Is there a better webcam than the Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000

[Elliot B.]

I bought my Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000 a few years ago, and as far as I'm aware, it's still considered one of the best.

However, are there better ones these days? I know there are more expensive ones, but that doesn't always mean a whole not.

[MightyJordan]

I bought a QuickCam Pro 9000 a couple of months ago for £35, and compared to the reviews I read about it, I was let down when I tested it out.

No matter what resolution I use, it hardly produces a smooth 30FPS, and my room is fairly well lit. I was expecting it to go beyond that annoying bottleneck. The old PS2 EyeToy could do 60FPS, and that wasn't even officially supported on the PC! And 720 HD video is pretty much still images, unless I use the software-supported one.

The microphone is terrible, too. When I recorded Guitar Hero with it, I just plugged in the GH mic and stuck that next to the surround sound speaker; it gave a better result than the built-in mic.

Personally, I feel I got ripped off paying £35 for it. I paid the same amount for my mouse, which is a Logitech MX Revolution, and that's brilliant. Shame the QuickCam Pro 9000 isn't.

[Ambroos]

If you have the Quickcam Pro 9000, the Microsoft LifeCam Cinema is better, especially the microphone. If you have the (more recent) Logitech Webcam Pro 9000 then there's no real reason to upgrade. In low-light, Logitechs do seem to do a bit better than the Microsoft cameras.

[Elliot B.]

I bought a QuickCam Pro 9000 a couple of months ago for £35, and compared to the reviews I read about it, I was let down when I tested it out.

No matter what resolution I use, it hardly produces a smooth 30FPS, and my room is fairly well lit. I was expecting it to go beyond that annoying bottleneck. The old PS2 EyeToy could do 60FPS, and that wasn't even officially supported on the PC! And 720 HD video is pretty much still images, unless I use the software-supported one.

The microphone is terrible, too. When I recorded Guitar Hero with it, I just plugged in the GH mic and stuck that next to the surround sound speaker; it gave a better result than the built-in mic.

Personally, I feel I got ripped off paying £35 for it. I paid the same amount for my mouse, which is a Logitech MX Revolution, and that's brilliant. Shame the QuickCam Pro 9000 isn't.

I paid £60 for it. The microphone seems fine for Skype and WLM, but apparently it sounds awful in games, but that would likely be said about any webcam (possibly due to the lack of headset use).

If you have the Quickcam Pro 9000, the Microsoft LifeCam Cinema is better, especially the microphone. If you have the (more recent) Logitech Webcam Pro 9000 then there's no real reason to upgrade. In low-light, Logitechs do seem to do a bit better than the Microsoft cameras.

The webcam is used in low-light conditions most of the time, and I like that Skype have connections to Logitech to offer high-quality video.

[Fraud OS 11]

The FaceVision TouchCam N1 was recently released.

[MightyJordan]

The FaceVision TouchCam N1 was recently released.

That looks about on par with the QuickCam. It's only 22FPS at 720 HD, and only 30FPS at WVGA (768x480) resolution.

[The Jambo]

<3 My Lifecam Cinema. Got it on release for ?70 and was well worth it.

[mousestrap0731]

Microsoft LifeCam HD-5001 :)

I rarely use webcams but this one caught my attention at BestBuy so I decided "why not? might as well get a webcam just to have one."

Gave it a little run at home and I was surprised by its quality.

The only thing I really don't like about it is it constantly shifts focus on the littlest movements most of the time, but that can be turned off.

[sagten]

I tested:

Logitech Quickcam Pro 9000

Logitech Webcam Pro 9000

Microsoft HD-5000

Microsoft HD-6000

Microsoft Lifecam Cinema

Only tested video and tested with amcap (video images side by side).

The Webcam Pro 9000 came out best although I'm searching for a better camera too.