Product Description

Let them see you too! The Creative WebCam Live! brings you closer to friends and family with live video over the Internet. Using high quality web cam sensor and lens, the WebCam Live! delivers amazing colors and fast frame rate. Grab 1024x768 resolution photos instantly and use the included software to create digital postcards, calendars, and more. Creative understands that clear voice is important when you're instant messaging, and that is why the WebCam Live! is bundled with a separate microphone.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #16336 in Consumer Electronics
• Brand: Creative Labs
• Model: 73VF008000000
• Dimensions: 2.20 pounds

Features

• Experience 30 fps Video at VGA resolution
• Smart Face Tracking
• Dedicated microphone for great audio quality
• Take 1.3 megapixels photos Instantly
• Compatible with Windows 98 SE, Me, 2000, or XP

Amazon Product Description
You best spruce up before you go online, because the Creative WebCam Live! Pro is a far cry from the mediocre webcams of yesteryear. Forever banishing those grainy, jumpy images of the past, the Creative WebCam Live! Pro features clean, detailed 640 by 480 resolution and 30-frames-per-second shooting speed for high-quality video footage that compares favorably with that of a pricey camcorder. No matter what your subject, the Creative WebCam Live! Pro ensures your audience will see all that you want it to see, smoothly and precisely.

One of the secrets behind the system's advanced functionality is its connectivity format -- USB 2.0. Being one of the first webcams to shed the shackles of traditional USB 1.1 speeds for the incrementally quicker USB 2.0, the Creative WebCam Live! Pro is simply able to transfer data at a far faster rate than cameras using the old standard. Moreover, its 640 by 480 VGA resolution is double that of a traditional 320 by 240 webcam. Creative has also equipped the unit with its new Face Tracking technology, whereby target objects are intelligently tracked even when they move from the center of the video frame.

Of course, no video is complete without audio. In that regard, the system sports a miniature clip-on microphone to deliver cleaner, more accurate sound than cameras with integrated mics. And you don't need to fret over installation hassles either -- the Creative WebCam Live! Pro features a convenient three-way base that allows you to position it on standard CRT monitors, flat panel displays, notebooks or any flat surface. Whether you're shooting footage or taking still 1.3 megapixel still photos, the Creative WebCam Live! Pro is an ideal online video companion.

From the Manufacturer
If you are a seasoned webcam user searching for excellent video quality at VGA resolution, Creative WebCam Live! Pro is the answer. The Live! Pro is the first web camera with certified Hi-Speed USB 2.0 connection for speedy and sharp video. It also works great with USB 1.1 equipped PCs.

Like all Creative web cameras, its versatile three-way base lets it sit comfortably atop monitors, flat panel displays as well as notebooks. Equipped with a 640x480 (VGA) CMOS sensor, you can now enjoy crystal clear, full-motion video at up to 30 frames per second at 640x480 resolution. And with a handy snapshot button located at the tip of the WebCam Live! Pro, simply click to take photos at up to 1.3 megapixels instantly.

What's more, the separate clip-on lapel microphone is uniquely designed for better audio with less noise than webcams with built-in microphones - which means you enjoy clearer voice/sound capture. With both great video and audio, the Creative WebCam Live! Pro gives the definitive edge for all your video conferencing needs.

Experience 30fps Video at VGA resolution! Say 'bye' to slow, grainy video! The WebCam Live! Pro's certified Hi-Speed USB 2.0 connection lets you capture fast, smooth, high-resolution video in more detail than other traditional webcams. Send video e-mail, video postcards, or post videos on your web site. The WebCam Live! Pro also works great with USB 1.1 equipped PCs and Internet dial-up connections.

Smart Face Tracking
Erase the hassle of constantly adjusting the webcam so your face is within the video frame. With just a mouse click, Smart Face Tracking is enabled and your face is tracked quickly and accurately.

The USB 2.0 Difference
The WebCam Live! Pro is USB 2.0 Hi-Speed certified and captures up to 640x480 resolution videos at 30fps. Traditional USB 1.1 webcams are USB 2.0 compatible, but unable to deliver the same performance.

Dedicated Microphone For Great Audio Quality
We've included a clip-on lapel microphone with your WebCam Live! Pro - delivering better audio with less noise than webcams with built-in microphones. The result is crisp, clearer voice reproduction for your video conferencing needs.

