Logitech 720p Webcam Pro 9000
by Logitech
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Logitech 720p Webcam Pro 9000
Customer Review: Changing my mind about webcams... This one is sweet!
Summary: 5 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Yeah, Casa Duffbert's been stocking up on the tech toys recently. The latest gadget to get a try-out is the Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000. I've tried other webcams in the past, and they've not been a permanent part of my environment. This one might just change that trend...
The QuickCam is designed to sit on top of your terminal or laptop lid using a rather cool design. The back swivels out and allows you to prop the webcam in just about any angle you can imagine. It took me less than five seconds to get it flat and stable on my Sony Vaio laptop screen, and it stays rock solid in one place. This beats those round ball webcams that always had to be set somewhere on the desk to be stable (you can tell how long it's been since I've been enticed to try out a webcam again). The software loaded up quickly, and then it was playtime. The camera shoots from an email-sized 320 x 240 video clear up to an 8 megapixel setting. When I took photos and captured video, the clarity and resolution were excellent, and I was amazed at the picture quality.
On the "fun" side, the software comes with some cool effect settings. You can set up avatars that will calibrate on your facial features, and then allow the character to mimic your movements. I also got a kick out of the "fun filters", which do some cool things to the video image. There's one that turns the video into a grainy black and white film, and it gives your vid capture a "noire" look. I could see how it would be rather striking for some sort of a documentary or a pseudo-serious video.
There are a number of services that the software automatically recognizes, such as YouTube and chat clients. Therefore, you should have no problem getting hooked into the latest video crazes out there. And the configuration and setting options are incredible. The camera can track and pan faces (one or more), so you don't have to worry about centering. Honestly, you'd have to be moving around a lot *not* to remain on the screen, as the width of the picture is quite wide. Add in automatic brightness control, contrast, etc., and even a non-expert like me can come off with a decent feed to show the world. Of course, I'm not giving the camera much to work with, either...
I plan on leaving this set up on my laptop with Skype running on a regular basis. I'll be interested to see how it performs in that realm. But as of right now, the Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000 has earned a spot on my cluttered desk...
Customer Review: Windows 7 - The best web cam I have ever used.
Summary: 5 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
When I got the Webcam Pro 9000 I was expecting a useful cam to allow me to do video IM, take some videos, maybe edit and load to You-Tube. This camera can do all that and so much more! Setup is easy. Just run the enclosed CD and follow the directions. You will be able to preview how the camera works. Also, you can sign up for Vid. This is a free service from Logitech that lets you have video conversations with other people. You are invited to register. Just give your name and if you want, the setup software offers to take your picture. That part didn't work. But I could add a picture later using the simple Vid settings. While Vid is the new feature, I have to say that the other things this cam does blew me away. You can "zoom" (sort of digital zoom, but not quite). When you first use the cam, it is set to very wide angle. It made my nose enormous. Using the zoom slider (just click the gear picture on the control palette) I went to a medium range and my face looked normal. You can also let the camera find and follow your face. Just put the cam on the top of your monitor (it comes with a very convenient bracket that just adapts to the monitor) and the camera will follow you as you move around. Cool!
Best of all, the quality is great. I expected the usual grainy, blurry web cam experience. Not with this baby. Its autofocus is spot on. The image is more than acceptable.
Now for the extras: I couldn't make a Vid call since I don't know anyone with a cam on their system. But I did do the demo. I recorded 10 seconds of audio and video and then vid played it back as though I was talking to, well, myself. Did I mention the audio? This cam has a very high quality mic. that seamlessly integrated with my system. There are lots of extras. The included software automatically uploads a video to YouTube if you want. Another new (to me) feature is the RightLight setup. This is an adjustable automatic lighting adjustment that keeps you correctly lighted at all times. No more hot spots or muddy images.
As for system compatibility.I am running Windows 7 Ultimate. There were no glitches whatsoever. This means you should have no trouble with Vista or other operating systems. Logitech is famous for thw quality of its drivers. The Webcam Pro 9000 is no exception. This is the best web cam I have ever used.
Customer Review: A great webcam!
Summary: 5 Stars
Bought this camera exclusively for video calls on Skype to folks in several small villages in Austria and major metropolitan areas in Germany. Have used this webcam extensively the last 20 months on Ubuntu Linux 8.04, Windows XP, the Windows 7 Beta and the W7 Release Candidate. It perches nicely on a laptop screen during use and other flat screen displays. On a CRT display, it would just "sit' there and could possible slide off. It is very durable. My grandson is constantly reaching for it and knocking it around during Skype sessions.
Software included with the camera provides for streaming and narrating photos in place of your video from the web cam...a very nice feature. This webcam seems to work best with the latest versions of Skype (Vers 4.0 and later) using the SILK codec. The webcam is optimized for Windows allowing for HQ video transmission over Skype. Skype automatically enables the 9000's HQ video capability when network conditions permit.
