We’ve written often about the importance of making eye contact during virtual events. Making eye contact is the key to establishing and maintaining engagement, but too few people do it. The problem is that most webcams are either built into the top of the laptop screen or they’re sitting on top of the desktop monitor. Instead of looking at the camera, people look down at their screen.

Cyber Acoustics’ new CA-Essential Webcam Flex offers a clever solution. The camera itself is a typical black plastic box with some buttons on top that uses a USB connection. That’s where the similarity to other webcams ends. The camera is mounted on a 10-inch metal rod, which is then attached to a swiveling mount attached to a stand. The stand can clamp onto the top of a monitor – like other webcam bases – but it also has a threaded mount that can be put on a tripod or other camera equipment.

The trick is that you can adjust the position of the camera in many useful ways. You can pivot the rod so that it is vertical, and then slide the camera down so that it is in the center of the screen. Now you can look at the people on your screen, and you’ll be looking at the camera at the same time.

Swivel the mount so the rod is sticking straight out, and then rotate the camera so that it is pointing down, and it becomes a document camera. Share printed content, show physical objects or focus on your keyboard as you demonstrate a program.

And the whole arrangement can easily slide up and out of the way when you don’t need it. Buttons on the camera make it easy to adjust zoom level, focus, and rotate or mirror the camera image. The camera also includes dual microphones and can provide an image resolution of up to 2592 by 1944 pixels at 30 frames per second.

The Webcam Flex is a snap to install and use – no additional software is required – and it produces good image quality. The only caveat is that if you use multiple monitors (as I do), the rod can get in the way of a top monitor when you mount it on the bottom one. But this is a problem that few people will have. At an MSRP of $129.99, it is a small premium to pay over a standard webcam, considering the extra functionality and convenience that it delivers.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Was this hands-on review helpful? Would you like to see more like this in future issues of the VEG newsletter? Is there a specific product that you are curious about and would like us to review? Let us know at alfred@virtualeventsgroup.org.

If you’re looking for other webcams that help you maintain eye contact in online conversations,  here are four other choices that you can find in the free VEG online directory:

Center Cam | iVi | eyeQ | PlexiCam

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