Sun Jan 05, 2003 5:41 pm

Postby hoxlund on Mon Mar 15, 2004 11:56 am

when your buying a webcam just make sure not to buy anything with a video resolution lower than 640x480, so don't buy those $5-$20 POS

I work at staples and trust me we carry plenty of shitty webcams, also that creative notebook webcam would do great video
Thermaltake Core X5 Snow Edition TG Case
Corsair RM1000 Power Supply
MSI X399 Gaming Pro Carbon AC
AMD Threadripper 1950x @ 4.1GHz
Custom Loop w/ EK MSI x399 Monoblock
G.Skill 4x8GB DDR4 3200 RGB Memory
MSI 1080Ti Lightning X Video Card
User avatar
hoxlund
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 3708
Joined: Mon May 27, 2002 12:55 am
Location: Idaho

Postby jase on Mon Mar 15, 2004 12:24 pm

Is it not possible to hook your camcorder up directly as a webcam? No PC device would be able to beat it for quality.
jase
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 965
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2001 8:00 pm

Postby JayDee on Mon Mar 15, 2004 3:51 pm

I have a Sony ccx-z11 I think it is one of the first CCD cameras but it quit dated, the only thing I don't like is it need a lot of light to have a good picture, & with the kind I have you need a capture card, but I don't think you'll need one with the new usb types out there, but I would agree to get a CCD type & the lowest LUX you can get, unless you have lot of light in the room. also get the highest FPS camera as well.

Dave
User avatar
JayDee
Buffer Underrun
 
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Mar 13, 2004 10:37 pm

Postby BuddhaTB on Mon Mar 15, 2004 10:29 pm

jase wrote:Is it not possible to hook your camcorder up directly as a webcam? No PC device would be able to beat it for quality.

It should be possible.
User avatar
BuddhaTB
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 1865
Joined: Thu Aug 22, 2002 8:50 pm
Location: Southern California (LA & Orange County)

Postby JayDee on Mon Mar 15, 2004 11:18 pm

BuddhaTB, yes of course you can use a camcorder you just have to have some sort of capture card, I have a Ati TV Wonder Pro R/C, most if not all TV Tuner cards have capture abilities all you need is a Video IN & use your sound card for the audio. My friend has a ATI AIW & he uses his home camcorder for on-line video chat.

Dave
User avatar
JayDee
Buffer Underrun
 
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Mar 13, 2004 10:37 pm

Postby pranav81 on Tue Mar 16, 2004 2:34 am

jase wrote:Is it not possible to hook your camcorder up directly as a webcam? No PC device would be able to beat it for quality.


Yeah jase,
I can hookup my Sony MiniDV Handycam DCR-PC330E directly to the computer using the provided USB cable and use it as a normal webcam.It offers amazing clarity and you can zoom in and out using the remote! You can also play the MiniDV tape in the handycam and the people at the other end will be able to see whats playing!!!Really cool I must say.


::Pranav::
pranav81
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 1160
Joined: Thu Dec 05, 2002 6:57 am
Location: Sunnyvale, CA

Postby aviationwiz on Tue Mar 16, 2004 10:37 am

Go Logitech for sure...
User avatar
aviationwiz
Plextor Fan(atic)
 
Posts: 4069
Joined: Tue Jul 16, 2002 2:55 am
Location: Home of the Red Tail

Postby F1Pilot on Tue Mar 16, 2004 5:55 pm

...alternately, anyone know of really good wecam hardware review sites? I can't seem to find anything worth jack. :-?
I teach Music 101
User avatar
F1Pilot
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 628
Joined: Sun Jan 05, 2003 5:41 pm

Postby pranav81 on Wed Mar 17, 2004 1:48 am

aviationwiz wrote:Go Logitech for sure...


Yeah,I agree.


::Pranav::
pranav81
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 1160
Joined: Thu Dec 05, 2002 6:57 am
Location: Sunnyvale, CA

Postby LoneWolf on Thu Mar 18, 2004 2:59 pm

jase wrote:Is it not possible to hook your camcorder up directly as a webcam? No PC device would be able to beat it for quality.


It is if you have a card with composite video in, like an ATI TV-Wonder, or an ATI All-In-Wonder or Radeon VIVO.

I have a Logitech QuickCam Pro USB now, but had a small OEM Sony camera hooked up through my composite in on my ATI TV Wonder. Worked just fine.
Intel Q9450 @3.2GHz, Gigabyte GA EP45-UD3P, 4 x 2GB G.Skill @4-4-4-12
Antec P160SW case (modded), Xigmatek 750w PSU
3x 500GB (RAID-5), , OptiArc 7200S, ASUS E818A3T
Creative X-Fi XtremeGamer, Hauppauge HVR-1800, Radeon 4890
Dell 2407WFP
User avatar
LoneWolf
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 937
Joined: Thu Feb 06, 2003 4:41 pm
Location: Meecheegan

Postby pranav81 on Fri Mar 19, 2004 2:12 pm

LoneWolf wrote:
jase wrote:Is it not possible to hook your camcorder up directly as a webcam? No PC device would be able to beat it for quality.


It is if you have a card with composite video in, like an ATI TV-Wonder, or an ATI All-In-Wonder or Radeon VIVO.

I have a Logitech QuickCam Pro USB now, but had a small OEM Sony camera hooked up through my composite in on my ATI TV Wonder. Worked just fine.



No.Newer handycam's from Sony can be connected though USB port and they can work as webcam.


::Pranav::
pranav81
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 1160
Joined: Thu Dec 05, 2002 6:57 am
Location: Sunnyvale, CA

Postby F1Pilot on Fri Mar 19, 2004 7:23 pm

hoxlund wrote:that creative notebook webcam would do great video
Have you seen the vid quality on it, hox?

I looked into the Logitech stuff too. Specs sound good, but I still can't find jack as far as samples go. :-?
I teach Music 101
User avatar
F1Pilot
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 628
Joined: Sun Jan 05, 2003 5:41 pm

Postby JayDee on Fri Mar 19, 2004 9:42 pm

Mesa, do you have a home camcorder??? you could use it & the pic would be the best
User avatar
JayDee
Buffer Underrun
 
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Mar 13, 2004 10:37 pm

Postby F1Pilot on Fri Mar 19, 2004 10:12 pm

JayDee wrote:Mesa, do you have a home camcorder??? you could use it & the pic would be the best
Heya JayDee...
I do have a camcorder. By the sounds of what everyone says, I should go that way. I may check into doing that.

Thanks everyone!
I teach Music 101
User avatar
F1Pilot
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 628
Joined: Sun Jan 05, 2003 5:41 pm

Postby JayDee on Fri Mar 19, 2004 11:21 pm

Mesa, apparently from someone post on this thread if you have one of the newer camcorders you don't need a capture/tuner card just use the USB or firewire port. But if you have one of the older ones without these ports & only have a Video RCA type connector then you must use a capture card, ATI makes one of the best capture cards on the market & for the best price, & yes I have one.

Dave
Last edited by JayDee on Sun Mar 21, 2004 1:39 am, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
JayDee
Buffer Underrun
 
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Mar 13, 2004 10:37 pm

Postby jtan on Sun Mar 21, 2004 12:30 am

record it using miniDV, encode it to mpeg2 format, burn it to DVD, mail it. =)
User avatar
jtan
CD-RW Player
 
Posts: 205
Joined: Thu Jun 20, 2002 11:09 am


Return to The Beer Garden

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 7 guests

All Content is Copyright (c) 2001-2024 CDRLabs Inc.