13 Webcams Reviewed : Creative Labs Live! Cam Video IM Pro 2
3. Creative Labs Live! Cam Video IM Pro 2
Sound Quality and Effects
The IM Pro 2 has an internal microphone with noise reduction and a lapel microphone. After checking it out we can firm that the voice of the person on the other end is indeed recognizable. Moreover, you dont have the impression that the voice is coming from deep inside a cave, a phenomenon with some webcams, particularly older models. Audio effects are also available. You can easily go from the voice of an old person, to a robot voice, or even toggle between a male and female voice.
This webcam is the second generation Live! Cam IM Pro. With a launch price of around $65, it is targeted to the mid-range; however, it can be found today for less than $40. The manufacturer touts it as a webcam that could improve Internet conversations. We found its main advantage to be the UVC Plug and Play compatibility. This means that all you have to do is connect the device to your computer in order to speak with your friends via instant messaging. You don't even have to install drivers.
Design and Style
The first good point is that it easily attaches to all types of screens and even laptops. Moreover, the base allows 360° turning and a 45° incline. In terms of design, there is the same round lines found on the first version of this webcam. But Creative also kept the medium quality plastic body and manual focus. Luckily, Creative also made this version a bit more compact than its predecessor.
Reactivity and image quality
If you look at images with automatic settings in a room with contrasted colors, you can immediately see that this webcam slightly overexposes the picture, which means a noticeable reduction in reactivity. It’s therefore preferable to manually adjust exposure in exchange for an image which is a bit darker. At night, the sensor will automatically set sensitivity by adding noise and reducing quality. As for reactivity, you'll find a satisfactory image rate compared with the market average and very similar reactivity as compared with the Hercules Dualpix HD Webcam. Finally, we did notice a shimmering in dark tones due to a lack of contrast.
| Creative Labs Live! Cam Video IM Pro 2 | |
|---|---|
| Pluses | Minuses |
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You can improve quality via a few manual adjustments. This product doesnt work miracles, especially at night, although overall rendering is satisfactory. If you spend a lot of time in front of your webcam, look elsewhere. For more infrequent use, it will do the job.
- Live Cam Video IM Pro...
does really a webcam need to be reviewd?
Yeah, I think it's a great review. I just purchased a 25.5" Asus monitor with a built in 2.0MP Bright Cam. My wife got on a video conference with her friends and loved it, so now I'm looking for one for her. By the way, how do these compare with my built-in Web Cam? I can't find any specs other than the 2.0MP.
However... It would have been nice to have a price list (there's not even a mention of price in each respective camera's review), and maybe a summary at the end showing prices and ratings. And maybe a top pick in a couple of price categories.
hey man! I was joking, Great article!
However... It would have been nice to have a price list (there's not even a mention of price in each respective camera's review), and maybe a summary at the end showing prices and ratings. And maybe a top pick in a couple of price categories.
Hey Gutbop,
Check the right-hand side of each page for pricing info on the units. We use a search engine to display the price results because the prices for this kind of product are so variable across retailers.
Thanks,
Rachel Rosmarin
Editor of Tom's Guide
Its a shame that only a single webcam seemed to come with security software (scheduled snapshots or motion detection). However, with free software such as Yawcam, I don't suppose its too big a deal.
While I'm sure overall image quality has improved, these new cams don't seem to be any more functional than my 9 year old logitec QuickCam Express (the white golfball webcam). Sure some have face tracking (how well does that work with limited field of view anyway?), but the overall low resolution and general lack of autofocus on most of these cameras just doesn't justify an upgrade. Although the built-in microphones might be nice, sometimes you just need voice-chat, meaning a microphone built into the webcam might be unnecessary or redundant.
I'd like to see more photos, quality is my number one concern. Also, how will any of these work in a meeting room environment. Is it plausable to use them for conference's? I guess audio would be the biggest issue with that.
no conclusion pages ? would've been nice to see what is the best webcam available on the market, what webcam has the best price/performance ratio, etc.
That Creative bundles home surveillance software hardly matters - the best-of-breed (for non technical users) is HomeCamera, and that's a free download from their site (www.homecamera.com).
Hey, I live in a college dorm and a few of my roommates don't have a PC. My roommates aren't to enter my room without permission/unless I'm there. I'm looking for webcam software that I can use to view my room but that I can leave on the screen because my one friend can and does use my PC sometimes for writing papers. I want to see who comes in my room, especially on the weekends when I often travel home. It would be cool if it would automatically boot as well from Windows Startup in case of a crash without a splash screen. I'd like it to be able to email me motion detected snapshots or something. Anyone know of any software that will do all of this?
~Jonny
Dangit, we need an edit button. What I wanted to ask is there a program that is COMPLETELY HIDEABLE that will do all that.
I agree with crystalized - a summary table or conclusion would have been nice for those not wanting to read every page.
Reviews? On my TGH? It's less likely than you think.
I thought all they did was opinion polls.
What would have been nice is two identical sample photos taken with each camera. One in proper lighting conditions and one in dark.
Without them, the review is rather useless for me. I mean, one sample photo included cheesy video effects. How am I to compare the quality of that one to another which has a normal shot. Not to mention the ones which don't have a shot at all.
i do like comparative tables, with actual prices, and, of course, Mac OSX, and Linux drivers and features for this systems. I use several OSs, and i do like products compatible with all of them, and if it possible with all the features at every system.
i do like comparative tables, with actual prices, and, of course, Mac OSX, and Linux drivers and features for this systems. I use several OSs, and i do like products compatible with all of them, and if it possible with all the features at every system.
oops
I'd like to see more photos, quality is my number one concern. Also, how will any of these work in a meeting room environment. Is it plausable to use them for conference's? I guess audio would be the biggest issue with that.
Hi Michael, we use a mixture of desktop and meeting room set-ups using Nefsis Video Conferencing. We find the L'tech Pro900 is great for small rooms (we did use the L'tech Sphere but had too many issues!). For larger rooms you can a Sony evi-d70 with a frame grabber (e.g. Osprey 100 - works well). Unfortunately it seems that there is a big gulf between top end webcams and meeting room based cameras. Anyone got any other suggestions?
What about the HP webcam? I have one, and it is great in dark & light. Autofocus is included, along with security software, et al.
Why miss this one???
Its also able to do 12MP stills as well... I don't get why this was forgotten in the rush to do Logitech & Microsoft (predominantly) webcams...
USB webcam is really a great work for computer technology, only for this , it can truly realize the break through of the limits from the geography