Shop RadioShack for Great GiftsApple iSight
Manufacturer: Apple Part number: M8817LL/C
- More product information:
- Editors' review
- User reviews
- Specifications
- Manufacturer info
- Bottom Line:
- With great image quality and integration, the Apple iSight is the best choice for Mac owners who use iChat, but it isn't ideal for users of other messaging clients.
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Where to buy
| store | customer rating | inventory | tax & shipping | price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon.com Marketplace |  | In stock | Enter zip code to get total price: Price +Tax +Shipping =Total price | as of 12/08/2009 |
CNET editors' review
Apple iSight price range: $360.00
- Reviewed by: Lara Luepke
- Edited by: Justin Jaffe
- Reviewed on: 08/25/2005
- Released on: 06/23/2003
The good: Stylish design; flawless integration with iChat and iMovie; minimal setup required; great image and color quality.
The bad: Image settings such as focus, color, brightness, and contrast aren't adjustable; doesn't work with all instant-messaging applications; pricey.
The bottom line: With great image quality and integration, the Apple iSight is the best choice for Mac owners who use iChat, but it isn't ideal for users of other messaging clients.
The Apple iSight is hands down one of the best Webcams we've seen. Its sleek style, great image quality, sensitive microphone, and flawless integration with iChat and iMovie make it the perfect complement for any Mac computer. The $149 iSight is more expensive than other Webcams we've seen, but it's one of the few options for Mac users who use iChat and iMovie; if you need to use a messaging client other than AOL Instant Messenger or iChat or if you need to video message with PC-based users, check out the $99 Logitech QuickCam for Notebooks Pro, which, despite poorer image quality, is compatible with Macs and PCs and all video chat clients.
Unlike most other Webcams, the iSight comes with no software and requires no more installation that connecting it via FireWire. On your Mac, iChat AV automatically launches when the iSight is plugged in, and if you don't already have an iChat account, iSight will launch a dialog box that guides you through the account setup. You can use iChat with existing AIM and .Mac accounts, but not with Yahoo, Jabber, or Bonjour. On iChat, there's a little green camera icon next to your screen name; the icon will also show up for any of your buddies who have video capabilities--just click the green button to start a video chat. We also found it simple to use iSight with iMovie; plug it in and select it as your camera.
As with most Apple products, the iSight is sleek and attractive. Its silver case will best match a PowerBook, and it offers three different mounting options: a magnetic LCD mount, a plastic stand for eMac and desktop computers, and a special mount for PowerBooks and iBooks. Though getting it mounted takes some doing, the camera is fairly adjustable afterward; you can move it about 20 degrees to the left and right and 20 degrees up and down.
Most other Webcams let you manually adjust focus, color saturation, brightness, and contrast, but the iSight takes care of focusing and adjusting for you. Though some may bemoan the lack of control, the camera took only a second to adjust when moved, and the image quality was always great.
iSight and iChat work wonderfully together: sound quality was crisp and clear; the microphone even picked up a conversation happening five feet away. Images on the transmitting and receiving ends were the clearest we've ever seen from a Webcam. Though we noticed a very small amount of noise, the image didn't lag at all, and we had no problem maintaining constant video and sound. With iMovie, the Webcam was just as flawless. It recorded clear crisp images at 30 frames per second, and the sound was of good quality. We experienced problems only when video chatting between a Mac using iChat and a PC using AIM. Though the instruction booklet says it's possible, we could not maintain a connection for more than 10 seconds. Apple's tech support couldn't help us with our setup, but we were able to successfully chat with tech support from our PC using AIM.
Apple covers the iSight with an industry-standard one-year warranty on the hardware. Free phone support is available for the first 90 days after purchase, and Apple's support Web site offers troubleshooting advice, FAQs, and a searchable user forum.
User reviews
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Looks cool, but is it really worth the money?
by xxxMDKxxx on June 1, 2006
Pros: Excellent design, Multiple stands included, Firewire
Cons: Pricey, Cant't adjust brightness/contrast ect., Works with apple software only.
Summary: I feel like I lost my money with the eyesight. I couldn't use it with my favorite chat clients. The thing only works with Apple software. Not worth its ...
Summary: I feel like I lost my money with the eyesight. I couldn't use it with my favorite chat clients. The thing only works with Apple software. Not worth its price tag.
2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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like everything apple makes the isight just plain works
by gavin_japan on April 5, 2005
Pros: easy to set up, easy to use, easy to mount, works like most apple products
Cons: cost is higher than other web cams but there is no doubt that it is worth most of the extra cost. build quality and looks can't be beat.
Summary: I love my apple. I hate computers and I just want them to work and do what I want them to. In the three years I have owned my apple ...
Summary: I love my apple. I hate computers and I just want them to work and do what I want them to. In the three years I have owned my apple I have spent a total of three hours on the phone with tech support. The six months my wife has had her Dell she has spent 37hours talking to new friends in the philipines and india.
