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:
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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