Technology makes life easier.You can contact your family, coworkers, friends, and customers through a digital device. Have you ever seen many people growing their business "work from home" things more accessible and quicker? You will contact anyone just by clicking on a button, whether it's a thousand miles away or near your room.
Video conferencing has become an essential part of work that handles people's business worldwide. It's hard to accept that during Covid-19 pandemic, many businesses were ruined, and these years, working from home is the only option to control this situation. People probably use laptops for video calling, but while COVID after discovering the benefits of remote work, some workers tend to continue meeting by video after returning to the office.
In COVID years, people move their set-up to the home office and likely join video meetings daily. Moreover, the daily conference and other issues are handled by video meetings. In all that cases, you need good quality video with clear sounds. Many people just use built-in webcams that you have ever seen, low-quality video and sound. Right away, the main reason for choosing an external webcam is that it can deliver quality video sound with great features and functions like light sensitivity, Field of view, Auto-Focus, and Resolution. In contrast, cheap built-in webcams have lower video quality but do not require additional expenses.
Well, This is a relatively simple answer，but I think you don't just want to know this.
For those who want a detailed explanation about the external webcam, let's scroll down and in a compression table to see how these two devices compare to one another.
What is a Built-in webcam? How Does it Work?
Laptops, desktop computers, and tablets come with built-in webcams, which are known as ( embedded or internal cameras) with basic aspects. Some cheap laptops have limited features that perform poorly. Still, your picture may look dark and grainy in low-light environments.
The small camera (lens) fits in the top center edge of the bezel around the screen. It's just at the right height for perfect video calling. A microphone is fit near the webcam so that people can hear you simultaneously. They don't require an additional setup. It's preinstalled with the manufacturer's relevant software and drivers.
Moreover, some laptops that don't have a built-in camera, like gaming laptops or tablets. In that case, you have to choose an external webcam for video calling with friends and family.
Built-in webcams are cheap and come with basic features with low-quality video and sound. In contrast, external webcams are expensive but have better components and advanced features.
1. Built-in Webcam Advantages
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Cost-effective
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Easy to Use
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Portable
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Preinstalled software and drivers
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No need to adjust them or find the right angles.
2. Drawback of Built-in Webcam
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Cheap video quality
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Picture looks grainy
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Unsatisfactory effects
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Low sound quality
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Low resolution and sensors
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Less Flexibility
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Unfriendly maintenance and hard to troubleshoot.
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Video will be unclear and black in low-light environments.
What is an External Webcam? How Does it Work?
An external webcam is a video camera device you can buy separately. They have different price ranges starting from $80 to $150 according to features and video quality. It feeds or streams an image through the Internet. It has more space for electronics offering better resolutions, at least 1080p, better quality photos and videos, and better quality audio.
An external webcam is worth considering for laptops. Simply hook up with your laptop device that can quickly move in any place wherever the person chooses to work in a cubicle, in the corner office, on the road, or from home.
These webcams are small cameras that can adjust according to your position. Typically sitting on a desk, hooked to the laptop's top edge, or on a stand or tripod that requires installation manually. External webcam required initial configuration or other set-up installation when plugged in for the first time.
1. External Webcam Advantages
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Higher resolution (at least 1080p and 4K resolution for more superb picture quality).
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Provide natural sound
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Wider Field of View (able to zoom pictures and wide-angle option. So you can adjust the shot as necessary.
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Light sensitivity makes the picture clear in low-light environments.
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Some support AI Tracking, which can automatically adjust your position in framed front and center in all your videos.
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Better Flexibility (easily move the webcam and set the angle according to your position).
2. External Webcam Drawbacks
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Expensive (One Time investment).
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Setup (software and drivers) is required when you install it for the first time. However, EMEET webcams are plug and play, no driver is required.
Why aren't Built-in Cameras Better?
Many devices have good quality built-in cameras like smartphones, tablets, and laptops. Unfortunately, it's only possible if you have expensive devices. A built-in is integrated into the system. As a result of this integration, the built-in camera tends to be of lower quality. Laptops or Smartphones reduce the video quality in favor of other features due to the substantial price range.
Embedded will offer better Skype conferences between friends in dorm rooms. But, people need high-definition images from professional quality room-based video conference systems for corporate video conferences. A built-in webcam never gives you these features and will significantly reduce image quality and should be avoided for this application.
Undoubtedly, smartphones and tablets are convenient and easy to use. These built-in models are more convenient to use, but external webcam models have some advantages. That gives the best work for you, and your staff depends largely on the way.
However, External Webcam comes in various quality levels, ranging from cheap and basic devices to sophisticated ones that support 1080p video streams with built-in stereo microphones.
Key Differences Between the Built-in Webcam and External Webcams
Using the video calling option to communicate with different people has been extremely popular for a few years. Some people use built-in cameras, and others prefer external ones. But which one is better – the external webcam or the built-in webcam inside your laptop?
