So many business meetings, university classes, and even meetups between friends are now taking place via Zoom instead of in-person.
A lot has moved to Zoom, from medical consultations to large business conferences, which is why it is important to get a great webcam for your Zoom meetings.
A good webcam will ensure that people will be able to see you well without distortion or poor video quality. If you are conducting business meetings or joining conferences, or if you are presenting classes, it will make you look more professional and enhance your credibility.
Part of making a good first impression on Zoom is having a good webcam that will portray you well. So today, I will go over the 10 best webcams for Zoom currently available on Amazon.
Let us get into it.
The 10 Best Webcams For Zoom On Amazon
1. NexiGo Auto Focus 1080p Webcam With Stereo Microphone And Privacy Cover
This NexiGo camera provides a resolution of up to 1080p. It has an autofocus feature that can be turned on or off manually.
When turned on, the autofocus feature will ensure that the video quality is crisp and clear, so that your viewers can see you clearly. In addition, it will automatically enhance the quality of your video by correcting white balance.
If you have poor lighting in your room while doing your Zoom call, don’t worry. The webcam will automatically correct low-light situations for you.
To enhance the audio quality, the microphone comes with background noise cancellation to make your voice loud and clear. It’s a great feature to have when you are on a Zoom call at home but there is background noise, such as construction going on outside or even your kid playing in the other room.
This NexiGo camera has a privacy cover, which will excite privacy enthusiasts. It is often said that Mark Zuckerberg puts tape over his computer cameras when he is not using them, just in case a hacker manages to take control of his camera and see what he is doing.
It is possible for hackers to do that, although it is pretty rare for that to happen, as it is not easy to do so. Nevertheless, if you are worried about your privacy, just use the built-in camera cover when not in a Zoom call so your privacy is ensured.
You can fold the webcam, so it is easy to take it in your backpack. Also, it comes with a cable that is over six feet long that uses a USB 2.0 connection, so you can plug it into almost all devices without any additional drivers.
Also Read: Best Ring Lights For Zoom Calls
2. ToLuLu 1080p Web Camera With Microphone & 110 Degree Widescreen
Here’s another camera with a resolution of up to 1080p. It uses a wide-angle lens, making it great for Zoom calls you make with friends, fellow students, or family members, with a focal length of up to 500 millimeters.
The web camera has five glasses. These five pieces of glass in the lens do different things, such as correcting colors, correcting lighting, and increasing penetration.
Not only does the lens correct color imbalances and enhance the video quality, but the microphone does the same for the audio quality. It will reduce background noise and echoes so that your voice can be heard loud and clear.
This webcam also comes with a privacy cover you can use when not on a Zoom call for security purposes. Also, it comes with a tripod, so you can set the webcam up for an ideal position to capture your face during Zoom calls.
Also Read:Â Best Backgrounds For Zoom Calls
3. Nulea AutoFocus 1080p Webcam With Stereo Microphone, Privacy Cover, & FHD
This Nulea webcam uses autofocus technology and CMOS optical sensor technology to provide you with a high-quality recording experience. It can record at up to 30 frames per second.
In addition to the high definition quality, it uses color correction and light correction to make sure that poor lighting does not negatively impact your video calls.
The microphones help block out background noises so that people can hear what you are saying. The dual-microphone system will help record your voice properly so that it sounds natural and without distortion.
It works with USB 2 and 3, and you won’t have to install additional drivers to set it up. The cable is long enough, with almost five feet of length.
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4. ZUODUN Webcam With Built-in Microphone & Autofocus For Livestream, Gaming, Video Calling, & Online Lessons
This webcam, from ZUODON, uses autofocus technology to ensure your videos come out super crisp. It supports a viewing angle of up to 65 degrees, which isn’t as wide as some other cameras but is still pretty good.
The ZUODON webcam doesn’t require any special setup. Just plug in the USB, and the driver will be installed automatically.
The webcam comes with a clip and a threaded hole that allow you to mount it on monitors and tripods of different sizes, as long as the thickness of the monitor you’re clipping it onto doesn’t exceed 40 mm, as that is the maximum width of the clip.
Using the mounting clip, you can attach it and remove it from monitors without using any screws.
Use the privacy cover when you are not using the webcam to make sure your privacy is protected.
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5. IFROO FHD 1080P Webcam With Microphone & Wide-Angle
This IFROO high-definition webcam is cheap and affordable, making it an excellent budget option for those who are looking for a good webcam with good reviews but do not have a lot of money to spend. For example, it would be great for students to use for online classes or for tutors who are tutoring kids on the side.