HQ video over Skype is not attainable with the Linux Ubuntu operating system. In Windows framerates of 30 fps at 640x480 resolution (HQ mode) are attainable both ways if your contact is using the same camera with computers with a dual core processor and both parties are using a high bandwidth internet connection. Even my contacts in Austria claim the video quality to be "like TV" when network conditions permit, although technically speaking, TV is better.
Have recommended this webcam to 5 others who bought it and all are astonished at the video quality. The current Amazon price is less than the $75 I paid for it. Several of those 5 bought lesser webcams to "save" money first and then bought the 9000 anyway. Don't waste your money with lesser webcams. I you want quality video for Skype this is the webcam for you. If you experience difficulties in Skype video calls, it will most likely NOT be this webcam's fault! Network conditions on the internet, your computer and the way your home network is set up if you run more than one computer on the network at the same time will most likely be the culprits.
For now, the webcam works best in XP. In Windows 7, have experienced not being able to show photos in place of video OR audio will drop out when the photos are streamed. This is most likely a driver issue, a Windows 7/Skype compatibility issue that will be resolved in future driver/Skype updates and NOT a problem with the camera. Otherwise, video transmission in W7 is downright beautiful! Get the webcam and enjoy!
Customer Review: Expensive, but you get what you pay for
Summary: 5 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
I've seen and used various webcams in the past to talk with friends, etc. Normally, the quality is mediocre at best. So, when I saw this webcam, I was dubious. It's expensive and I was afraid it'd turn out to be an expensive piece of junk. I'm glad I was wrong.
A lot of reviewers here have talked about how distance doesn't really make much difference in terms of the quality and the focus. Bold claims; it says this right in the product description. But, it's definitely true. The camera adjusts and I found that the quality was good, whether I was right up in front of the camera or a bit back, like normal users will be. It sat on top of my monitor and while it looked precariously perched, it's actually sitting safely.
The software that comes with the camera works like a charm. While it adds a few different filters (like the already mentioned above fisheye and 50s style), and you can choose to replace your face with an avatar (shark, stick man, etc.) or even add effects like crazy eyebrows or a crown, none of these really mattered to me. I found that the avatars didn't work like they should. Supposedly, you calibrate the camera and it will track your eye movements (winking, closing eyes, etc.), your mouth movements and the way you tilt your head. For me, it worked with the tilting, but the eyes and the mouth had a hard time registering changes. But again, this isn't why I was interested in the camera.
What's nice is that the software quickly interfaces with a variety of talk and IM devices (AIM, Skype, Yahoo) and worked really well. I really liked that the fuctionality was built into the software.
I could go on and on about the features, but you can easily find those above in the product description. I really liked that the 8 megapixel camera took very clear pictures and the size was a nice surprise. You get what you pay for; I said it in my Logitech G9 mouse review and I'll say it here. You can easily find a cheaper webcam but I doubt you'll find one that has the same clarity as this one. For families separated or for simply talking with some friends online, you want a camera that's clear and works well. This is that camera.
Highly recommended.
Customer Review: Very Nice
Summary: 5 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
First of all I must commend Logitech for putting their product in a box that is easy to open, even though it appears to be one of those frustrating plastic clamshells. It isn't. It is very easy to remove the contents and there aren't many anyway - the camera itself, which has an attached USB cable, the software installation disc, and brief but easy to follow instructions.
The software installed smoothly and once you run it, it guides you step-by-step through the setup process. I thought the quality of the camera was good - the default settings it chose seemed to be fine and required no tweaking. Setting up my account was easy, and the process of inviting friends to share with was easy, too. The first "friend" I chose was my wife. I entered her name and e-mail address and the software took care of e-mailing her an invitation to become my "friend."
From her side, she had to click to accept and also to install the vidcam software on her computer. She doesn't have a webcam or a microphone on her computer, just speakers. Once she installed the software (which by the way, automatically detects your speakers, microphone and webcam), she was able to see and hear me on her computer. So we got a big kick out of that.
People who have a different brand of webcam can still participate and it costs them nothing as long as someone who owns the Logitech Pro 9000 model invites them to be a friend.
I was pleased with this product. The picture/video quality is very satisfactory for this type of application, the camera itself seems quite sturdy and is easy to hang on my monitor so that it can focus on me and not be in the way of what is on the screen, and the setup is a breeze. The only negative - when my wife set up the software, etc., she was able to "call" me but from my computer I could not call her because I kept getting a message that she had not yet accepted my friend invitation. I had to reboot the computer in order for that to be updated. Now everything works fine. By the way, I use Vista and my wife uses XP and the software installed without any problems on both.