Given the spike in Zoom calls driven by the global pandemic, several camera-makers have released apps to help you turn your camera into a webcam. Sony is the latest. Today it released new software that lets you hook up your Sony camera to a Windows 10 computer with just a USB cable.
The app is called Imaging Edge Webcam, and is compatible with 35 Sony cameras, including their DSLRs, compacts, and mirrorless cameras. (The full list of compatible devices can be found here.) To set it up, you just have to select your specific camera model, download the app, and then follow the instructions Sony provided on this page to adjust your camera settings. Once you do that, you can connect via a USB cable and launch your preferred video conferencing software of choice. The app is also free, so you don’t have to buy anything extra provided you have a compatible camera, USB cord, and a Windows 10 PC.
[referenced id=”1227929″ url=”https://gizmodo.com.au/2020/07/this-new-olympus-app-turns-your-camera-into-a-webcam/” thumb=”https://gizmodo.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/03/t6ifwfgr8pr7g2eci2lh-300×168.jpg” title=”This New Olympus App Turns Your Camera Into a Webcam” excerpt=”With so many people now video-conferencing while working from home, webcams have suddenly become hard to find — a number of top models are sold out or have seen massive price hikes. So to help make video calls a little easier to setup, today Olympus is introducing a new app that…”]
Unfortunately, there’s no indication if Sony will make this feature available to Mac users — though they might get around this by buying a capture card.
Don’t be too bummed if you have a non-Sony camera, either. Sony may be the latest to offer a webcam app, but plenty of other camera-makers have done the same. Olympus, Canon, Fujifilm, Panasonic, and GoPro have all offered webcam apps of some sort.
As for buying a separate webcam, you could do that, but they’ve also been hard to find since literally everyone rushed out to buy one at the onset of the global pandemic. If you have a camera on hand already, this is a good way to make use of it while also looking 10 times more glamorous than everybody else you’re on a video call with.
So go forth, Sony camera owners, and un-potato yourself. I’ll sit over here with my laptop’s potato-cam and try very hard not to be jealous.