Some new laptops these days have webcams built in to them, making them ideal for using Skype to make videocalls when you're out and about. However, a lot don't, and many of the ones that do have squeezed a camera in which really doesn't do the job very well. Enter US Robotics' Mini Cam for Skype, which aims to plug just this gap, providing a small, affordable way to add videocalling capability to your laptop.

Out of the box and Setup

Hardware has been kept to a minimum, with just the small camera itself and a US Robotics microphone headset for calling with. Once the setup disk has been inserted and drivers installed (which takes all of 2 minutes), the camera is ready to use.

Powering up Skype automatically offers the chance to configure the webcam, and once I'd got over the shock of my pasty face popping up on the screen, I was soon in business.

In use

Perhaps surprisingly the cam itself doesn't include a built-in mic, but this is more than made up for by the quality of the supplied headset. Rather than a standard tacky all-plastic affair, US Robotics have really made sure that this is good quality. The cable is covered with woven nylon, meaning that it doesn't get as tangled up, and includes a scrollwheel control for the volume halfway up. The cable for the mic is a polished chrome-coloured metal and fully adjustable, and the mic itself is housed in a large, removable sound muff.

The camera also shows some extravagance with materials, with the back clip made out of metal, and a nice blue LED configuration at the front which lights up when the camera is activated. It can be manually focused by just twisting the barrel of the lens. Due to the hinge mechanism on the back clip, the camera packs away pretty much flat as well, saving luggage space.

The included software has some crazy templates you can use which are quite fun; here's a couple of pictures of me in the jungle and looking quite scary...

These can be used during a Skype call, which is quite good if you have kids (or want to jazz up your quarterly web conference with the finance team...). Additionally, the software allows you to control every aspect of the picture, including brightness, colour and sharpness.

By default the camera operates at a respectable 640x480 resolution, but the 1.3mp camera can go right up to 1280x1024 at 15 frames per second, or 800x600 at 30fps. It has a 70 degree viewing angle, and also a 3x digital zoom. There is also an 'image flip' feature which I really liked, as it flips the image meaning that the camera operates more like a mirror; whilst this means of course that writing etc shown on the camera will be back to front, for anyone like me who is used to preening in front of a mirror it feels a lot more natural.

Conclusion

The US Robotics Mini Cam is small, lightweight and made of good quality materials all round. What is remarkable is that it is being sold at just £33.95 / E44.95 in the UK and EU Skype Stores: this is a good price for a 1.3mp camera, but when you add in a very high quality headset as well, it is a very good price indeed. The lack of mic on the cam itself may be a pain for those who don't want to have to use the headset, but apart from this I'd recommend the USR Mini Cam for Skype as an excellent on-the-road solution for those looking to travel light.