[Koralatov]

My little brother has finally joined the Cult of Mac. He and I quite fancy trying out iChat's video conferencing, but I don't have a camera on my iMac. I can't afford to pay the (frankly ludicrous) prices that iSights are going for. As such, I'm currently looking at getting one of these.

I have a few questions though: do I need a microphone for it as well, or will my built-in mic do the job? And do I need to get iChatUSB to use it?

[analogika]

Well, considering that it says "* 3rd party software iChatUSBCAM required for use with iChatAV" on the web page you link to...


Hint: Any cam that will work on Windows Vista without installing any drivers should work just fine with any Mac with USB2 using about 10.4.7 and up (since Apple added standard webcam protocol support around then).

[Koralatov]

Originally Posted by analogika 

Well, considering that it says "* 3rd party software iChatUSBCAM required for use with iChatAV" on the web page you link to...

Oops. You're absolutely right. I should have read it more closely.

Hint: Any cam that will work on Windows Vista without installing any drivers should work just fine with any Mac with USB2 using about 10.4.7 and up (since Apple added standard webcam protocol support around then).

Thanks for the answer. That clarifies things nicely.

Anyone know about the microphone?

[CharlesS]

1. That camera is USB 1.1, not USB 2.0. The quality will be horrible.

2. That camera requires iChatUSBCAM to work with iChat. Thing is, iChatUSBCAM is a haxie. Apple is trying to break haxies in Leopard, and as such I wouldn't expect that camera to work in Leopard and above.

What you need is a camera that supports UVC (USB Video Class). Logitech makes a few of these - check the right-most column in this chart:

Answer

Creative makes a few, too:

Live! Cam Optia AF - The world's first 2 megapixel webcam with Auto Focus!
Live! Cam Optia Pro - Lifelike video, clear voice, and fun effects
Live! Cam Optia - Stylish and feature packed in one neat package!

So does Microsoft:

http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/di...e_tab=overview

Its product page doesn't mention UVC support, but this page lists it as being UVC.
http://webcam-osx.sourceforge.net/ca...era.php?id=453

Probably the cheapest one you're going to find is the XBox Live camera. This camera won't mount to your monitor, though.
Xbox.com | Accessories - Xbox LIVE Vision Camera

This one's not too pricey either, and clips to your monitor. It looks nice. I haven't heard of the company, though, so I don't know whether the quality's any good or not.
Ecamm Network: iMage Webcam - Driverless Webcam for Mac OS X, iChat, Skype and more

Avoid that Macally thing, though.

[JellyBeen]

Probably the cheapest one you're going to find is the XBox Live camera. This camera won't mount to your monitor, though.
Xbox.com | Accessories - Xbox LIVE Vision Camera

Funny enough, thats the one I'm using on my iMac G5. Its a superb camera. The added bonus is that the top
of my imac screen is magnetic (found out by chance) and the xbox cam seems to have metal in its base.
The attraction is magnetic you can say! ;-)

[Koralatov]

Originally Posted by CharlesS 

1. That camera is USB 1.1, not USB 2.0. The quality will be horrible.

Thanks for the advice--very much appreciated. I think I'm going to go with the Microsoft one you recommended. It's about £3 more expensive than the Xbox 360 camera is in the UK, and I'd be able to mount it on top of my monitor.

Originally Posted by JellyBeen 

Probably the cheapest one you're going to find is the XBox Live camera. This camera won't mount to your monitor, though.
Xbox.com | Accessories - Xbox LIVE Vision Camera

In another scandalous example of rip-off UK, the Xbox Live webcam costs $39.99 in the States, and £34.99 in the UK. Thanks for the suggestion though.

[analogika]

Originally Posted by Koralatov 

Thanks for the advice--very much appreciated. I think I'm going to go with the Microsoft one you recommended. It's about £3 more expensive than the Xbox 360 camera is in the UK, and I'd be able to mount it on top of my monitor.


In another scandalous example of rip-off UK, the Xbox Live webcam costs $39.99 in the States, and £34.99 in the UK. Thanks for the suggestion though.

Remember to subtract sales tax off the UK price (US prices are always quoted without tax). Still bad, but not AS bad...