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Why webcams aren’t good enough

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Re: Why webcams aren’t good enough

#291

Post by mnw21cam »

sebmellen wrote: post #288
mnw21cam wrote: post #207

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, Linux. I think I have found out how to use gphoto2 and a direct usb link instead of the capture card, which may fix it, but that'll have to run on my main computer, not my slow laptop. I'd love to be able to tell the v4l driver for the usb capture card to just not offer the 640*480 resolution. That would fix it in a better way. Anyone have any ideas how to do that?

Are you sure you need a USB capture card? I'm using an EOS M50 and I followed along with this guide: https://www.crackedthecode.co/how-to-use-your-dslr-as-a-webc... . Works pretty well, all FOSS stuff and avoids needing a capture card.

That's ... exactly what I just said. However, the transcoding burden would be a little too much for the Atom in my laptop, so I'd have to do it on my main computer instead.

Regarding the capture card. The aspect ratio mess-up is entirely its fault.

Re: Why webcams aren’t good enough

#292

Post by rstuart4133 »

stonecharioteer wrote: post #273
rstuart4133 wrote: post #265

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have no doubt that Johnny Ives was obsessed with thinness. But ... my shiny new Lenovo Carbon X1, which is an engineering laptop if there ever was one, is developing key impressions all over it's very expensive 4K OLED screen because they didn't put enough space between the keyboard and the display when it is closed, presumably to keep the thing thin. It ain't just Mr Ives.

I'm curious why you'd think the x1 is better than a lot of other laptops that are much more affordable. My Dell G5 SE with a Ryzen 7, 32 GB Ram and 1.5TB SSD is a beast. I haven't begun to scrape the surface of what it can do. And with AMD doing so much better than Intel, I'm just surprised how people who want an engineering device still use Intel. Im not an AMD fan boy, all my last devices were Intel. I'm just curio…

That's easy. I bought a 4K OLED screen. Laptops are a dime a dozen in just about any spec and things like SSD's can be upgraded, but a laptop with a 4K OLED screen are rare. There is not a lot of choice.

My previous laptop was 4K. Sadly I discovered after I had it for a year or so 4K is addictive. It's hard to give up the screen real estate once your used to it. When it comes to 4K on Lenovo it's the X1 or nothing, and Dell's keyboards have pissed me off for the last time. I didn't look beyond Dell and Lenovo.

The OLED was a first and only available on the X1. It's lovely and all, the contrast ratio and max brightness are extraordinary. So extraordinary if I take the brightness beyond 10% or so in an office I can't look at it for long periods. It's also twice the price, and heaver on the battery. No huge regrets, as it is a truly beautiful screen, but I won't be doing it again.

All that said, those key marks on the beautiful OLED screen are really starting to piss me off.

Re: Why webcams aren’t good enough

#293

Post by stonecharioteer »

rstuart4133 wrote: post #292
stonecharioteer wrote: post #273

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm curious why you'd think the x1 is better than a lot of other laptops that are much more affordable. My Dell G5 SE with a Ryzen 7, 32 GB Ram and 1.5TB SSD is a beast. I haven't begun to scrape the surface of what it can do. And with AMD doing so much better than Intel, I'm just surprised how people who want an engineering device still use Intel. Im not an AMD fan boy, all my last devices were Intel. I'm just curio…

That's easy. I bought a 4K OLED screen. Laptops are a dime a dozen in just about any spec and things like SSD's can be upgraded, but a laptop with a 4K OLED screen are rare. There is not a lot of choice. My previous laptop was 4K. Sadly I discovered after I had it for a year or so 4K is addictive. It's hard to give up the screen real estate once your used to it. When it comes to 4K on Lenovo it's the X1 or nothing, a…

Interesting. Thank you for your response. I've been told 4k on a laptop screen is bad for your eyes. I've never experienced it myself, so I have no experience there.

