Customer Reviews

Creative Live! Cam Socialize VGA,1.3MP Webcam

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I purchased this to replace a more expensive Logitech device. People on the other end reported screeching that I couldn't hear at this end when I used the Logitech on my desktop PC. It had worked OK with a laptop that died. The sound and picture are better than the Logitech device even when it was working. The picture is a bit wide angle. That is, the whole room shows when I sit back from my screen. That works fine for me. I think the Logitech may have focused closer and auto-focused. Maybe that's why it was more expensive. I like the appearance of this device on top of my monitor. It has a pleasant inconspicuous streamlined shape.

This is one cheap webcam that does a decent job, but as I was looking for a quality video webcam the resulting video is very disappointing. Low light condition usage is terrible. The video is sluggish and the webcam can not make out a good contrast. On the up side the webcam is very stylish looking on top of the laptop screen, the built in software is fun (for my daughter anyway), so it's ok for me to keep it, but I will have to find something with better video quality for another laptop in the house.

Would not suggest this to anyone looking for serious looking video quality webcam.

I purchased to use with Skype and know there are plenty of better quality webcams for a higher price but this was easy to connect and start using immediately.

I now have purchased two of the Creative web cams. The web cam is quite small and sits atop a monitor very nicely. The cam was designed with a clip attachment on the back to allow for mounting on most monitors. The cam itself is not the best out there, but renders a fairly nice picture and good sound with the on board microphone. The camera and microphone can be adjusted somewhat (zoom, pan, volume, etc.) using the included software. The Creative cam performs fine and definitely is an affordable way to keep in touch with friends and family.

I've been buying webcams for over a decade. My experience (and other's reviews) have shown me that Logitech is the brand to get. Their clarity and color is always top-notch... even in the cheaper models.

This Creative Live! camera is okay. The images quality is about average for the $30 price. No major problems with color or lighting, but not the greatest. I'd say this camera is middle of the road. Better than no-name brands from China, but not at the level of Logitech. You won't see much difference between a laptop's built-in webcam and this model.

If you have a laptop with a built-in webcam, but want better performance, I would spend a few more bucks and get this Logitech HD Webcam C525, Portable HD 720p Video Calling with Autofocus or Logitech HD Portable 1080p Webcam C615 with Autofocus (960-000733)(better quality). These models fold up to travel well and have great quality.

If you want to spend the same price and get a better web cam, I'd go with this Logitech HD Webcam C310.

For those who don't have a webcam built into their laptop screen or desktop monitor, the only option is to purchase a device like the Creative Live! Cam Socialize Webcam to attach to a device and start streaming video.

I would offer that the webcam suffers from some of the dumbest design work in the personal computing world. Every add-on webcam I've used or seen has some kind of design hiccup that makes it hard to actually attach the thing to your laptop or PC monitor. I don't care how many megapixels the thing can process if it falls off your screen any time you sneeze.

Thankfully, the folks who designed the Creative Live! Cam Socialize Webcam (talk about a clumsy product name) learned from others' miskates and offer what they call a "multi-attach base." This design makes it easy to attach the webcam to a screen, or simply place it on a desktop, shelf, whatever. Even better, there's a six-foot cord that let's you put the webcam pretty much anywhere you want it (and if you need an even longer cord, you can buy a USB extender for a couple of bucks and go another 20 feet if you wish.)

Other than the great design, the specs and performance of the Creative Live! Cam Socialize Webcam were adequate for most users' needs. The low-light performance is a little weak, but if you have decent room lighting, you'll find this product does the job quite well. And when you consider the price, this is a LOT of webcam for the money.

This happens to be the second Creative Live! cam that I have had the opportunity to review here through the Vine Program.

The previous one was the Creative Live! HD720P Chat Creative Live! Cam Chat HD 720P, 5.7MP Webcam (Black), and I was indeed very impressed with that cam.

This one, however, is a completely different story. For one thing, of course, the higher quality camera was the one I tried first, so anything less would naturally get a poorer review for quality, etc. This cam, like the HD720P is very easy to hook up and get going, certainly nothing to fault with that. But, this cam is not HD, rendering less resolution, etc., and also, the sound vs pix is not a good match, signifying some problem with synching which I do not understand, so someone with more tech saavy would need to address what this problem actually is.