Compression Table
| Factors | External Webcam | Built-in Webcam |
| Image or Video Quality | Higher image quality, clear view | Lower image quality, grainy picture |
| Lens | Have multiple pieces of lenses that provide high picture quality. | Do not have space for multiple lens stacks. |
| Resolution | At least 1080p to 4k resolution best overall webcam tv | It has Minimum 720p resolution. |
| Auto-Focus | Comes with advanced capability. | Don't have auto focus features. |
| Focal length | External webcams can adjust their focal length to give crispier images at any distance. | It reduced focal length and lacked multiple lens components that provide short distances images not as not as crisp. |
| Field of View | Allow a wider field of view. It can adjust multiple clients at any endpoint. | Suitable for one person communication. |
| Sounds | It Has built-in stereo microphones offering a high-definition audio experience. | Depends on the microphone location and the overall computer solution. |
| Light Sensitivity | It generates better picture quality in low-light environments. | Don't adjust fine-tune image quality in lower light areas. |
| Setup | Initial configuration and other setup required | Preinstalled setup with all drivers and software. |
| Space | It has space for improved optic and higher quality components that provide better image quality, color balance and noise reduction. | Embedded and fit inside small bezel around the edge with limited functions. |
| Cost | Little bit Expensive | Affordable |
What are the Features of Webcams Which Make them Better than Built-in Webcams?
An external webcam not only comes with the size of the CMOS and resolution that make a quality webcam, but high-end webcams also have additional advanced features that increase overall quality at an affordable price range.
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Higher Quality optics and sensors (lenses and optical components)
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High frame rate with prolonged use
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Good firmware
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Light sensitivity (clear video in low light environments).
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Color accuracy (provides better fluidity of motion with more accurate color rendition)
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It also provides and can even track the user to keep them centered in the image
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Larger sensor and lenses
Best Overall External Webcam
EMEET C980 Pro is an amazing advanced Webcam with a built-in Mic and Speaker. That will provide high quality video with 1080P HD resolution. Its professional Mics Array offers clear sound without any noise. The super wide angle webcam with 90° Field of View allows you to add multiple persons to the endpoint. The adjustable clips make it easy to use. A perfect USB Webcam is simply plugged in and played and ready to go. Superior Compatibility and adjustable mode according to your perfect angle position make it a decent device for video conferencing.
Undoubtedly, EMEET C980 Pro is a one-stop full-featured webcam with microphones and speakers that provides high-quality meetings. Its Portable, soft-designed, and lightweight design effectively protects your computers. It also has automatic light correction features, and adjusts the image into fine-tuning using parameters (brightness, contrast, white balance, etc.) via the EMEET exclusive PC software eMeetLink.
A decent C980 pro has a privacy cover that allows you to protect your privacy. Plus, the Exclusive VoiceIA Algorithm prevents background noise while meeting, and Full-duplex 2-way audio enables both parties to speak simultaneously as well.
Features:
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One-stop full-featured HD 1080P webcam with 4 microphones and 2 speakers
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Auto light correction
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Adjustable image parameter via eMeetLink
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90° wide-angle
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Noise cancellation
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Easy to set up
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Privacy protector
The below table shows a side-by-side comparison of the Macbook Pro M1 camera vs. the EMEET C980 Pro Webcam .
Product Comparison
| Model | MacBook Pro M1 | EMEET C980 Pro |
| Resolution | 1280 x 720 | 1080p |
| Light sensitivity | Poor quality in low light environments | Yes - fine-tune image quality - Automatic light correction |
| Noise cancellation | None | Eliminate background noise |
| Auto-Focus | None | Fixed Focus |
| Hd Rating | 720p | 1080p |
| FPS | 15 | 30 |
| Sound | Stereo speaker - Studio-quality three-mic array | 4 Mics Array- stereo 2 speaker- Full-duplex ensures 2-way audio when both parties are speaking simultaneously. |
| Field of view | 54° | 90° |
| Cost | includes Macbook pro cost | $76.99 |
Conclusion
Should I buy an external webcam? In short, after knowing the differences between external vs. built-in webcams, it depends on your situation which you prefer according to your needs. Objectively an external webcam is better overall for all purposes without any downside except one-time investment for quality video conferencing with different functions and features that you never find built-in. Any external webcam with HD 1080P resolution will beat the HD (720P) built-in webcam.
Even so, some people are happy with basic built-in webcam features, but we suggest trying our high-end external webcam, " EMEET C980 Pro ".
It will suit your needs better than a standard embedded webcam via its stereo microphone, wide-angle lenses, and advanced auto-focus capabilities. If you use webcams regularly to communicate with your friends and family, then you should definitely consider our "EMEET C980 Pro," an external webcam.
