Microsoft Lifecam NX-6000
The second half of the Microsoft Mobility Pack is the Lifecam NX-6000. While I wasn’t all that impressed with the mouse, I found the webcam to be extremely easy to use and its more compact form factor is a definite plus. The provided cable is very short, but considering that the application is for a notebook, this isn’t an issue. You should be able to reach from any USB port to the top of your laptop display without a problem.
The Lifecam NX-6000 offers a 2.0 megapixel imaging sensor that will produce both still pictures and videos at that resolution. In fact, stills can be interpolated up to 7.6 megapixels. Along with the image capture, there is also a built-in microphone to make mobile video chats an absolute breeze. It’s not the most powerful microphone, but it fulfills its purposes just fine.
Looking around to the back, you’ll notice a clip-like mechanism. This is used to clamp onto the top of your laptop display. If it looks like the spacing provided is a little snug, that’s because it is. The clip does extend out a little though, so it should be able to fit over most notebook covers. The rubber feet on the inside edges ensure that your cover doesn’t get scratched. Here is a picture of the webcam clamped onto my Dell Inspiron 640m.
Further to its compact size, the actual camera portion is spring-loaded and can retreat into the body of the Lifecam NX-6000. Very handy. Rolling up the USB cable, the entire webcam fits into the provided hard cylindrical case. This case is only about three or four inches tall with a diameter of about two inches. This easily fits in the palm of your hand.
The build quality on the webcam, I found, was more impressive than the mouse. The choice of materials is slightly better and I liked how the Microsoft logo would light up to indicate that video was being recorded. Nice.
You’ll also notice that the camera has pan and tilt functionality to accompany its 71-degree wide angle lens. Just because it’s clipped to the top of your laptop doesn’t mean that you are restricted to a single point of view. Taking everything into account, this is a very healthy supply of features for such a compact and portable package. The only thing that is missing is a manual focus adjustment ring.
In terms of picture quality, it’s not the best, but it’s pretty good for a webcam. Video was reasonably smooth, but I’d recommend dialing the resolution down to VGA or QVGA is you plan on doing any video calls over the Internet. Stills can be captured at 2.0 megapixels and here is a sample picture, resized to fit in the confines of this site.
As you can see, color recreation isn’t totally up to snuff and the crispness of the picture is a little lost. It’ll do for most webcam applications, but don’t expect to get image quality anywhere close to what a standalone digital camera can offer. I’d say the camera is on par with a 2.0 megapixel camera phone.
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