First impressions: Blue Eyeball 2.0
Two components I used on a regular basis broke recently: the microphone on my gaming headset and my almost 10-year-old Intel webcam that probably didn’t even have a one megapixel resolution and put a blue tint on everything when I used florescent lighting.
I decided to replace both at once, and, on a professor’s recommendation, I purchased a Blue Eyeball 2.0, which is basically a microphone with a little webcam sticking out the side. While the camera itself is tiny, it works wonderfully, and I’m quite happy with the purchase.
As Blue is primarily a microphone company, it makes sense to look at the microphone first. Sitting about a foot and a half away from the monitor, I was able to talk at a normal volume and the sound was crisp and clear. I haven’t yet tested how well it filters out background noise, but the microphone could easily be used to produce a podcast or demo music recording.
The video quality is fantastic for a webcam. Clean colors, a robust 2 megapixels (for a webcam), and HD resolution round out a terrific product, especially for the price.
The automatic white balance and exposure are fantastic as well. The blue florescent wash over the picture is long gone, and within a few seconds of turning out all the lights in my bedroom, I was able to see myself clearly and in full color just from the light of my monitor. At low light levels, the picture is grainy, but this is expected.
If you’re using the Eyeball with a desktop, you may want to invest in a longer mini USB cable. The included cable, while it fit in the portable case, did not reach from my tower to the top of of my monitor.
Ultimately, the Eyeball 2.0 is well worth the less that $60 from Amazon. If you want a focus on audio quality and a good camera to go with it, definitely take it into consideration.