It has a wide-angle view of 82 degrees, which allows the webcam to record you entirely, even if you need to move around a little. There’s no fisheye lens effect, so there will be no wide-angle camera distortions.
The camera helps fix low lighting problems so that the video quality is clear and bright even if you are in a dark room without a lot of sunlight.
It comes with a microphone, which has a voice reception range of up to three meters. You can stand a few feet away from the webcam, and your voice will still be recorded.
You can rotate the camera 360 degrees to face in any direction. You can also rotate it up or down by 30 degrees (vertically).
The camera also has a button for taking still photos.
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6. Nulaxy C903 HD 1080P Webcam With Microphone, Privacy Shutter, & And Tripod For Video Calling
This webcam by Nulaxy provides an excellent video recording quality, with a wide angle of 97 degrees, which is wider than many other webcams.
This Nulaxy camera comes with a built-in microphone that can record your voice up to five meters away, allowing you to walk around the room while recording. Also, the microphone helps block unwanted background noise from interfering with your voice calls.
The privacy shutter can easily be slid on or off the webcam to protect your privacy and prevent prying eyes from seeing what you do.
The camera comes with an adjustable tripod, so you can easily point it to record and stream a specific part of your room. It works with most computers, and all you need to do is plug it into the USB port, without additional drivers needed.
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7. Angetube Streaming 1080P HD Webcam With Built-In Adjustable Ring Light and Mic
This webcam, from Angetube, has a slightly different design than many of the other webcams already mentioned in this article. It’s somewhat smaller and not as wide, with a circular design instead of a wide rectangle design, which may be preferred by you.
It has a built-in ring light and three adjustable brightness levels. Just choose the brightness level that works best for you, based on the lighting you have in your room and the time of the day it is.
The dual microphones can record your voice up to around three meters away, and they use an amplifier chip to make sure your voice comes out clear and strong. The noise-canceling features help cancel background noise and ensure your voice is not distorted.
It uses advanced autofocus, so video quality will remain clear; you won’t have to worry about staying focused in front of the camera all the time.
The camera makes use of compression technology to make sure the video remains clear without distortions while using up less bandwidth at the same time.
Also Read:Â Best Headphones For Zoom Calls
8. OKIOLABS OKIOCAM USB 2-In-1 Webcam And Document Camera For Distance Learning, Video Conferencing, & Remote Working
This webcam from OKIOCAM is a somewhat interesting option as it functions not only as a webcam for live streaming and video recording but also as a document camera.
Sometimes, while on a video conference call, you may need to show a document up close. This might be a business contract, a legal document, or simply some homework that you are doing.
The webcam weighs only a bit more than half a pound, so it is incredibly light, and you can take it around with you in your backpack. When fully folded, it is only four centimeters long, which makes it easy to fit into small spaces.
It has a magnetic base that you can fold up, and it includes a retractable arm and a rotatable camera, so you can capture the exact angle you need to capture, whether that is a document on your table or your face.
You can switch back and forth to and from your face and the document easily.
The gray button allows you to quickly adjust brightness, white balance, and color correction to make the video quality clearer. The camera allows for high definition recording of up to 1440p.
Given the small size of this camera, as well as its lightness, it is perfect for students. It is also great for teachers and tutors, as it allows you to show your students documents and worksheets that you prepared for them, even when tutoring them remotely.
9. PPUSIN Webcam HD 2K Web Camera With Ring Light & Built-In Microphone
This webcam, from PPUSIN, records high video resolution of up to 1440p. This makes it perfect for professional web conferences and business meetings.
Using the focus control, you can manually adjust the lens to make the video recording or streaming as clear as possible. The lens will remember the focus adjustments you previously made, so you won’t have to keep adjusting it every time you stream yourself.
There are three brightness levels to choose from, depending on how bright or dark your room is. The microphone comes with noise-canceling features to make sure your audio is not distorted.
The camera comes with a tripod as well, which is fully adjustable.
10. Razer Seiren X USB Streaming Microphone And Razer Kiyo Streaming Webcam
This dual combo is a bit more expensive than your standard webcam, but it is well worth it, as its quality can’t be beaten. The 5600K ring light around the camera makes sure that lighting is always balanced, regardless of the actual lighting conditions in the room.
The microphone records sound at a tighter angle to reduce background noise. The Razer Seiren is a well-known brand and is one of the most popular manufacturers for streaming equipment like microphones and webcams.
The webcam allows you to adjust brightness, saturation, white balance, and contrast to achieve the best video quality. There are also different image presets you can use.
You can even create several profiles for different looks. For example, create one profile for your day stream and another profile for your nightly stream.