Flexible Three-way Base Lets You Place It Anywhere
The base allows you to place the webcam on monitors, flat panel displays, notebooks and any flat surface. Unlike webcams that require you to attach a separate base for different surfaces, the Live! Pro's base is built-in and ready to use.

Take 1.3 Megapixels Photos Instantly
Snap a photo any time with the convenient snapshot button. Then send it via e-mail, or turn it into a multimedia postcard with the included software.

Works With Instant Messaging Services Like Yahoo! Messenger
Get face-to-face with loved ones and enhance your Yahoo! Messaging experience. Also works with AIM, MSN Messenger, Windows Messenger, and other instant messaging services.

Specifications

• 640x480 (VGA) CMOS sensor
• Video capture at up to 640x480 resolution
• Video frame rate at up to 30 frames per second
• Still image capture at up to 1.3 Megapixels (software enhanced)
• Snapshot button
• USB 2.0 Hi-Speed connection (Fully backward compatible with USB 1.1)
• Smart Face Tracking
• Manual focus ring
• Includes Creative lapel microphone
• Flexible three-way base sits on flat surfaces and attaches to flat panel and notebook displays
• Works with Yahoo! Messenger, AIM, MSN Messenger, Windows Messenger, and other instant messaging services

Customer Reviews

Great for daytime usage, horrible for nighttime usage
I purchased this webcam to chat with my family, so the only requirements I had were that it give consistent good quality in bright light or low light. I use the webcam at night mostly, and this webcam doesn't work very well in nighttime lighting. When exposed to artificial light, it doesn't know how to handle the brightness well automatically, and you have to change some of the configurations, specifically in the brightness, to adjust to your indoor lighting. The webcam should do this for me but it doesn't do a good job of it. In the daytime, however, it works great and the transmission is a lot smoother than at night. With nighttime usage, I get a strange ghost trail from any movement, whereas in the daytime there is none of that at all. I do not use the facial autofocus very much or very often, but it does work well.

Best webcam I have owned
I think this is an excellent webcam. I can get it to work with Yahoo! Messenger in its super-webcam mode. My folks have also said that the images are great in MSN Messenger and even better in Skype Video.. Maybe it matters very little what software you use, its got to do a great deal with the webcam itself. So, I am very happy with my purchase of Creative Live! Pro webcam.

I was apprehensive of some of the mixed reviews out here. Then after using this webcam for abut 2 weeks, I have taken my time out to write this review, because for all you people out there who get to see your family once in a year or two, I think quality of images is a very sensitive factor in choosing a webcam as it was for me. Also, the night-time video quality is fairly acceptable ( I get good pics sitting with a single 40-watt bulb switched on in my room ) Some of the criticism seems a bit uncalled for. Every webcam is going to suffer if you sit with a candle to video chat.

My advise is to follow the instructions for setting up the cam as given in the manual.. It is mostly straight forward.

My experience is.. this is a great buy! Thanks for reading.

Good picture and sips bandwidth
If you really get into Audio/Video chats, this camera is the one to get. You can use a wide variety of Webcams these days, but it's going to be hard to find a camera at this price with its features.

To save on bandwidth demands and optimize the quality of any picture on a camera, you're going to have to think about lighting. Crummy lighting is going to degrade your picture and even a DV hooked up to a firewire (IEEE1394) is not going to look right with poor lighting. However, DV cameras and a lot of popular Webcams are going to gobble up not only a good deal of bandwidth, they'll eat up your processor as well. You'll get freezes, jumps, jinks and jerks if your camera is pulling too much BW or processor power.

This camera gives a good picture and with good lighting, it gives a great one. However, whatever picture you get, you will get very little bandwidth/processor costs with this camera, and that's why it's the best one on the market. (I have about 7 webcams--love them all, but this one is the best for all-around use.) Besides providing a good A/V experience, instead of having a built-in microphone in the camera, it provides a lapel mic. This makes a lot of sense so you can get the mic close to your voice and turn down the volume to reduce ambient noises.

Finally, this camea comes with 2 drivers--one for a regular picture and one for a close-up. This gives you a sofware telephoto for up-close and personal shots or the ability to keep the camera further away from the subject and get a standard view. I don't know why all the cameras don't have this feature.