Home > Categories > Telecommunications > Video Conferencing and Telepresence > TV Cam HD for Skype review
Skype - Now on Your TV. Connect with the people that matter most!
Share the everyday moments
With Logitech TV Cam HD, friends and family can feel like they're right there with you, even when they're not. Relationships are what you make of them. Make them richer, stronger and more vibrant when you share everyday moments with the Logitech TV Cam HD.
Ready to use on any HDTV with HDMI
The Logitech TV Cam HD plugs right into your big screen HDMI port and starts working - on any brand TV with HDMI. Built with you in mind, the Logitech TV Cam HD clip-on design makes it easy to securely mount on top of any HDTV, or you can simply mount it to the wall. All you need is an available HDMI port and an Internet connection through Wi-Fi or Ethernet. Everything else is already in the box!
Connect to anyone on Skype
Skype is built-in, so you don't have to connect to a computer or install software. If they have a Skype account, you can call them - on their smartphone, laptop, TV, or tablet. Just sign into Skype or create a new account, right on your TV. Since you'll access your current Skype account, all of your existing Skype contacts are still just a click away. And - it's Skype Certified, giving you an excellent Skype calling experience.
Rings whether your TV is on or off
The built-in ringer lets you know when someone's calling - whether your TV is on or off. And if nobody is home, there's voicemail*. The dedicated power supply makes sure it's always ready. Now you'll never miss a chance to connect.
Clear, full-room view
The wide-angle HD gets the whole family in the video call - and gives everyone from grandparents to grandchildren the freedom to move around naturally.
Sharper video - it's like you're in the same room
Logitech has a heritage of high-quality video. Crystal clear, HD 720p, Logitech Fluid Crystal Technology and Carl Zeiss optics deliver sharper video. We're currently the only TV cam utilizing the Carl Zeiss technology, and we take pride in designing our own precision glass element lens. All to give you the sharp, vibrant, distortion-free images you demand - and deserve.
Zoom in so you don't miss a thing
Full control of where you zoom at your command, all without having to ever physically touch and move the lens. The 2x zoom makes it so you can focus on any part of the room. Digital pan and tilt with the remote digital pad arrow buttons - move the lens left, right, up, or down. Show your daughter's silly face or your son's crazy hair cut - up close and personal.
Works even in low-light conditions
We know most living rooms are not well lit. Backed by our heritage in light correction, you can see important facial details - even in dim or low light. That's why our low-light performance is best in class. Plus, our powerful image processors (leveraged from the television industry) provide you with bright, sharp images - so you can see your loved ones in full HD.
Quality audio - even in large spaces
We know video calls are also about great sound. That's why the Logitech TV Cam HD has four high-quality microphones - so you can provide premium audio, even in the largest of living rooms. Our microphone spacing is designed to allow airflow for maximized audio pickup from the front of the camera. With beamforming and unidirectional technologies, our microphones are optimized to help dampen ambient noise, bouncing sound from large walls and unwanted noise from your TV speakers. Four high-quality microphones that are hypersensitive - in a good way.
Easy-to-use remote
The Logitech TV Cam HD perfectly complements your TV, while the minimum number of buttons on the remote makes it easy to answer calls, access your contacts, and navigate through a simplified Skype UI designed for a living room experience. Our approach to design is simple - we want to make it easy for everyone in the family to experience the Logitech TV Cam HD.
* Must be enabled through your Skype account
Product reviews...
Over Christmas break, my wife and I sent the kids down to stay with their grandparents - it was a chance for the kids to get back to the town they were born in and catch up with some old friends, a chance for the grandparents to spend quality time with the kids, and time for my wife and I to get stuck into some long-overdue spring-cleaning without having to take constant breaks to keep a hyperactive 5yr old occupied and entertained.
Having the level of work we did, I knew I wasn't going to be on the PC much and it seemed silly not to shut it off... but how to keep in touch with the kids, since their schedule was quite erratic and we did promise to keep in touch every couple of days... that's where this became a godsend. By plugging it into the wired network in the office, and setting it up - which took very little time and was fairly straight-forward - we were ready to go, so later that night when we had our first incoming skype call, the surprise on our boys' faces when they saw us both in glorious HD was worth it.
The sound quality at our end was brilliant, with the multi-directional microphones doing a great job of isolating our voices and dropping the background noise almost totally out. This meant that I didn't need to raise my voice to be heard at their end, which was something my throat was very glad of, let me tell you! On the other side of the connection, it meant that my lads didn't need to plow through their laptop battery power winding the volume up to hear me, and getting increased static out of the cheap laptop soundcard.
While I found the remote was very easy to use after I had spent an hour playing with it, I did feel the on-screen interface was a little kludgy, reminding me of a first-generation media box. I am hoping that with increasing popularity, Logitech will see the benefits of a more streamlined interface that more accurately reflects the needs of the users, rather than pandering to some idealised interface that more aesthetically matches Skype's branding guidelines.
The zoom function is great, allowing you go wide-angle for larger groups, while bringing the focus down for smaller numbers of participants. At stunningly-good HD quality, we found very little signal lag and no buffering required at either end, though I did notice a spike in our data traffic that clearly indicated the compression wasn't as good as it could have been. Again, perhaps something worth fixing as newer codec technologies arise.
Overall, is this device necessary? No, not really... but is it worth getting if you plan to use Skype in a family situation? Most certainly yes! If you run your PC through a suitable TV, or have a monitor that supports HDMI sound output, then this would easily be a wise investment. I would like to see it modified to replace the desktop webcam as well, which would allow me to create podcasts, but that's more of a personal wish.
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