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Webcam for mac
- Thread starter peejack
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I also havo one, strange there's no more mac supported one on their site. Maybe they have problems upgrading their drivers to leopard.
mine is the 'mac' version, I dont know whats different about it, but it was plug and play
mine isalso a mac version but when I look alt the logitech site there are no longer supported models for sale.
You must not have gotten the memo. The iSight was discontinued last year. You can find them on eBay but they are expensive, often selling used at 20-30% over the original new price. I tried to pick one up on eBay but got tired of dealing with the bidding frenzy.
$129, no wonder I didn't buy it. I bought a Rocketfish for $50. It's ok. It works on Photobooth, but I haven't tried it on iChat.
Webcams just work! ;^)
Hi -
About a year ago, I bought a generic Logitech PC webcam, and
"it just worked" with iChat, AIM, Skype, etc.
Sorry, don't have the model number info handy - I "lost" this
web cam to my son (iMac G4) and wife (Sony Vaio laptop PC),
and haven't been able to plug it it in to my G5 iMac in more
than 6 months. ;^)
I will "steal" it back today and try it with my current 10.5.1 setup
and will post any further findings.
Hi -
About a year ago, I bought a generic Logitech PC webcam, and
"it just worked" with iChat, AIM, Skype, etc.
Sorry, don't have the model number info handy - I "lost" this
web cam to my son (iMac G4) and wife (Sony Vaio laptop PC),
and haven't been able to plug it it in to my G5 iMac in more
than 6 months. ;^)
I will "steal" it back today and try it with my current 10.5.1 setup
and will post any further findings.
Update
This is the Logitech QuickCam 5000 - about $60 at various places,
like Circuit City or Amazon. It doesn't look like Logitech sells this
model anymore, and the closest spec-wise is the "Communicate
Deluxe" for about $80.
I have this plugged into a 7-port USB powered hub, and it works fine
with the 10.5.1 environment I have. Even with 2GB RAM and a 2GHz
CPU, there is some noticeable response lag when I'm running other
apps simultaneously. With no other apps running (except iChat or AIM
or whatever), the video and audio tracking is fine.
Hope this helps . . .
This is the Logitech QuickCam 5000 - about $60 at various places,
like Circuit City or Amazon. It doesn't look like Logitech sells this
model anymore, and the closest spec-wise is the "Communicate
Deluxe" for about $80.
I have this plugged into a 7-port USB powered hub, and it works fine
with the 10.5.1 environment I have. Even with 2GB RAM and a 2GHz
CPU, there is some noticeable response lag when I'm running other
apps simultaneously. With no other apps running (except iChat or AIM
or whatever), the video and audio tracking is fine.
Hope this helps . . .
I had this problem for a long time (tried Logitech, Dynex, etc). Finally bought the XBox 360 webcam and it works great on my wife's Mac Mini PPC running Leopard. You will still need a mic, but I just keep the cheat $19 Dynex camera plugged in that has the built in mic and use that for the audio input.
- James
- James
Any USB webcam that meets the UVC video protocol will work.
If you buy a Logitech Camera, make sure it has "RealLight 2" in it. "2" not just "RealLight".
If the camera is "VISTA" compatible... it will work with the Mac.
Be aware.. the OSX 10.4.10 disabled the USB microphone in these cameras, but 10.4.11 restored it. Leopard has no problem with these
If you buy a Logitech Camera, make sure it has "RealLight 2" in it. "2" not just "RealLight".
If the camera is "VISTA" compatible... it will work with the Mac.
Be aware.. the OSX 10.4.10 disabled the USB microphone in these cameras, but 10.4.11 restored it. Leopard has no problem with these
Get this one:
Xbox 360 Live Vision Camera
http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-Live..._1?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1200873478&sr=8-1
Works great with OS X 10.5 on both Intel and PowerPC computers (I've tried mine on both).
I'm going to get a second one for my wife to use today.
I've also used it with Windows Vista and it works great as well.
I've used it in iChat, and with AOL.
I did try the Microsoft LifeCam VX-3000 web cam for Vista, but while it worked in Windows, it's color was poor (the colors were just not natural looking). And, it didn't work in OS X at all.
The XBox webcam works great though. The video looks great, the colors are great, it's just good all the way around.
I say get the XBox one.
I'm on my way to the store in a few minutes to buy the one for my wife (she's on a remote work site for a bit). So, this way she can see the kids and with the one I'm getting for her, we'll be able to see her once she gets the camera.
Just happened to see your post on my way out the door
Xbox 360 Live Vision Camera
http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-Live..._1?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1200873478&sr=8-1
Works great with OS X 10.5 on both Intel and PowerPC computers (I've tried mine on both).
I'm going to get a second one for my wife to use today.
I've also used it with Windows Vista and it works great as well.
I've used it in iChat, and with AOL.
I did try the Microsoft LifeCam VX-3000 web cam for Vista, but while it worked in Windows, it's color was poor (the colors were just not natural looking). And, it didn't work in OS X at all.
The XBox webcam works great though. The video looks great, the colors are great, it's just good all the way around.
I say get the XBox one.
