Price When Reviewed

$239.00

Best Prices Today: EPOS Expand Vision 1

$177.52

$177.99

The EPOS Expand Vision 1 webcam is probably the smallest 4K, 30Hz webcam we’ve seen, a compact little machine that comes with its personal nifty carrying case. But no matter EPOS did to shrink this webcam down sacrificed one thing important: It has bother merely holding on to some shows.

Simply put, that is a kind of merchandise that may give you the results you want, or it may not—and at over $150, you may not wish to cope with the trouble of discovering out.

We actually don’t have many complaints with both the 4K webcam itself or the built-in twin noise-cancelling mics. A small dial constructed into the webcam closes a {hardware} iris that serves a privateness shutter, and a small white LED alerts when the digicam is energetic.

Further studying: See our roundup of the best webcams to study competing merchandise.

EPOS is likely one of the few webcam producers to bundle every thing inside a pleasant protecting carrying case, which the compact (2.3 x 1.2 x 1.7in) webcam neatly matches into. It’s the angled USB-C connector that alerts one thing’s a little bit totally different about this digicam, nevertheless. The cable is comparatively prolonged, at about 46 inches, lengthy sufficient to permit the webcam to perch on prime of a desktop monitor. That’s the place the issues begin.

Webcams don’t must be deep, however they often are. Take the eMeet SmartCam C960: It’s not a very fairly webcam, with a digicam meeting that’s simply over an inch deep. The Expand Vision 1 is comparable, or about 1.2 inches at most. But eMeet wasn’t afraid to connect it to a base that’s nearly 2.5 inches lengthy, and so the C960 does its job: it comfortably grips nearly the entire shows you’ll wish to connect it to.

EPOS sacrifices this flexibility in favor of aesthetics. EPOS makes use of an analogous “jaws” design to permit the webcam to seize on to a monitor, however the ridges aren’t lengthy sufficient or pronounced sufficient to offer strong contact. To be honest, the Expand Vision 1 held properly to 1 desktop monitor. Another, a barely thicker show aimed on the skilled area, merely was too thick for the Expand Vision 1. I managed to suit the Expand Vision 1 onto my laptop computer, however I needed to tilt the show to accommodate the digicam as a result of the entrance jaw or tooth wasn’t lengthy sufficient. It was simply an excessive amount of problem to align correctly, not to mention really use.

Fortunately, the photographs the digicam produces are fairly good. It was a little bit stunning how properly the Expand Vision 1 did in what I think about a extra dimly-lit workplace atmosphere in comparison with a extra brightly-lit room upstairs. While the EPOS documentation claims that this webcam can shoot video at as much as 4K at 60Hz, Windows reported that this webcam would solely shoot video at 30Hz, in any respect of its supported resolutions.

Mark Hachman / IDG

EPOS does ask you to obtain a utility that may assist management the Expand Vision 1. At first the utility couldn’t discover the digicam; I needed to re-connect a second time for the 2 to pair.

There’s actually no level in utilizing it, although. The utility guarantees pan and zoom options, in addition to a controllable discipline of view from a “wide angle” to a closeup. The adjustments are infinitesimal, nevertheless. The white steadiness is barely higher, although not by a lot.

The one plus? As you would possibly count on from an organization whose official title is EPOS Audio, this webcam’s mics are wonderful.

Mark Hachman / IDG

Should you purchase the EPOS Expand Vision 1?

Simply put, the webcam market is simply too aggressive for us to suggest a webcam with the shortcomings of the EPOS Expand Vision 1. Again, you might discover that this compact webcam matches your monitor. But with points connecting to laptops in addition to thicker shows, we don’t suggest that you just purchase it.