3 apps to turn your iPhone into a webcam
The built-in webcam on your computer isn’t great. Until 2020, this wasn’t an issue for most people because video meetings were more novelty than necessity.
With Zoom/Team/Meet/other meeting tools now a way of life, the quality of the webcam is now more important.
Your iPhone comes with a state of the art camera that can now be used in place of your built-in webcam to deliver high resolution video.
I’ve recently tried out three apps that do just that — and one is a standout.
Camo
Camo was the first solution I discovered on my journey towards turning my iPhone into a webcam and there’s a lot to love about it.
It was easy to get setup and get going and the image quality is as good as promised. However, Camo only works if your iPhone is connected to your computer.
With my setup (held by a stand that is clamped to my desk) it was a stretch for the cord to reach. I also only have one USB port available on the hub that is connected to my MacBook Air so I can’t use the bluetooth mouse and Camo at the same time.
EpocCam
I love a good website and EpocCam delivered! The website does a great job of selling the product and like Camo is was easier to get up and running. Unlike Camo, it works via either USB or a wireless connection.
However, after fiddling around for about 45 minutes I couldn’t get the video to work. The video was on, but would only display blurry lines (almost like I was zoomed in really close). Perhaps I was doing something wrong, but I didn’t persevere.
Detail
I nearly missed Detail when I came across it on Product Hunt. I saw the description:
“Upgrade your camera & turn your Mac into a production studio.”
I didn’t think I wanted to create a production studio — but it turns out this is just what I needed!
Detail is my pick of the options:
- Unlike Camo, I didn’t need to physically connected my iPhone to my MacBook Air.
- Unlike EpocCam, the camera worked straight away.
Detail’s offering is much simpler than either Camo or EpocCam — there’s no lists of features and it is still promoted as an ‘invite only’ service (I requested access and got in almost straight away).
However, it just works. And the ease of use makes this my go-to solution.
—
I’ll keep an eye on these options and any newcomers and update this post accordingly.
Have I missed something? Please add it in the comments.
