Creative Webcam Live! Pro USB 2.0 WebCam

by Creative Labs

Product Details

• Item Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00067KT94
• Item model number: 73VF008000000
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (92 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 7, 2004

Product Description

Amazon Product Description

You best spruce up before you go online, because the Creative WebCam Live! Pro is a far cry from the mediocre webcams of yesteryear. Forever banishing those grainy, jumpy images of the past, the Creative WebCam Live! Pro features clean, detailed 640 by 480 resolution and 30-frames-per-second shooting speed for high-quality video footage that compares favorably with that of a pricey camcorder. No matter what your subject, the Creative WebCam Live! Pro ensures your audience will see all that you want it to see, smoothly and precisely.

One of the secrets behind the system's advanced functionality is its connectivity format -- USB 2.0. Being one of the first webcams to shed the shackles of traditional USB 1.1 speeds for the incrementally quicker USB 2.0, the Creative WebCam Live! Pro is simply able to transfer data at a far faster rate than cameras using the old standard. Moreover, its 640 by 480 VGA resolution is double that of a traditional 320 by 240 webcam. Creative has also equipped the unit with its new Face Tracking technology, whereby target objects are intelligently tracked even when they move from the center of the video frame.

Of course, no video is complete without audio. In that regard, the system sports a miniature clip-on microphone to deliver cleaner, more accurate sound than cameras with integrated mics. And you don't need to fret over installation hassles either -- the Creative WebCam Live! Pro features a convenient three-way base that allows you to position it on standard CRT monitors, flat panel displays, notebooks or any flat surface. Whether you're shooting footage or taking still 1.3 megapixel still photos, the Creative WebCam Live! Pro is an ideal online video companion.

Product Description

Creative Labs Webcam Live! Pro - Whether you're video chatting with friends and family, or creating the latest YouTube masterpiece, this webcam has an impressive set of features that will make your videos stand out. Using the super-fast USB 2.0 interface, you can easily capture up to 640x480 resolution video at 30 frames per second. A lapel microphone is included to give your videos crisp and clear audio. Smart Face Tracking is an amazing feature that actually keeps your face in frame by tracking your movements. Making you more comfortable and making your videos look more natural in the process. 3-Way Base - good for CRT Monitors, Flat Panel Displays, & Notebooks Adjustable Manual Focus Ring USB 2.0 Connection (also supports USB 1.1 at slower transfer speeds) Works with instant messaging services like Yahoo! Messenger, MSN Messenger, & Windows Messenger

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

51 of 54 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Great for daytime usage, horrible for nighttime usage, February 21, 2005

By 

Carolyn Vo - See all my reviews

This review is from: Creative Webcam Live! Pro USB 2.0 WebCam (Personal Computers)

I purchased this webcam to chat with my family, so the only requirements I had were that it give consistent good quality in bright light or low light. I use the webcam at night mostly, and this webcam doesn't work very well in nighttime lighting. When exposed to artificial light, it doesn't know how to handle the brightness well automatically, and you have to change some of the configurations, specifically in the brightness, to adjust to your indoor lighting. The webcam should do this for me but it doesn't do a good job of it. In the daytime, however, it works great and the transmission is a lot smoother than at night. With nighttime usage, I get a strange ghost trail from any movement, whereas in the daytime there is none of that at all. I do not use the facial autofocus very much or very often, but it does work well.

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Best webcam I have owned, April 23, 2006

By 

Shyam Sundar Palakodety (San Jose, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Creative Webcam Live! Pro USB 2.0 WebCam (Personal Computers)

I think this is an excellent webcam. I can get it to work with Yahoo! Messenger in its super-webcam mode. My folks have also said that the images are great in MSN Messenger and even better in Skype Video.. Maybe it matters very little what software you use, its got to do a great deal with the webcam itself. So, I am very happy with my purchase of Creative Live! Pro webcam.

I was apprehensive of some of the mixed reviews out here. Then after using this webcam for abut 2 weeks, I have taken my time out to write this review, because for all you people out there who get to see your family once in a year or two, I think quality of images is a very sensitive factor in choosing a webcam as it was for me. Also, the night-time video quality is fairly acceptable ( I get good pics sitting with a single 40-watt bulb switched on in my room ) Some of the criticism seems a bit uncalled for. Every webcam is going to suffer if you sit with a candle to video chat.

My advise is to follow the instructions for setting up the cam as given in the manual.. It is mostly straight forward.

My experience is.. this is a great buy! Thanks for reading.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good picture and sips bandwidth, April 1, 2006

By 

W. Sanders (Bloomfield, CT) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Creative Webcam Live! Pro USB 2.0 WebCam (Personal Computers)

If you really get into Audio/Video chats, this camera is the one to get. You can use a wide variety of Webcams these days, but it's going to be hard to find a camera at this price with its features.

To save on bandwidth demands and optimize the quality of any picture on a camera, you're going to have to think about lighting. Crummy lighting is going to degrade your picture and even a DV hooked up to a firewire (IEEE1394) is not going to look right with poor lighting. However, DV cameras and a lot of popular Webcams are going to gobble up not only a good deal of bandwidth, they'll eat up your processor as well. You'll get freezes, jumps, jinks and jerks if your camera is pulling too much BW or processor power.

This camera gives a good picture and with good lighting, it gives a great one. However, whatever picture you get, you will get very little bandwidth/processor costs with this camera, and that's why it's the best one on the market. (I have about 7 webcams--love them all, but this one is the best for all-around use.) Besides providing a good A/V experience, instead of having a built-in microphone in the camera, it provides a lapel mic. This makes a lot of sense so you can get the mic close to your voice and turn down the volume to reduce ambient noises.

Finally, this camea comes with 2 drivers--one for a regular picture and one for a close-up. This gives you a sofware telephoto for up-close and personal shots or the ability to keep the camera further away from the subject and get a standard view. I don't know why all the cameras don't have this feature.