The camera does exactly what it is suposed to. the only thing that I can complain about is like most cameras you need adaquate light to get a great picture. it took a little playing with the angle of my desk lamp to get the shadows and color right. Audio is great and picture quality is good if your internet is fast enough.2 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Excellent image!
by scienet on August 13, 2006
Pros: Reacts well. Very good imaging.
Cons: Kinda useless considering Microsoft are too cheap to develop MSN Messenger for Mac!
Summary: This cam really works better than the 2 previous I owned. The image is spectacular compare to the other two I owned. Like I said in the "Cons", what slurps ...
Summary: This cam really works better than the 2 previous I owned. The image is spectacular compare to the other two I owned. Like I said in the "Cons", what slurps is that very few people actually use iChat so I can rarely use my cam. Of course there are way around it, don't write to tell me just that. It's simply that it'd be much more simple if Microsoft develop MSN for Messenger for Mac even 50% as fast as they develop the PC version! lol MSN Messenger is archaic... Anyway... I won't start about Microsoft! This camera is simply excellent but I believe it can only be used with a MAC. That's the other majob downside. And now, with my iMac, I no longer need it so... Oh well... It's good nonetheless!
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Great quality camera compared to other web cams out there
by lakingsfn2004 on May 16, 2006
Pros: video quality, size, firewire interface
Cons: small indicator light, no adjustable features
Summary: Just got the iSight camera for my birthday and it works amazingly well. I am having a little problem with getting it to work with iChat but I just have ...
Summary: Just got the iSight camera for my birthday and it works amazingly well. I am having a little problem with getting it to work with iChat but I just have to find the right settings. Highly recommended purchase despite the price.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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an amazing sleek webcamera
by bronxbomers5 on January 12, 2006
Pros: its great came with attachments for a desk and a laptop it sit right on top of my powerbook and all my windows friends wish they has one, its all so cool to look at and the mic inside is 10 great
Cons: not too many, no cons actually every thing was thought out well
Summary: i give the isight a ten because it is a perfect product, its good looking, provides high proformance and ease of use, every thing just works with apple. btw a ...
Summary: i give the isight a ten because it is a perfect product, its good looking, provides high proformance and ease of use, every thing just works with apple. btw a nifty little motion sensor program can be found from security spy, just google it or some thing. have fun
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Auto-Focus makes the difference
by williebegoode on November 11, 2005
Pros: Easy to set up and use on Macs
Cons: Pricey & not too flexible & microphone not good
Summary: I've had my iSight sitting atop my goose-neck iMac for a few years now, and I use it all the time. I like the image quality and I like ...
Summary: I've had my iSight sitting atop my goose-neck iMac for a few years now, and I use it all the time. I like the image quality and I like the autofocus. However, the built-in mic is almost useless (especially compared to the Logitech 4000) and given the paste-on attachments Apple provides, it's not too flexible. (The new G5 iMacs have these babies built in a little hole in the screen, which reduces flexibility to zero.) For around $150, it's way over-priced -- more what I'd expect to pay for a really good wrieless Cam/Mic. For about 1/2 the price, you can get a Logitech 4000 Pro, have a better mic and all the quality you're likely to need for the Internet. (What good is 30 FPS with 640 x 480 resolution when the bandwidth and processor can only handle a fraction of that?--BTW, the Logitech has the same specs.)
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Excellent for Mac
by scottso on September 13, 2005
Pros: Great Image
Cons: Only available with FireWire
Summary: Great Webcam for the Mac but only the Mac
Summary: Great Webcam for the Mac but only the Mac
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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editorial error: ichat _does_ support jabber (where are the fact-checkers at cnet?!)
by zahadum on August 27, 2005
Pros: firewire delivers crystal clear quality
Cons: apple still has not yet deployed wireless video - even though they pushed for the firewire-over-wifi av spec!
Summary: the other flaw is that in order to do heavy-duty multi-user conferencing in ichat AV, huge amounts of CPU power are required from the hub - basically only a dual ...
Summary: the other flaw is that in order to do heavy-duty multi-user conferencing in ichat AV, huge amounts of CPU power are required from the hub - basically only a dual G5 will carry the load.
apple desparately needs an AV platform - using the like the mini to include custom hardware for DVR, conferencing, and multi-channel household streaming (like that airport express does).
as usual with apple, they start off with a big bang, but then there is no follow-through to capture the opportunity they created.
sad sad sad.1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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A perfect webcam that happens to be a piece of art.
by ispsec on June 26, 2005
Pros: Auto-Focus, Privacy Cover, A Work of Art. Works better then any other webcam out there - And I know that for a fact!
Cons: Only Firewire and works only on MAC (unless you get a lot of aspirin and try to install it on XP.)
