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Skype Webcam – What is the Best Webcam for Skype?

Lin — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 11:00:45 +0000

I have been a Skype user for a long time now, keeping in contact with friends and family living in the U.S and abroad. One of my family members lives in Spain, and having Skype to at least instant message or chat while on different time zones has been great. Email only does so much, but Skype is better. While instant messaging with Skype helps keep me closely connected with family and friends who don’t live nearby, instant messaging on Skype isn’t enough for me anymore.

I’ve known about webcams for Skype but hadn’t taken the time to learn how to use Skype with a webcam, and I needed to find out more about choosing a good webcam to use with Skype. I’ve heard there is a way to use a digital camera with Skype too, but using Skype on my home computer with a webcam is all that matters to me at this point.

What is Skype?

Skype’s free downloadable software allows you to talk, instant message and make video calls to other Skype users for FREE. Skype uses your broadband internet connection to make unlimited free voice and video calls over the internet through your computer. You can also call phones and mobile cell phones and send text messages at very cheap rates – a lot cheaper than typical long distance/international plans.

The “Skype Out” features allows users to make cheap international calls with Skype to phones and mobile cell phones at a mere fraction of the cost of current international rates, and this is one of my favorite features since it allows me to call Spain for mere pennies. When my dad was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma awhile back, calls were made from Spain to check on my dad’s health status and the total cost was just a few cents.

Why use Skype and Webcams for Skype?

Webcam dangers are a reality in this crazy world we live in, but there are some benefits to using a webcam that is hooked up and connected with Skype that I can’t pass up. There are many good, valid reasons to use a webcam, whether it is for business or personal use. Some people choose to use webcams to keep an eye on what is going on at their house while they are away. Military personnel stay closely connected with their husband, wife and/or children while they are working far away, perhaps overseas.

Others like to watch what their pets are doing in the backyard, and what problems or chaos the dog is creating back there. Some use webcams to watch their children at school, daycare or in the care of babysitters in their home. Grandparents can use webcams to see their grown children and grandchildren who live far away and stay connected via video conferencing, which is my primary reason for deciding to buy a webcam to use with Skype.

Who should get Skype?

Anyone interested in staying connected with family and friends who don’t live nearby should download Skype. If you are wondering why you should get a webcam to use with Skype, especially if you are grandparent with grandchildren who live far away, understand that there are many advantages to using webcams to stay connected with family and friends. Having a webcam set up with Skype allows me to see my children and grandchildren on live video, and where they can also see Grandma and Grandpa talking to them too.

I’ve heard of some grandparents who use a webcam with Skype to read story books to their grandchildren, and grandparents are able to see their grandchild’s school report card and help with homework, amongst many other wonderful possibilities. My two grandkids are still too young to read children’s books to via webcam, but having the ability to see my grandchildren grow and learn how to talk (and say Grandma, Grandpa, Nana or Papa) makes for some fun times on Skype.

What is the Best Webcam for Skype?

One of the best things about being on Facebook is the ability to get suggestions and recommendations from friends and family on any given product, and that includes our search for a new smartphone as well as finding the best webcam to buy to use with Skype. Webcam prices vary, and while we certainly wanted a good quality webcam with clear imagery, we didn’t want to spend a lot of money on the webcam.

Thanks to some great advice from Shayne at GrandparentsTLC, we were able to narrow down the webcam choices to a great quality webcam with built-in microphone that is very inexpensive and works extremely well with Skype. Since we weren’t knowledgeable about the differences between the more expensive webcams versus the cheap webcams (and how well the cheaper webcams would work), Shayne’s suggestions were a big help.

It would never have crossed my mind that there are different webcams to choose from depending on if you are a Mac user versus a Windows PC like we use. Since I’ve never used a Mac computer yet, despite knowing how popular they are, I didn’t need to find a compatible webcam for Mac but I was able to tell a friend of mine about those since she is a Mac user.

If you are looking for a webcam to use with Skype, you don’t need to spend a lot of money on a webcam. The Macally IceCam webcam we bought is inexpensive, and it only took a few minutes to install and hook up the webcam to the computer and have it running perfectly with Skype. We didn’t have any problems getting the webcam to work right, and after testing the webcam on Skype a couple of times, our webcam was set and ready to video conference and chat on Skype with the kids, grandkids, friends and family that use Skype.

