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Webcams aren't good enough

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Re: Webcams aren't good enough

#471

Post by thayne »

adhesive_wombat wrote: post #234
Beltalowda wrote: post #194

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Does Lumina work on Linux? I can't really find anything about it (there is also a Lumina Desktop Environment for Linux it seems), and while it says "Lumina is compatible with Windows and Macintosh machine" this can mean "we don't directly support Linux, but it should work" (like Logitech), or it can mean "we have specialized drivers/software that only work on Windows and macOS".

If your software works only on Windows, you've written non-portable software. Likely, you have all your core logic mixed up with Windowsy UI and now you're stuck there. If it works on Windows and Mac, you've written portable software but just can't be bothered to support Linux. At a guess the problem is that you want to ship binaries only and don't want to deal with doing all the packaging and testing for Linux. For…

> if it works on Windows and Mac, you've written portable software but just can't be bothered to support Linux

Or they wrote different, non-portable software for each os.

Re: Webcams aren't good enough

#473

Post by Firmwarrior »

stock_toaster wrote: post #403
kylecordes wrote: post #351

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is the answer. Camera and processor from a several-year-old smart phone, which is now quite cheap. Sell it for $500. So far no one has, there must be a reason no one can.

elgato facecam is fairly decent.

yeah, at that point you can just get EpocCam from Elgato, a mount from AliExpress/Amazon/Elgato, and have your 2022 phone's camera quality for ~$30

Re: Webcams aren't good enough

#474

Post by ThePowerOfFuet »

rlei wrote: post #171

I'm the cofounder at Lumina - we're building a modern webcam designed to solve some of these problems. There's really been a lack of innovation in the entire home office space, with the webcam being particularly bad. It sucks that a decade-old product (Logitech C920) is still the bestselling product today -- that would be like if Apple stopped releasing new phones after the iPhone 4S (launched 2012), and it remained…

Can I use a Lumina if I don't run macOS or Windows? (Does it show up on the bus as a UVC camera?)

Re: Webcams aren't good enough

#475

Post by Ar-Curunir »

masklinn wrote: post #175
davidmurdoch wrote: post #133

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The bump would go towards the keyboard, I'd think.

There's very little clearance in that direction, and the clearance which there is is necessary for the screen / lens not to touch the keyboard / case and get scratched. So if you have a bump on the inner side, you also need to have a notch in the topcase. And unless you move the webcam something weird (an edge or below the screen), you need to have that notch through or below right below trackpad, which is less than…

Isn’t there already a notch on most MacBooks where you can stick your finger to pry open the screen?

Re: Webcams aren't good enough

#476

Post by numpad0 »

adrusi wrote: post #345
dharma1 wrote: post #343

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I expect mobile phone cameras to kill webcams. All the innovation happens there and when people already have something getting closer to dSLR quality each year, why invest in a specialised webcam? Apple just needs to bake webcam sharing/remote camera control into iOS and come up with a nice attachment for the phone that works with MacBooks and displays so you don’t have to look at the camera at a weird angle. Maybe s…

They announced just this at WWDC a couple weeks ago.

That was the goofiest thing happened in Apple presentation in a long time: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5D55G7Ejs8&t=5226s

Re: Webcams aren't good enough

#477

Post by kenneth »

rlei wrote: post #171

I'm the cofounder at Lumina - we're building a modern webcam designed to solve some of these problems. There's really been a lack of innovation in the entire home office space, with the webcam being particularly bad. It sucks that a decade-old product (Logitech C920) is still the bestselling product today -- that would be like if Apple stopped releasing new phones after the iPhone 4S (launched 2012), and it remained…

I was thrilled to see Lumina and bought one. I unfortunately ended up having to returning due to a combination of buggy software and image quality that was no better than my laptop built in webcam. I really wanted to love it… but in practice it was no better than what ships by default. Also had tons of issues controlling white balance. The software depth of field was a bit better than what's built in to Zoom/Google Meet but still doesn't come close to the illusion of a real lens effect.

Ended up going with a much clunkier and expensive setup with desk stands + a Sony a7c + a 28mm lens + a Yeti mic.

Another thing worth mentioning is that lighting is key — so I got a 3 point key light setup (LumeCube lights) which works well.

It might've been a matter of Lumina still being in beta — I hope it can improve to a point where this comment becomes entirely obsolete.

Re: Webcams aren't good enough

#478

Post by notaplumber1 »

rlei wrote: post #171

I'm the cofounder at Lumina - we're building a modern webcam designed to solve some of these problems. There's really been a lack of innovation in the entire home office space, with the webcam being particularly bad. It sucks that a decade-old product (Logitech C920) is still the bestselling product today -- that would be like if Apple stopped releasing new phones after the iPhone 4S (launched 2012), and it remained…

What even is an "AI powered" camera? You mean a device that will become useless when your company goes out of business in a few years, or shifts focus, or that only ever works on specific versions of Windows/macOS due to some required software?

No, what people want is a decent modern UVC webcam that adheres to USB standards.

Re: Webcams aren't good enough

#479

Post by spockz »

dubya wrote: post #423
GekkePrutser wrote: post #375

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Apple just needs to bake webcam sharing/remote camera control into iOS and come up with a nice attachment for the phone that works with MacBooks and displays so you don’t have to look at the camera at a weird angle. > Maybe some magsafe sticker behind the display so you can snap your phone to the back of the display easily, with the main rear cameras pointing at you above the display You do realise they just did ex…

Something has changed in Monterey so it is possible to use virtual webcams even with Apple apps (Facetime, Safari, etc). See https://daringfireball.net/linked/2022/05/06/camo-1-6 So it should work not just for iPhones.

That is nice! Now I can’t wait to have a video conference on the Apple TV.

Re: Webcams aren't good enough

#480

Post by dx034 »

shados wrote: post #93
logifail wrote: post #48

There is a reason that for hundreds of years painters and (later) photographers have preferred working in spaces with North-facing windows[0], and that is because it's a simple way of ensuring neutral, even light. My home office is (by design) in a room with one North-facing window. I use a Logitech C920. Many people have told me how good my webcam feed is. I don't think it's that the C920 is particularly brilliant,…

Also the vast majority of people using these web cams don't have nearly enough lighting. When there isn't enough, the software cranks up the ISO to ridiculous level which gives that distinctive "webcam grain" look thats awful.

And working under insufficient light conditions is also likely worse for your eyes. So people would do themselves a favor working in brighter environments and also wouldn't have to worry as much from their webcam setup.

For me, in bright and evenly lit rooms (so no sunshine but artificial light), most dedicated webcams tend to produce pretty good images.

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