The focus here also just seems "off", sort of like "soft focus" to a photographer. There is only about a $15 difference between the cost of this camera and the HD720P, and that cam is so far superior that I cannot understand why anyone would not spend the few extra dollars and end up with a first-quality nice cam, vs this inexpensive and unsatisfactory performing one.

As for the "Visual-Voice" effects....they are just plain JUNK, and I cannot imagine anyone over the age of 12 finding them remotely "cute" or worthwhile!

Go with the HD720 for a starter cam, and/or step up from that one to an even better one, this one is simply a waste of your time and money...period!

~operabruin

This little camera does everything it is advertised to do. In addition, it is small enough to be unobtrusive and easily disconnects from my system when not in use. Having a camera that is always connected seems to be an invitation to hackers and other undesirables to invade our privacy. The cutsie software entertains the grandchildren, but is less than stellar to an adult. A good product.

For a low cost, this product gives you a lot for the money. While you won't get HD resolution, you can expect good VGA resolution and a lot more. In order to evaluate this camera, I compared it with both the built-in camera in a high end laptop computer and with several external HD webcams. Not surprisingly, the picture quality does not come close to the true HD webcams. But what surprised me was how much it improved the experience over that of a built in webcam.

In order to get a good overall picture of the product, I did much of the evaluation at the receiving end of the picture. That allowed me to see the differences in quality and features among streamed images without a pre-conceived notion of what to expect next. After starting with a passable picture from a built-in webcam coming from a dimly lit dorm room, I was pleased to see how this camera was able to dynamically adjust for lighting conditions and give a tremendously improved picture. While it didn't come close to its high end counterparts, it can produce an image far better than what you often see on video sharing websites. If you are limited on bandwidth or online storage space, this may be all the resolution you need.

The camera's software also includes many special effects. There are a multitude of fun backgrounds, effects, doodling and avatars that can emulate the movement of the camera's subject. While the overall suite of such features fell short of those that came with a more expensive HP webcam that I evaluated at the same time, the avatars were actually a large step above in terms of quality and ability to blend with the subject. By no means did the other features in the suite fall short in a way that made them seem inadequate.

Although I give this camera four stars, I do so with respect to competing models in the price range. It's a good camera for laptop use, is relatively compact, and although you might not be able to make out individual hairs on a person's head, you can nevertheless expect a good picture. If you want a true HD webcam, be prepared to spend a lot more. Plus, if you like the fun it can offer for social interactions, there are more than enough features to keep you busy for a while.

Length:: 2:08 Mins

Back in the 90's there were webcams. They captured in 320x240 and maybe 640x480. Here in the 2010+'s we're in high definition-land...but it seems that Creative insists on living in the past and they've done it again with what I consider to be a completely throw-away product.

Live! Cam Socialize. I don't know that anyone will realistically be able to socialize with this VERY cheap webcam.

In terms of installation it's what you would expect. You plug in the USB cord and your computer will recognize it. You don't need to install ANY software to get it working in Windows Live, Yahoo, or Skype. And frankly, you don't need to install the software at all for any reason whatsoever. It adds nothing to the value of the product and it mere bloatware on your computer. But I installed it anyway to test it and so in the video you'll see some of the things it tries to do.

This video contains a few sections. First I took a video using Windows Live, right out of the box with all defaults and no added software installed. Second video is using the Creative software that I installed (Create Live! Central 2). Then I show you a series of clips using some of the visual effects...why anyone would actually video conference with someone as a cat, alien, or otherwise is beyond me.

If Creative is targeting this product to 5 year olds, maybe, but their marketing doesn't seem to be going that direction.

As for form factor - check out the pics from Creative. They say that their patented stand is adaptable to any kind of monitor but it's not. Compared to offerings from Logitech this one is missing a very critical pivot point on the mount. If your monitor is any less-wide than an inch this camera will fall off from the weight of the USB cord.

Overall I can't give it more than 1 star. I don't like it, and I won't be using it for any REAL purpose. Especially when I can get an HD quality webcam for not that much more. Sorry Creative but this is one of those products you need to stop production on - it's a waste of your time and our money.