This combo is an excellent choice if you need to stream high-quality video calls over Zoom on a regular basis.
What To Look For In A Zoom Webcam
The 10 options mentioned above are the best webcam cameras currently available on Amazon for Zoom calls. However, when choosing a webcam for your Zoom conference calls, it is important to know what your needs are and what to look for, so you can choose the right product.
Video Recording Quality
You’ll notice that a lot of webcams in this list provide a resolution of up to 1080p. That’s an excellent video recording quality.
However, keep in mind that by default, Zoom only records in a 640 x 360 resolution and at 25 frames per second. Frames per second is another metric that affects the clarity of your video recording.
Right now, due to factors relating to the COVID pandemic, video recording with a resolution of 720p is only available to Pro users, and you can not have more than two members in a meeting for that quality to be maintained. 1080p is only available in select cases.
You can read more about that here.
Wide Angle
I talked about different cameras that have different angle widths. However, why is that even important?
The minimum you need is an angle width of around 60 degrees. That is enough if you are only recording yourself when streaming your Zoom calls.
However, if you are doing a Zoom call with a friend or business acquaintance, and you are sitting side by side, a field of view of 60 degrees will not be enough to fit you both in. It will also not be enough to fit in a whiteboard.
To record two people sitting by side, you will need a field of view of around 80 degrees. If you want to record a conference room or people sitting around a table, you should choose a webcam that has a field of view of 90 degrees or more (over 100 is best).
A Tripod Or Mount
How are you going to be streaming your video calls? Are you planning on mounting the webcam on your screen monitor, or will you put it on your table?
Look for a webcam that comes with some sort of mounting capabilities. It might be a clip that allows you to attach it to the top of your monitor, or it might be a separate tripod that comes with the webcam.
In either case, making sure that the webcam comes with a mount will help you save money. Otherwise, you will have to order a separate tripod.
Privacy Covers
Not everyone will be concerned about people hacking their webcam. However, if you are, I’d recommend looking for a webcam that comes with a privacy cover built onto the webcam.
Of course, you can put tape on top of the lens if you do not have a privacy cover. However, the tape can ruin your lens; some adhesive might end up sticking to the lens and blurring video recordings.
No Fisheye Lenses
Fisheye lenses create a wide-angle effect. They broaden the field of view, but they make everything look wider than what it truly is.
You may have seen some videos on the internet where people appear incredibly short and wide. Those types of recordings are often due to fisheye lenses.
Fisheye lenses are not good for Zoom calls. They will make you look unprofessional.
Instead, look for webcams that have wider fields of view but no fisheye lens effects.
Compatibility And No Extra Drivers Needed
It is best to look for a webcam that you can plug into a standard USB port. Many webcams will automatically install drivers when you plug them in and you can start using them immediately.
Your webcam should be compatible with Zoom and with the software you are using on your machine. For example, if you have a Windows Vista, which is an older version of Windows, make sure the webcam is compatible with Windows Vista machines.
Brightness Correction
Look for a camera that has built-in brightness correction. Some cameras will have ring lights that help create better lighting conditions.
You should also look for cameras that have built-in white balance and color correction features.
Background Noise Cancelling Microphones And Microphone Sensitivity
Another thing to look for is whether the microphone has background noise-canceling features. This might not be important if you live alone in a quiet apartment or house and do not have any background noise.
However, if you live in the city, with kids, a dog, or even if you use a fan while doing your Zoom calls, it is best to get a camera that has background noise-canceling features so that the sound remains clear.
Also, consider how far the microphone can record. Some microphones can’t record further than three meters away, while others will record up to six meters away.
If you are only recording yourself, it doesn’t matter as much. However, if you are recording a few people, such as if you and some acquaintances are joining a business conference, make sure to get a microphone that has more sensitivity.
Lightness And Size
Finally, consider how and where you will be using the webcam. Will you be using it in your home office only?
In that case, a bigger webcam won’t be problematic. However, if you are a student and need to carry the webcam around so you can join online classes, or if you plan on tutoring from a cafe using your webcam, get a lighter, smaller webcam.
Some webcams can even be folded to make them easier to fit into a backpack.
Wrapping It Up: What Is The Best Webcam for Zoom Calls?
There are so many options to choose from, but you can’t go wrong with the NexiGo AutoFocus 1080p Webcam. It’s reasonably priced, has excellent recording features, and it will provide a strong, clear video recording quality.
If you need to point your camera at documents, consider getting the OKIOLABS OKIOCAM USB 2-in-1 Webcam and Document Camera for Distance Learning. It’s not expensive either, and it allows you to point the camera at documents easily.
