Bulbs & Fittings Ideas

Because I couldn’t confirm it anywhere on the web I wasn’t sure that this webcam would work with the Panasonic DMP-BDT220 Integrated Wi-Fi 3D Blu-ray DVD Player we had recently purchased but I thought I’d give it a shot. The webcam arrived quickly. I opened the box, placed the webcam on the top back of our Panasonic Plasma HDTV (no mounting, it just sticks there via a magnetic base), plugged the webcam USB cable into the back of Blu-ray player, powered up the HDTV & Blu-ray player, entered my Skype account username & password in the Blu-ray player’s internet software area, and Skyped with a family member 1,500 miles away as big as life on our 50″ plasma TV in the living room.
What could be easier than 5 minutes total set-up? And the Skype video chat was so much clearer and crisper than the webcam on my laptop computer. The audio was also good because it was coming through our home theater system. I am so excited that we will be able to be in the living room as a family and Skype with other extended family members during the holidays! (Extra info: our Panasonic VIERA TC-P50X3 Plasma HDTV is a 2011 model and the Panasonic DMP-BDT220 Blu-ray player is a 2012 model. The box for the Panasonic TY-CC20W webcam says that it is for “2012 VIERA TVs and Blu-ray Products”. Make sure that your TV and Blu-ray player have the latest Panasonic firmware updates.)

We got a Panasonic tc-p60gt50 plasma tv Panasonic VIERA TC-P60GT50 60-Inch 1080p Full HD 3D Plasma TV. We purchased this little webcam that is supposed to work specifically with this tv. WOW! It is perfect. It is thin and pretty to look at — does not detract from the look of the plasma that is hanging on the wall. It connects with magnets to the BACK of the top of the tv and just looks like it belongs there. We plugged it in to the tv’s usb, turned on the tv, signed in to Skype, connected with our daughter who lives in Japan, and just like that, she filled the 60-inch screen. It was great–worked seamlessly with a good image. I would highly recommend this webcam if you have the same tv. (I read that it will not work with earlier versions of the tv.)

I use a 2011 Panasonic 42 inch LED TV with SmartViera (TH-L42E5W, not a US production unit). Although listed in the manual, this webcam is not sold in Taiwan which I am currently residing. I was deciding between this and the Logitech TV Cam for Skype (V-U0022). In the end, I got this for the following reasons:

1. Aesthetics: The unit fits perfectly and is flush with the TV bezel, as it is long but low in height, giving it a slim profile, unlike the Logitech which is not as wide but stands taller. From Logitech’s photo in Amazon, the V-U0022 appears to jut out slightly from the TV.

2. Four unidirectional microphones, compared with 2 for Logitech. The microphones appears to be positioned further apart than Logitech’s, which (theoretically?) gives superior noise cancellation.

3. The unit firmly latches onto the back of the TV with a magnetic strip, tugging on the cable gently did not rock the camera.

The logitech TV cam has the following theoretical advantage which I did not get to test or compare:
1. Carl-Zeiss optics
2. “Wide-angle” lens of 78 degrees
3. “Long-distance” microphone for speaking as far as 10 feet away

After updating the firmware on the TV, the camera works perfectly without any special adjustment required from the user. From what I can tell, the angle appears slightly wider than a conventional webcam which I tried on the camera but I estimate it is still less than 90 degrees.

Other things that I can control include: zoom, camera position, gamma/brightness/contrast/color. Video quality and optics was more than adequate for Skype. Overall for its advertised purpose I am very happy with the product and this comes highly recommended.

2 month update: Overall very satisfied with this camera, some additional findings:

a) The camera comes with a long 1.5 meter (5 feet) USB cord , very useful when you need to manually hold the camera.

b) The camera has a wide enough angle, and can easily fit four persons sitting on a couch from across the TV at about 3.5 meters (12 feet)

c) When mounting on large screen TVs, I find it best to stand at a distance, otherwise you’ll appear to look down instead of straight at the other party

d) Provided you have a good connection, the quality is excellent, with good clarity, good auto-white balance and low-light compensation. For best result I connect via ethernet.

e) The camera has a full 180 degree swivel – the magnetic clasp can be folded and tucked under the camera as a stand, good for placing on the floor or table for children

f) BEWARE: in the settings menu for the camera within the TV’s Skype app, there is an option to “reset” the camera – DO NOT click on that. Clicking it resulted in resetting of all the camera’s settings, including disabling the option for low-light compensation. This option cannot be re-enabled via the TV’s Skype app, I had to connect the device to my PC, then re-enable this option in the setttings menu accessed from skype.