Re: Why webcams aren’t good enough

#294

Post by stonecharioteer »

woofie11 wrote: post #279
stonecharioteer wrote: post #273

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm curious why you'd think the x1 is better than a lot of other laptops that are much more affordable. My Dell G5 SE with a Ryzen 7, 32 GB Ram and 1.5TB SSD is a beast. I haven't begun to scrape the surface of what it can do. And with AMD doing so much better than Intel, I'm just surprised how people who want an engineering device still use Intel. Im not an AMD fan boy, all my last devices were Intel. I'm just curio…

Quality. ThinkPad, Apple, or some of Dell's premium lines won't break with life. This translates into: - Mechanical build quality - Choice of auxiliary components (wifi camera+chipset, etc.). If you're at a conference, you want to get connected and hook up to a projector reliably. - Battery life - Cooling - Keyboard/pointer quality - Size/weight And so on. If you fly with a laptop once a week, whether the screws fall…

Ah. Yeah, I admit the G5 SE is a very under-built machine. I wish it had better build quality. Thank you for your thoughts.

Re: Why webcams aren’t good enough

#295

Post by dougmwne »

vorpalhex wrote: post #151
dougmwne wrote: post #112

I firmly believe that video conferencing is essentially a dead end. It is uncanny and unpleasant. Having experienced some of the early VR social experiences, I think that is the way forward. We will need to fully embody the other person and project them in a 3D AR or VR space with positional audio. I think in many ways we are incredibly close to this goal and should be seeing the first products hit the market within…

I suspect a lot of us are in video conferences that perhaps don't require our full attention. It is very hard to be in VR and quietly code on the side.

I think once the tech is mature you will be working on VR/AR monitors anyway. I have the Quest 2 and that is already quite useful for web browsing and movie watching.

Re: Why webcams aren’t good enough

#296

Post by woofie11 »

stonecharioteer wrote: post #293
rstuart4133 wrote: post #292

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's easy. I bought a 4K OLED screen. Laptops are a dime a dozen in just about any spec and things like SSD's can be upgraded, but a laptop with a 4K OLED screen are rare. There is not a lot of choice. My previous laptop was 4K. Sadly I discovered after I had it for a year or so 4K is addictive. It's hard to give up the screen real estate once your used to it. When it comes to 4K on Lenovo it's the X1 or nothing, a…

Interesting. Thank you for your response. I've been told 4k on a laptop screen is bad for your eyes. I've never experienced it myself, so I have no experience there.

A 4k laptop is wonderful and joyous for your eyes.

Modern software handles high-res displays well. Things are sharper and crisper, not smaller.

Re: Why webcams aren’t good enough

#297

Post by scotcha1 »

clairity wrote: post #197
scotcha1 wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

i personally use my front facing webcam on my computer 10-20x per day (for video calls, or short quick video walkthroughs). my kids also are using their cheap school laptops front facing webcams 3-4x per day with remote school, and my wife and i frequently use facetime on our iphones to chat throughout the day. i'm not interested in add'l dedicated equipment, i'm interested in the easiest solution to perform the job…

for a walkthrough, why would i want to look at you the entire time, rather than whatever it is you're walking me through (for which a rear camera is much better positioned, with voice instructions)? nothing else you mentioned requires video.

a rear camera would not be useful at all for an on-screen walkthrough as it would be facing a wall or a surface. my face on the other hand, added for a personal effect, to an on-screen recording or so you can easily match my voice and my mouth to better understand me. perhaps you haven't seen a face + full screen desktop walkthrough? https://www.getcloudapp.com/. very useful.

a facetime call with my wife does require video, because it's a facetime call. i want to see her.

my kids school remote calls do require video because their teachers require video on. they do this because kids from ages 6-18 may not actually be paying attention in class, so the hardware camera is used to help the teacher.

if you were to look on youtube for walkthroughs of products, or twitch streams, you'll frequently see front facing cameras added to videos because people do actually like, enjoy, and find value (you can follow along to voice/face/emotion) in them

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