Webcam recommendations

I would like to get a decent webcam that works with a computer (2 GHz cpu, 768 megs of DDR ram) that can be used in chats. Honestly I would like to pay as little as possible, but I'd still rather pay more for something that won't break down or perform poorly. Any recommendations? I have no experience or knowledge of webcams whatsoever.

 

psaulm119: This isn't a recommendation, but a few months ago I was thinking of getting a webcam and saw something about Microsoft's LifeCam VX-6000. You can do a Google search for it or go to amazon.com, enter the unit's ID in their search window, and see what you can learn from them.

It might make a difference what your OS is. XP? Vista?

I'll be following this thread because I'm still toying with the idea of getting a webcam myself.

 

The computer I mentioned is running XP. Thanks for the link; I'll look it up and see what the want for it.

 

psaulm119: Being curious, I did some Googling. Here's a test of the MS unit:

http://reviews.cnet.com/webcams/microsoft-lifecam-vx-6000/4505-6502_7-31934330.html

Fairly early in that article are references to the Logitech QuickCam Fusion and the Creative Live Cam Voice webcams. I copied and pasted the product models into amazon.com and read the owners' reviews there. Their opinions vary all over the lot, some of their experiences are downright daunting. Problems with compatibility along with the limitations imposed by the owners' usage requirements make it clear you'll need to match what they say with your own circumstances.

All three webcam tests are about a year and a half old. Are any newer models available?

Let us know how your shopping goes.

 

Yeah customer reviews are daunting, to use your word. A lot of the lower-end models (i.e., under 30 bucks) seem to be very inconsistent--some saying they work fine, others saying they are junk. One of the few models that (at least at one site) got consistently good reviews was the VX-3000:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...=product&tab=7&id=1142296157528#productdetail

So I will look up the 6000 model that you recommended and compare prices--the 3000 is priced at 30 or 40 bucks, which is really all I'd like to spend.

But like I said, a lot of them are getting mixed reviews, so I will review this model at other sites that feature customer reveiws and see if this model is getting consistently good reviews there as well. Thanks for teh link.

EDIT: I looked up that same unit on Amazon, and just as with the others, there were some that said it was a dud, others that said it was excellent (although the ratio of good to bad reviews was very good--over 3 to 1). I'm geting the impression that if I want to get a low-end model it will be a bit of a crapshoot--I'll just dive in and get this model at the best price, at a place with an NQA return policy if I have to.

Just looked up the 6000 at amazon. Reviews were very mixed, almost as many bad as good. I think like I said, I'll just get the 3000 at the lowest price and make sure I can return it if I need to.