By Chris Guld, GeeksOnTour.com
When you get a new phone, do you keep the old one? I want you to know that the old phone is still a great camera. Add a stand and a little software app and you get yourself a high-quality webcam.
I use my old iPhone and this $20 phone holder stand as a camera for Zoom meetings. The app called iVCam is what turns the phone into a camera that can be selected by Zoom or other video call software. iVCam has a free version, but I recommend the $10 premium version to stop ads from popping up.
There are lots of other phone holder/stands for video meetings available. There are also other apps for turning your phone into a webcam: DroidCam, and EpocCam are two with good reviews. There is even an app to turn your phone into a security cam: Alfred.
The steps are:
- You need an old smartphone, either iPhone or Android
- Connect the phone to the same Wi-Fi network as your computer
- Install the iVCam app on the phone and also on computer – Windows only. If you have a Mac, you can google for WebCam Phone software for Mac.
- Open iVCam on phone and point camera as desired. Note: If using it for a webcam pointed at your face, be sure to use the rear camera, not the selfie camera. The rear camera is much higher resolution.
- Open iVCam on computer to record or live-stream your screen
or
Choose e2eSoft iVCam as your camera in Zoom or other video calling service.
If you try it, let us know what you think in the comments below.
If you want to learn more about what to do with old phones, watch Geeks on Tour’s “What Does This Button Do?” YouTube show Episode 201: What can I do with an old phone?
Chris Guld is President and Teacher-in-Chief at GeeksOnTour.com. She and her husband, Jim, produce a free weekly YouTube show called What Does This Button Do? They have been Fulltime RVers, popular seminar presenters at RV Rallies, and regular contributors to RVTravel.com, for many years.
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