Microsoft LifeCam Cinema

The LifeCam is the latest Microsoft baby. At first sight, it looks pretty attractive and has a mouthwatering spec. Note the video record function at 720 pixels with autofocus. Like the VX-5000, this webcam is mounted on a flexible rubber fixture that gives it easy purchase on all types of LCD screen or CRT or simply your desk.

Good quality in full daylight

Like previous cameras in the range, the LifeCam Cinema gives a very good image in full daylight. The fluidity of images and colour management are very impressive indeed. They are also nice and sharp. You get the face in full detail! It doesn't however perform as well in a dark room. Management of low lighting is not its strength. It tends to overexpose which erases most of the detail. Best to have a lamp to hand if you don't want to disappoint anyone trying to make you out.

Sound quality: lack of sensitivity

The LifeCam Cinema's microphone disappointed us somewhat in comparison to what you usually get from Microsoft. We much prefer the audio quality of previous versions. During the test, we noted that it wasn't sensitive enough. We put the volume right up in the hope of hearing better and although the problem was resolved, doing this did cause a few problems. As you can hear in the video below, the microphone is subject to surrounding sounds, like those coming from the computer for example.

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New: what does the camera really capture?

The Face-off will allow you to compare quality and colours on still images.
The video below gives a feel for the webcam's audio, fluidity of sequences, colour transitions, management of high and low lighting.

The above sequence shows what the webcam gives in a Windows Messenger window with ideal internet bandwidth. The flow comes directly from the source. We then host the video ourselves to avoid degradation due to re-encoding by third party sites.