34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great camera for on the go...., January 5, 2009
This review is from: Microsoft LifeCam Show Webcam (Black) (Personal Computers)
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This is by far the best "on the go" webcam I have ever owned. I can't tell you about the technical specifications, but I can tell you the picture looks great! I have another laptop that has a built in webcam and a desktop PC that I use a Logetech Quickcam and this webcam beats them in quality of picture and ease of use. The Logetech webcam has a a few more features but this also comes with fun and interactive options that will have your have family and friends laughing while they look at you via the webcam.
Installing the software did take quite a while (about 13 minutes) but once you are done installing the software, you plug in your webcam, answer a couple questions and you are all set to chat. I love the different ways you can set the camera up to your monitor. I use the clip since it fits my monitor perfectly. The stand it very sturdy and tall. The attachment discs will stick on any clean surface on your laptop cover. It also comes with an extra attachment disc in case you loose one. The magnet on the webcam is very strong and it will hold it's place securely. The webcam can also be easily adjusted to go up and down without "popping" or sliding off.
The sleek and small size of this webcam makes it easy to tuck into a laptop bag and the plastic case ensures you will not scratch or damage the lens.
The built-in microphone works perfectly and sounds crystal clear. I tried the webcam in low light conditions at first and it automatically focused and lighten the view and it was clear. I have attached pictures to the product so you can see for yourself how clearly the picture looks in low light conditions.
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36 of 44 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
low framerate, obnoxious installer and applications, February 5, 2009
This review is from: Microsoft LifeCam Show Webcam (Black) (Personal Computers)
Background:
I installed this on two Windows XP Professional SP2 systems.
I followed the instructions to the letter, installing the CD FIRST, before plugging in the camera.
I am a 30 year software developer who has tested dozens of webcams over the past 5 years and writes videoconferencing software for Windows using DirectX.
1. The installer is obnoxious. On the first XP system, it displayed the progress box, with the progress bar filling and emptying, for 30 minutes, and it never finished. Twice during installing, the spoolsv.exe service (part of Windows....) crashed. I never could get the installer to work.
2. On the second system, it worked, but then, lo and behold, I am besieged by badgering to install Windows Live Messenger. I unchecked the box during installation, which tells it I DO NOT WANT that installed.
And STILL it drops a shortcut for Windows Live Call on my desk top, which, when I click it, tells me I should install Windows Live Messenger.
Delete C:\Program Files\Microsoft LifeCam\icepick.exe to nuke this app, and delete the shortcut, to get rid of this.
3. Every time you log in, you get the annoying tray icon application, and sometimes a popup window from the LifeCam application. Argh!!!! Logitech does this too. You have to dig into the registry, find the "Run" folder, and delete the entry for the LifeCam in there, to stop this.
4. The EULA license agreement you have to agree to, in order to finish the installer, specifically says that you are required to let this thing automatically connect to the internet and download software updates for itself. BULL TO THAT. Right there, I do NOT want this thing on my computer.
NOW, it gets out of the realm of invasiveness and annoying behavior, into real performance problems...
5. Managing video from this camera with generic applications like Amcap causes very weird behavior. Large black blotches all over the screen, sluggish PC performance. (this is a Core 2 Duo Dell Latitude that I just got 3 months ago, with a real NVidia video module in it, and 1 Gig of RAM... it is no slouch for performance)
6. IT CAN ONLY DO 15 FRAMES PER SECOND.
That, right there, rules it out as a decent camera in my book. If you want to do sluggish webcam chats with Yahoo or something, fine. But if you want any kind of smooth video, forget it. Any decent camera these days just HAS to do 30 fps.
7. CPU load is high. A simple 15 fps 352x288 capture to the screen, like in AMCAP, consumes 15% CPU on my Core 2 Duo machine. Compare that to only 6% for a Logitech QuickCam Pro For Notebooks, which produces every bit as good video, at TWICE THE FRAMERATE (30 fps).
Summary:
Video performance poor.
Installer shoddy.
Privacy/software updating invasiveness.
Obnoxious foisting of Live Messenger onto the user.
Stick with Logitech.
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