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How to pick
Two things actually matter. The first is light on your face, which no camera can fix on its own, so face a window if you can. The second is the microphone, because people forgive a grainy picture and hang up on bad audio. Do not buy 4K unless you have a real reason. Anything at 1080p is plenty for a video call and will look better in a dim room than a 4K camera will. One more thing before you replace anything: if your picture freezes, stutters or wavers, check whether the camera is plugged into a USB splitter. Webcams need more power than a splitter can usually give them. Plug it straight into the computer and the problem often goes away on its own.
What I recommend
Before you buy a camera
Two things actually matter. Light on your face, which no camera can fix on its own. And the microphone, because people forgive a grainy picture and hang up on bad audio. Do not buy 4K unless you have a real reason; 1080p is plenty and looks better in a dim room than a 4K camera will.
Logitech C270 HD webcam
Basic, 720p, and it has been around forever because it just works. If you only need to show up on a family call or a doctor visit and the built in camera died, this does the job without fuss.
- Very cheap
- Plugs in and works, no software needed
- Perfectly adequate for a normal video call
- Poor in a dark room
- Only 720p, noticeably soft
- Single microphone, mediocre for calls
- Fixed focus
- Resolution
- 720p at 30fps
- Field of view
- 55 degrees
- Microphone
- Single, mono
- Connection
- USB-A
Logitech C920x HD Pro
The one that comes up most often as the safe pick. Sharp 1080p, two microphones that pick up your voice properly, and it clips onto a monitor or sits on a desk without falling over. If you are not sure, get this one.
- Sharp 1080p and reliable autofocus
- Two microphones, genuinely decent for calls
- Works with everything, no drivers needed
- Has been the default recommendation for years
- No built in privacy shutter
- Struggles in very low light
- Fixed field of view
- Larger than newer compact models
- Resolution
- 1080p at 30fps
- Field of view
- 78 degrees
- Microphone
- Dual, stereo
- Connection
- USB-A
If you want a privacy cover
A built in shutter means no sticker to lose and nothing to remember.
UGREEN 2K webcam with privacy cover
Sharper than the usual 1080p cameras, with a cover built into the front that slides across the lens when you are not on a call. UGREEN make good gear at a sensible price.
- 2K, noticeably sharper than 1080p
- Physical cover built in, nothing to lose
- Good value for the specification
- Less well known than Logitech, so less support
- Software is basic
- 2K needs more from your computer and connection
- Resolution
- 2K, sharper than 1080p
- Privacy
- Cover slides across the lens
- Microphone
- Built in
- Connection
- USB
Logitech Brio 100 or Brio 300
Newer and much smaller than the C920, with a built in privacy shutter you twist closed. Good for a laptop or a tidy desk where a big camera looks out of place.
- Built in twist shutter
- Much smaller than the C920x
- Good colour handling for the price
- Narrower field of view than the C920x
- Microphone is a step down from the C920x
- Fixed focus on the 100
- Resolution
- 1080p at 30fps
- Field of view
- 58 degrees
- Privacy
- Built in shutter
- Connection
- USB-A on 100, USB-C on 300
For rooms and groups
If more than one person is ever in shot.
AnkerWork C310 or B600 webcam
Anker make very good conference cameras. Wider view so more than one person fits in frame, and better microphones than most webcams have any right to. The B600 includes a light bar, which solves bad lighting at the same time.
- Wide enough for two or three people
- Microphones genuinely better than most
- B600 includes a light bar
- Expensive for a webcam
- Wide angle distorts if you sit close
- Software is required for some features
- Resolution
- 2K
- Field of view
- Wide, fits a group
- Microphone
- Dual, noise reducing
- Extra
- B600 adds a light bar
Related reading
Camera working but the call still looks bad?
Nine times out of ten it is lighting or a setting nobody changed. I can take a look with you on a call.