I'm on my way to the store in a few minutes to buy the one for my wife (she's on a remote work site for a bit). So, this way she can see the kids and with the one I'm getting for her, we'll be able to see her once she gets the camera.
Just happened to see your post on my way out the door
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
The Apple iSight was taken off the market last year. Many new "off the shelf" Logitech USB webcams now work with OS X 10.4.9 and above. The Logitech site doesn't mention OS X support for some strange reason. You must have a minimum 600MHz G3. My Logitech Ultra Vision works great with 10.5 -Photo Booth and iChat AV 4.0. I bought it at Best Buy. No extra drivers needed, they are in OS X. Here's the list!!Could anyone recommend a good make or model of webcam for mac?
A lot of them seem to support pc only??
Not after superior quality and loads of features just something like the camera inside the imacs.
Cheers
http://blog.smalldog.com/article/628/apple-os-x-1049-update-adds-usb-webcam-support
Yep, there is that utility to make other webcams compatible. But, it requires two parts. The first part is free (MacCam), the second part (iChatUSBCam from http://www.ecamm.com/mac/ichatusbcam/ ) costs $10 to enable it to work with iChat.
The XBox webcam works in iChat and other programs without any messing around. Just plug it in, and go.
I tried the open-source plug-in with another web cam, and while I could sit there and look at myself on the screen, it wouldn't work in iChat without buying another program.
I think it's just easier to get a camera that works to begin with. I'd prefer one that works to one that only works if I buy something else or install other 3rd-party solutions.
Just go with the XBox one. You'll like it.
Nope...
I tried two other webcams (previously) with 10.4.10 and 10.4.11. Wouldn't work without buying the additional iChat plug in.
Now, if your webcam is of the newer UVC standard, then it will work in 10.4.10 and later (maybe in 10.4.9).
But, that requires the camera to meet the UVC standard. Many of them still don't.
I tried a brand new Microsoft one last night to see if it would work for my wife since it has a built-in Microphone. But, absolutely no luck at all in OS X. It wouldn't even work in Windows Vista without a bunch of drivers.
So, it is not UVC compliant, and it will not work in OS X at all (regardless of the version).
The XBox webcam I mentioned earlier, will work without any drivers because it is UVC compliant. And, it works in Windows Vista and OS X 10.4.10 and later (including 10.5 obviously). Just plug it in and it works.
I took the Microsoft LifeCam back today, and got another XBox webcam for my wife to use. I got her a microphone and headset to compliment it.
The Logitech Quickcam Pro 4000 would not run without crashing on my Mac Mini under Leopard 10.5.1 even after installing the latest Logitech driver (8.0.1),
I was pointed to http://webcam-osx.sourceforge.net/ and got a free download driver that fixed the problem
The cam now works, but it is not nearly as functional as it is under Windows. Very little software control of the camera.
I ordered the Creative Live! Cam Optia AF which claims to be OS X friendly, but it hasn’t arrived yet.
I was pointed to http://webcam-osx.sourceforge.net/ and got a free download driver that fixed the problem
The cam now works, but it is not nearly as functional as it is under Windows. Very little software control of the camera.
I ordered the Creative Live! Cam Optia AF which claims to be OS X friendly, but it hasn’t arrived yet.
I went to check out the discussion you posted a link to for the history of your situation, but it only took me to this same discussion, so you might have gotten the wrong link.
I do believe what you are saying. But, I think perhaps the reason it worked is not because MacCam is the complete solution, but rather that you had a combination of situations that made it work.
MacCam only enables the camera to work in OS X. It does not enable the camera to work in iChat. The situation with iChat is a different issue. It has nothing to do with whether the camera works in OS X. iChat has it's own set of requirements and cameras that it will work with.
So, for those with cameras without OS X drivers and those which are not UVC compliant, then you would use MacCam to enable the camera to work in OS X.
Beyond that, you need to enable compatibility with iChat (unless you don't plan on using iChat). To establish compatibility with iChat, you then need a piece of software to bridge that compatibility issue. The most common solution is the $10 shareware program mentioned previously. But, in your case, I suspect that one of the following may have happened:
1) You used a IM program other than iChat (such as AOL, Yahoo, Microsoft Messenger, etc. - although I don't know how many of those support video chatting).
or
2) You mentioned having software installed that came with the camera for OS X. Perhaps, that software was deficient in enabling the camera to work with OS X. And, that's where MacCam came in and resolved it. But, suppose further, that rather than employing the shareware solution for $10, that the other portion of the software that came with your camera functioned enough to bridge the compatibility issue with iChat.
Essentially, the compatibility with OS X being handled by MacCam, and the compatibility with iChat being handled by the software that came with your camera which was probably still installed.
That's just my guess.
If the camera was already UVC compliant, then it would not have needed either MacCam or a solution to enable compatibility with iChat.
But, if it's not UVC compliant, then either you weren't using it with iChat, or I suspect you may have used another IM program.
Or, perhaps something weird just worked in your situation
All I know, is that a UVC camera will plug in and work fine without anything additional. And, that a camera that isn't UVC compliant will need something more than MacCam to work in iChat (they clearly indicate that on the MacCam site, and I tried it with my other non-UVC compliant web cam just hoping they were wrong).