Aside from the Blackberry smartphones we recently bought, buying the webcam to use with Skype for the benefit of staying closely connected with the kids and grandchildren was money well spent. Every computer-user grandparent should get Skype and get a webcam to use with Skype, in my opinion. Money very well spent.

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The Dangers of Webcams

Lin — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 11:00:32 +0000

The use of webcams in modern society, whether used at home or work, has had positive and negative effects on those who have webcams attached to or built into their computers. Children and families may use webcams to communicate with relatives and friends who live or work far away, but law enforcement is more concerned about the dangers of webcams and the harmful effects for children and teenagers who spend time on the internet.

Webcams can be purchased for as little as $20.00, and most tweens and teens who have a computer also want a webcam in order to project live images of themselves on teen chat sites, social networking sites like MySpace, Xanga and Stickam, as well as uploaded videos of themselves on YouTube. According to law enforcement, webcams are the single most dangerous peripheral device to be attached to a computer that is used by children or teens. Why are webcams so dangerous?

If you are like most parents, you would never allow a male to be in your teenage daughter’s bedroom without supervision, but it’s happening on a daily basis while young children and teens are on the internet and using webcams, right under the noses of unsuspecting parents. What’s even worse is that many teens have computers connected to the internet in their bedrooms, and many parents still don’t understand how harmful and dangerous this is. Who is watching your child on webcam?

Elementary schools are teaching kids how to use computers and navigate the internet, and young kids are often more knowledgeable about technology and computers than their parents, and these kids are often able to find ways to circumvent and override parental controls and passwords that have been set to protect children while online.

Webcams pose a serious risk to children because it allows an open window into the activities and lives (and bedrooms) of children and teens, and sexual predators are using this technology to their own perverted advantage to target and sexually abuse innocent children. There is also a very dangerous webcam-specific virus or worm called W32/Rbot-GR, where a child molester can recognize that a child or teen has a webcam attached to the computer and is able to remotely activate the young person’s webcam without their knowledge or approval.

The dangers of webcams cannot be overemphasized. Law enforcement officials, television talk shows like Oprah and Dr. Phil, news stations and child safety advocates have worked very hard to bring greater awareness to the dangers and harmful effects of webcams, including information about the profile of a pedophile or sexual predator searching for children to molest and abuse.

Not only is it important for parents to have open dialogue with their kids and talk to their teens and children about these and other topics, but it’s extremely important for parents to know about and monitor what kids are doing online in order to supervise and protect their children from becoming victimized.

Unfortunately, even parents who know How to Use Parental Controls to protect and safeguard their child’s online activities and block access to inappropriate websites, may discover their kids are way ahead of the parents and are able to get around parental controls quite easily. Smart kids that are older and are more computer savvy, or have friends (online or offline) who are all too willing to educate them on how to get around administrator passwords and settings, laugh about the realization that they know more about computers than their parents.

If you think your own children are not at risk of becoming a victim of sexual abuse with or without a webcam, meet Justin Berry. Justin Berry was a young 13 year-old boy who, through his webcam, became part of the sordid online world of pornography, having been targeted by online predators and sexually abused over a period of years.

After being rescued by NY Times Reporter Kurt Eichenwald, Justin has become a child safety advocate, speaking out about the prevalence of sexual abuse of children online through his website InternetSafety.tv and warns parents not to allow their children and teens to have webcams.

Protecting children and teens on the internet must be a high priority for parents, and some tweens and teens can become secretive and rebellious to the point where parents have to take what may seem like drastic measures in order to keep their kids safe, including closely monitoring what their kids are doing online with computer monitoring programs. Don’t make the mistake of thinking your child or teen will tell you if they’ve been approached by or propositioned online because most children don’t tell about such things out of fear of losing their internet and computer privileges.

While I believe much can be accomplished by talking with and educating children about the dangers of webcams and internet safety, I also understand that parents have to do whatever is deemed necessary to keep kids safe online.

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