Cheap iBook Webcam?

[MarkW19]

I'm looking for a webcam that will work with my iBook (able to mount on the top) using iChat etc., but I dont want to have to pay £100 for an iSight! I'm thinking more along the lines of £20-£30. Ideally with a mic built in.

Can anyone suggest one? All the cheap ones I've seen so far have been PC-only.

Thanks!

 

[Steve1496]

I was in the same situation a while back, but I realized pretty much all the webcams for iChat are around the same price as iSight. Go for the iSight anyways, it's worth it.

 

[weckart]

I'm looking for a webcam that will work with my iBook (able to mount on the top) using iChat etc., but I dont want to have to pay £100 for an iSight! I'm thinking more along the lines of £20-£30. Ideally with a mic built in.

Can anyone suggest one? All the cheap ones I've seen so far have been PC-only.

Thanks!

Investigate these two links:

http://www.ioxperts.com/products/webcamx.html

http://www.ecamm.com/mac/ichatusbcam/


When you factor in the extra costs, you might not make that much of a saving, however, so a used iSight might be the cheapest option. Otherwise the Logitech Quickcam Pro works using the old Logitech drivers. I picked up one used for £28.

 

[mkrishnan]

This is one that is marketed to be used with a Mac and the drivers listed in the previous reply....

http://www.macally.com/spec/usb/input_device/cameras.html

Agreed, though, about the cumulative cost / efficacy of this solution. In the US, this solution would be about $50 vs. about $120 for an iSight, with much better quality in the latter option, I think.

 

[Sunrunner]

This is one that is marketed to be used with a Mac and the drivers listed in the previous reply....

http://www.macally.com/spec/usb/input_device/cameras.html

Agreed, though, about the cumulative cost / efficacy of this solution. In the US, this solution would be about $50 vs. about $120 for an iSight, with much better quality in the latter option, I think.

The problem becomes much similiar to that of buying a PC vs a Mac in the end... Get a lower priced product that is lower quality and likely wont last too long, or pay a bit more upfront to get a high-quality product that will last for a while. Ah the decisions...

 

[MarkW19]

I've got an iSight on my G5 and love it...

But the iBook is stretching my friend financially as it is, so we're trying to avoid any unneccessary extras, especially when the webcam won't be used much. Still, it looks like there aren't many cheap options!

 

[ITASOR]

I looked too. Tried iChatUSBCAM (makes USB webcams work with iChat) and the quality is terrible.

Does your friend have a MiniDV camcorder? They work as iSights.

In the end, I just got an iSight. They were only $118 on Black Friday for Apple's online sale!