Logitech QuickCam Orbit AF
by Logitech
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List Price: Our Price: $99.99 You Save: $30.00 (23%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Buy Used: from $45.00 (click here) Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Logitech QuickCam Orbit AF
Customer Review: Webcam Auto Focus
Summary: 5 Stars
The camera was packaged in the usual clear plastic material we see hanging in stores. In unpackaging it, I tried to remove what I thought was part of the packaging covering the camera lens. It turned out to be part of the camera, as Logitech advised me in response to an email question. The response was given rather promptly, and Logitech support deserves praise for response time--and for follow up emails asking whether they resolved the problem satisfactorily.
The camera works well. It produces a much better image than the built-in webcam on a laptop my wife recently purchased. But that is to be expected because the Logitech QuickCam AF Auto Focus syatem had verious controls and settings to manipulate the image quality. By trial and error I found what I consider the best settings. I use the QuickCam with the free program Skype, since it is used by some out-of-town family members. I discovered that the camera must be installed before Skype is installed so that Skype will recognize the webcam.
I also found that some automatic settings affected the image, causing motion to be a little blurred or slowed down. But this is a personal preference. The optimal settings probably depend on the lighting in the area where the webcam is used.
The camera comes with a "pole" that it can sit upon to allow it to be set up at face level if you're at a desk or table. The "pole," maybe about 10 inches or so, fits between the camera base and the camera. I thought the "pole" was stupid--until I sat at the desk and realized that the camera for me was too low sitting on the desk top and looking up at me from below.
Customer Review: Disappointed!
Summary: 2 Stars
I own a Logitech c910 and I wanted to add the Orbit AF to my webcam menagerie! I expected the video quality to be less than the c910, but not significantly so. Perhaps the video quality would appear better to me were it not for the terribly low framerates. To me, it just looked very dull no matter how much I fidgeted with the settings- that combined with the blurred movement effect the lowframerate gave me was a bit much.
On the same computer, my C910 will reliably get 25-30 FPS.. My logitech Orbit AF will get 4 FPS on the extension stick, and 8 without it. 8 is not acceptable even if I were complacent enough to use my product without one of it's defining traits.
I discussed my problem with Logitech, they agreed that I should be at least getting 15 FPS, they sent me a replacement, and unfortunately I'm still getting the same 4 and 8 framerate with the new device. It's really unfortunate as I would love for this camera to work well for me. Logitech support is wonderful as always, and I have no complaints for them!
Other problems.... the face tracker seems to have an affinity for my navel ... the most recent form of the software has no real delay, just a default 3 seconds (that invariably is never 3 seconds in realtime). Just to clarify, I run a new, quad core PC (not hyperthreaded) with 4 GB of ram and there should be absolutely no reason for such nonsense.
Anyhow. I think I may purchase another logitech c910, or perhaps wait for the next best thing in HD webcameras.
Customer Review: Entertaining video show
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought this camera as replacement for an older Logitech model, and I use it mainly for video calls via Skype. I selected the QuickCam Orbit AF because I wanted the best possible picture quality and I thought it was cool to place the camera at some distance from my computer and control its pointing direction by mouseclicks. This works as well as expected. Also the automatic face tracking works to some extent, but don't expect too much. The camera will not follow your face very smoothly, and it will sometimes decide to pan into a direction where it doesn't see any face or moving object anymore. If the auto zoom is on, it will then zoom out, try to find you again and zoom back in. From a technical point of view this behavior is clearly suboptimal, but it can actually add entertaining elements to a video chat. I like it! If you find all the automatic panning and zooming annoying, you can always switch to manual mode and control the camera by hand through the graphical user interface. The picture quality - focus, exposure, colors - has always been good on my own screen as well as on the other side, but I haven't tested it under low-light conditions so far. Also the built-in microphone has not been tested because I am using a headset. Anyway, I think this is a quite good camera with nice-to-have remote-control and auto-tracking features for an acceptable price. I recommend it to anyone who wants a little more than conventional video calls with stationary face close-ups.Customer Review: Nice, But Not The Best
Summary: 3 Stars
I had a feeling I would not be totally enthralled with this webcam and I was right. Maybe in this price range its the best but something tells me there are better options out there maybe for a little bit more or maybe for less from a no name brand. I've gone through half a dozen webcams now and use them every day to communicate with my family since I work away from home for extended periods. Most have been low cost options wiuth the exception of the 80 dollar logitech sold here on Amazon (I believe its called the AF model). The picture clarity is definitely better here among the others when you are looking through its OWN software. Major disappointment when its working through Yahoo and less picture quality when working through Skype, so it does not warrant a 5 star review just on that alone. It also does not have a wireless remote so its a pain in the butt to zoom and position the camera. The face tracking is useless as I don't sit directly in front of the monitor and it doesn't work while I type 2 feet away. For that feature I could have really used a zoom remote instead. The stand arrangement is also awkward and not good for laptop users who would use this away from a stationary desk ( I am at a desk but my family is not). There must be something better then this webcam for its price range, but I'll be generous and give it 3 stars. If I dont get my rebate I'll make sure to give it less then 3 for overall experience with this product. But so far 3 stars.Customer Review: Nothing about this worked as it should.
Summary: 1 Stars
Zeiss lens, or not, this webcam would not focus in either automatic mode or in manual mode. It was as if there was grease on the lense. I spent hours uninstalling and reinstalling, trying different ports, and trouble shooting my PC, as I followed the instructions from Logitech. It was clear that Logitech wanted to make my system (modern, powerful, LOTS of memory, etc) the scapegoat without any thought that their hardware/software/firmware might be defective. In the final analysis, Logitech gave up, and so did I. Fortunately, I was able to return the Orbit as the defective piece of junk that it proved to be. AF failed, face following failed, auto-exposure control failed, and I repeatedly lost all manual control through the Logitech software. I guess I'm a glutton for punishement as I'm now trying out a Logitech Pro 9000 and it is only marginally better. Logitech may get high ratings; but, my opinion is that they have a great product image based on older products and strong marketing whereas the actual products don't live up to the hype. My antique 3Com Home Connect webcam, as cheap and as simple as it was, had tack-sharp focus. Unfortunately, it is no longer supported and does not work natively with Skype. Please, someone else, start building a truly great webcam. Forget the bells and whistles until you can provide sharp focus and a crystal clear image.