Although many modern laptops feature great built-in webcams, they are regrettably somewhat limited. Mobility is a major issue because there is little you can do when the webcam is fixed inside of a laptop screen because the angle between your face and the screen is not optimal for producing a flattering or attentive look.
A USB external webcam gives you greater versatility and other enhancements that will make you appear and sound your best on television. In this buying guide for webcams, we’ll go over the crucial hardware requirements, unique capabilities, and advantages of webcams. We’ll offer advice on how to create polished video calls and recorded presentations, gather material for content creation, and stream content on Twitch and YouTube.
Table of Contents
Webcam Resolution
The clarity of the video that a webcam records may be the most crucial component. This is understood in terms of resolution and frame rate for digital video. A higher frame rate makes motions on the screen appear smoother and results in clearer visuals. The resolution and frame rates that webcams can provide have a direct impact on their pricing.
Resolution is determined by the number of pixels on the screen, measured length by breadth, most frequently in a rectangular 16:9 aspect ratio, as you may know from shopping for a TV or computer monitor. Standard high definition (also known as HD Ready or 720p), which has a resolution of 1280 by 720 pixels, full high definition (FHD, 1080p), which has a resolution of 1920 by 1080 pixels, and ultra-high definition (UHD, 4K), which has a resolution of 3,840 by 2160 pixels, are the three most popular resolutions.
There are 4K webcams with high price tags that can provide sharp-looking video images that are comparable to what a DSLR camera might record. It should be noted that 4K video produces files that are too big for conventional live streaming; instead, 4K is excellent for recording material that you would edit and publish in Adobe Premier or a comparable tool and upload afterwards.
Frame Rate
The frame rate, which is measured in frames per second (fps), is another factor in determining the quality of a video. At particular, if the frames are in a high resolution, higher frame rates (60 fps and over) result in smoother-looking footage and a bigger file size. First-person shooter players that stream desire to stream 720p HD footage at 60 frames per second. The ideal setting for filming someone speaking into a camera is 1080p at 30 frames per second.
Video Compression
Massive amounts of data are contained in digital video feeds. Real-time HD and higher resolutions cannot be achieved over standard Internet connection bandwidths without the use of video compression. The majority of professional-grade webcams adhere to the H.264 Advanced Video Coding (AVC) standard, which allows for high-quality video at much lower bit rates than earlier codecs. H.264 reduces the burden on a system’s CPU during encoding and decoding. This guarantees that the users’ experience of the resolution and frame rates is consistent with what is advertised.
Webcam Field of View
The width of the region that a camera can capture is known as the FOV. A webcam with a wide-angle lens has a larger field of view; the product specifications will list the FOV in degrees:
One person is seen in front of a computer at a 60-degree angle.
Two persons can be seen confronting a camera attached to a computer monitor at a distance of 78 degrees.
A whiteboard or a group of individuals seated at a conference table look fantastic when viewed at a 90-degree angle.
Standard webcams record a horizontal 16:9 landscape frame when recording vertical video. Some models are able to switch to a 9:16 portrait orientation to shoot images that work well for Instagram and Facebook stories.
Microphones
The majority of webcams include a microphone. Webcams having two microphones on either side of the lens give the listener a more realistic audio stream. A dual microphone system is the best choice for high-quality video calls and live broadcasting. An external desktop microphone may be useful for creating more professional content.