Summary: I have been playing around with webcams since the first one came out years ago. The little black and white wonders that took over video conferencing from home computers back ...
Summary: I have been playing around with webcams since the first one came out years ago. The little black and white wonders that took over video conferencing from home computers back in the day. But now, Apple has brought out a piece of art that works, and works well.
Not only does it scream plug me in and use me, but when you unpack it you quickly realize Apple produced a well packaged device with a lot of cool attachments. The first thing that came to my mind was, "I wonder if this thing could work on my Dell Inspiron 8500 laptop?" I think the quick answer was no!
I unpacked the iSight and plugged it in to the Mac Mini's firewire port. BAM! it was up and working. The drawback to the firewire design is that the Mac Mini only has one firewire port. It would have been nice to have the option of a USB 2 iSight. The Mac Mini has two USB 2 ports.
A friend of mine asked me to get two Mac Mini's and set them up so they could video conference to and from Europe and the United States. So approx. $2000 later they had two computers, two iSights, OS X 10.4 (Tiger), and my first glance at what the Mac really has to offer. These are the coolest and easiest webcams in the world.
The installation along with iChat that is already installed in OS X was a snap. We were up and running one way, two way, and audio only chat sessions in minutes.
When your finished with the iSight you just shut down the chat program and turn the lens ring on the iSight to close this space like internal door. It covers the whole lens for privacy and tells everyone that you are unavailable for video chats. Pretty cool.
The other privacy feature I liked was a little pin head like green light at the very top of the iSight. When the camera is active the little light glows green. When the camera is off the light is dark.
Mac OS X (Tiger) along with the iSight will allow multi-user chats. But, I think one of the best features is the built in mike. The audio sounds perfect.
The clarity, color balance, auto focus, and style is unmatched. Period!
The iSight is a bit pricy at $149 retail but well worth the money. If you are a teacher check the discount price on Apples site.
I cannot wait until I get OS X for my dell in late 2006, early 2007. I will get OS X just to use this webcam.1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Mac OS X users looking for a stylish webcam.
by Leo Watson on May 14, 2005
Pros: Great ergonomics; autofocus; high quality; 1/4 inch CCD.
Cons: Very Expensive; only works with iChat; no Windows compatiability.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
Specifications
- Manufacturer: Apple
- Part number: M8817LL/C
- Description: Introducing a revolutionary new way to say hello. iSight delivers picture perfect video, crystal clear audio and an innovative design that makes video conferencing over the Internet as natural as face-to-face conversation. Families can stay in touch from thousands of miles away. Students can hang out and talk with their friends like they were in the same room. And business travelers can tuck their kids in to bed from the other side of the world. It's the next best thing to being there. iSight doesn't just look good, it makes you look good with a high quality video image. A custom designed, auto-focus lens keeps your image crisp and clear from 50mm to infinity and focuses on a 1/4" CCD sensor with 640x480 (VGA) resolution. Put that together with iSight's built-in image processor and you get smooth, top-quality, full motion video at up to 30 frames per second with true 24-bit color. An integrated, dual-element microphone suppresses ambient noise, so just your voice comes through loud and clear. iSight will get you talking. It's unique center-mount design, with an integrated rotate and tilt mechanism and three included stands, make it simple to position iSight so you're looking directly at the lens for a face-to-face conversation. One simple FireWire connection provides audio, video and power. Just plug in iSight and iChat AV automatically launches and gets you chatting in seconds. iSight is made out of the same aluminum alloy as the 12" and 17" PowerBooks, which makes it incredibly durable while keeping it extremely lightweight (weighs just 2.3 ounces). Just pop it into the included carrying case and you can stay in touch no matter where you go.
General
- Device Type Web camera
- Optical sensor size 1/4"
- Optical sensor type CCD
- Features Digital noise reduction
Camera
- Type Color
- Audio Support Yes
Image Sensor
- Type CCD 1/4"
Lens Construction
- Focal Length 5 cm
- Lens Iris F/2.8
- Focus Adjustment Automatic
Interfaces
- Computer Interface IEEE 1394 (FireWire)
Expansion / Connectivity
- Interfaces 1 x IEEE 1394 (FireWire) - 6 pin FireWire
- Cables included 1 x IEEE 1394 adapter, 1 x IEEE 1394 cable
Miscellaneous
- Included Accessories Carrying case
- Cables Included 1 x IEEE 1394 adapter, 1 x IEEE 1394 cable
- Mounting Kit Included
Software / System Requirements
- OS Required Apple MacOS X 10.2.5
Physical Characteristics
- Weight 2.3 oz
Manufacturer info
- Apple
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse Apple products on Shopper.com
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- Website: http://www.apple.com
- Address:
One Infinite Loop, Cupertino, CA 95014 - Phone: 1-408-996-1010
