Which camera should you buy?

People sometimes ask me for advice on which camera they should buy. Of course, this depends on a lot of factors, like the desired resolution, image quality, availability in your country and of course, the price.

So, in stead of making a clear-and-cut decision chart for you, I've drawn up a list of features so you can make the decision yourself. For each camera I'm listing the maximum framerate and resolution, the quality of the sensor (as far as I can judge) and some extra bits of information.

What may be interesting to know is that some models are sold with extra Windows software (at a price, of course...). In case you have a dual-boot system and want to use the cam fully on both Windows and Linux, that model is probably a good choice. If you run a pure Linux system you can save yourself a few bucks and buy the cheaper, but functionally equivalent model.

I do not list prices here; they differ from country to country, and even from shop to shop, so that would be rather pointless.

Note: this list is only a guide. You should verify yourself in the shop, prior to purchase, that the camera supports all the features you need, esp. under Windows. Products may and do change during their lifetime, and I do not have direct information on changes made by Philips.

Model Size at max fps Fps at max size Type sensor Image quality 1 Extra Windows software Remarks
645 176x144 @ 24 352x288 @ 15 CCD Good, colours are a bit pale   Is probably out of production.
646 176x144 @ 24 352x288 @ 15 CCD Good, colours are a bit pale Yes Is probably out of production.
675 352x288 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 ? ?   Has a standard 6.3 mm tripod screw fitting, plus mini-tripod.
680 352x288 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CCD Good 2 Yes Has a standard 6.3 mm tripod screw fitting, plus mini-tripod.
690 352x288 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CCD Good Yes, including OCR software Has a standard 6.3 mm tripod screw fitting, plus mini-tripod.
730 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CMOS Mediocre3    
740 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CCD Very good Yes  
750 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CCD ? Probably also very good Yes, including OCR software Includes a camera stand.
Askey VC010 176x144 @ 24 352x288 @ 15 ? ?   OEM product; see entry for 645/646. Probably also out of production.
Creative Webcam 5 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CMOS ?   no microphone (?), and no automatic exposure.
Logitech QuickCam 3000 Pro 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CCD Good   OEM product
Logitech QuickCam 4000 Pro 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CCD Very good   OEM product
Logitech QuickCam Notebook Pro 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CCD ? ? OEM product
Logitech QuickCam Zoom 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CCD ? ? OEM product
Samsung MPC-C10 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CCD ? AnyCam OEM product
Samsung MPC-C30 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 Unknown; please somebody tell me! ?   OEM product
Sotec Afina Eye 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CMOS Noisy in low light; daylight is okay ? OEM product; perfect for laptops
Visionite VCS UM100 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CMOS ?   OEM product
Visionite VCS UC300 320x240 @ 30 640x480 @ 15 CCD ?   OEM product

Notes:

  1. This is my own personal judgement.
  2. The image from my camera is a bit yellowish indoors; others have confirmed this.
  3. The CMOS sensor is okay with daylight.

NB: I do not know much about the sensors used by the various OEM camera's. However, this is the most important part of the camera! So I would like to have some feedback on this by owners of the various models, preferably with a few snapshots during daylight and typical indoor use (gloomy computer room at night with only a few lights on :-) ). Also, any extra information that is missing from this list is welcome! (However, I'm not interested in prices, availability in countries, shops, etc.).

Please send your pictures and comments to webcam @ smcc.demon.nl, as usual.

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