Microsoft LifeCam Cinema 720p HD Webcam for Business - Black Style: Business

I bought 2 of these for Windows 7 pc's one for me and one for my son.Overall impressions are quite good, though there are a few minor drawbacks.Build is very good with a bendy rubber (with metal inside) attachment for putting in on top of a monitor, aluminium casing also adds to the quality feel (don't drop it though you can bend/dent the metal front part)A quick fire summary after a few years use of thesePros:+ Nice build and a fair price for a "HD" webcam (720p video output at highest res)+ Sound quality is excellent overall with good tonal pick up from the microphone+ Video quality is good even in low light (but note the fps) clean and clear and bright even in low light+ Reasonable still images tooCons:- Video frame rate drops in low light (quite a bit depending on how dim it is)- Autofocus can hunt in and out of focus (you can turn AF off in the controls)The stand out part of the lifecam is the quality of the sound it's far and away significantly better than many webcams I've used over the years. Rather than sounding like someone speaking into a tin can it's very much more natural sounding which is important for voice calls (it has noise cancelling too)Video quality is good but you won't get the smooth fps that you think, it's acceptable for me as I don't use them for anything other than Skype and similar software. Lag is an issue on video in low light, but not to the point where I find it hugely annoying, again the frames are just slower than normal fast video footage. The brightness of the videos in low light is also above average here thanks to a faster lens and decent gain up technology.Installation is very simple, plug it in and windows prompts you to install the software (you can download it or use the disc) You can adjust settings from contrast, AF, and various other modes to influence the image. I sometimes turn the AF off if it hunts around, this is less of a problem in well lit environments.On balance, warts and all it is a good webcam and a very good choice for internet chat/video worth paying a bit more here over some budget webcams.