HardwareStreamingWebcamsStandalone webcams may become more of a luxury than a requirement as Microsoft tests out a Windows 11 feature that lets you use your Android phone insteadWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
HardwareStreamingWebcamsStandalone webcams may become more of a luxury than a requirement as Microsoft tests out a Windows 11 feature that lets you use your Android phone insteadWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Logitech)
Webcams are often, at best, entirely functional objects. Few of us have lain awake at night wondering what our next webcam purchase will be, such is the utilitarian nature of a device that for most is simply a PC-connected camera that lets the people you work with see your grinning visage. Still, the need to buy a separate camera for your PC may soon have passed, as Microsoft is testing out an upcoming feature that lets you use a phone instead.
And before you imagine some routing of cables and awkward placements, the Windows Insider team says that it will allow you to wirelessly stream live video from your phone directly to your PC, including the ability to switch between the front and back cameras and make use of video effects built into your phone already.
That flexibility should provide some useful options for phone camera placement on a traditional desktop setup, while also enabling you to take your phone with you while still streaming video from your PC to your remote meeting.
Stream machine(Image credit: Rode, Samson, Blue)Best microphone for gaming: make sure you’re heardBest webcams: be seen while you get your stream onBest capture cards: lessen the load with a dedicated card
Stream machine
(Image credit: Rode, Samson, Blue)Best microphone for gaming: make sure you’re heardBest webcams: be seen while you get your stream onBest capture cards: lessen the load with a dedicated card
(Image credit: Rode, Samson, Blue)
Best microphone for gaming: make sure you’re heardBest webcams: be seen while you get your stream onBest capture cards: lessen the load with a dedicated card
If this feature does become standard across release builds of Windows, there are still plenty of reasons why you still might want a standalone webcam. Phone cameras can often struggle with low-light conditions thanks to those tiny lenses, and someone looking to deliver an extremely high-quality feed for something like a Twitch stream or professional presentation may still want agood webcam to deliver the best image qualitypossible.
Regardless, this strikes as a nice repurposing of pre-existing tech, cutting down on another device you’d likely need to add to a new setup. Phones and PCs seem to be starting to become firm friends, after many years of fiddly cables and third-party solutions to create a full and complete connection between the two.
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