Then, go to your videoconferencing apps settings and change the camera and microphone input to DroidCam and DroidCam Virtual Audio.

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Close Alert Close Sign In Subscribe Search Search Backchannel Business Culture Gear Ideas Science Security Julian Chokkatt u Gea r 05.04.2020 08:00 AM How to Turn Your Smartphone Into a Webcam Using a phone (old or new) as a camera for your Zoom meetings is an easy and affordable way to be visibly present if you dont have a webcam.

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Were months into a pandemic and its still hard to find a good webcam for a price that wont make your jaw drop.

Videoconferencing, whether its for work or for a weekly remote board game night, has surged since most people have been stuck home.

If you havent able to snag a good webcam, dont worrybelow, we walk through ways you can use your smartphone (old or new) as an alternative.

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If you have a professional camera lying around, like a mirrorless or action camera, we have another guide on using it as a webcam replacement (and impressing your coworkers).

Updated August 2020: Weve added NeuralCam Live as a new option for people with iPhones that need a webcam for a Mac.

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Learn more. Video Call With Your Phone Before trying to convert a smartphone into a webcam for your computer, it might be obvious to say that you can use your smartphone to run your video meeting on its own.

Most services like Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams all have Android and iPhone apps available.

All you need to do is install the app from the app store, log in, and use your phones selfie camera and microphone to be a part of the meeting.

However youre using your phone, its a good idea to invest in a small tripod to prop it up so you dont have to balance it against a pile of books.

The Joby Gorillapod is a popular and affordable tripod with legs that can contort to stay stable on almost any surface.

Use Your Phone as a Webcam The above method is great if you just need to follow along with a meeting, not so much if youre presenting something and have to share your screen.

Thats where it helps to convert your smartphone into a webcam if you dont have one for your desktop, or if the one in your laptop isnt working.

Using an Android Phone With Windows If youre on a PC running Windows and you use an Android phone, one of the easiest (and wireless) methods is to use an app called DroidCam.

Download the app from the Google Play Store on your phone.

Your phone needs to be running Android 5.0 or higher.

To check, go to Settings About Phone Android version.) Download the Windows client on your PC.

Make sure your desktop and phone are connected to the same Wi-Fi network (it also works if your desktop is connected via Ethernet).

On the Android app, you will see some numbers after Wi-Fi IP and DroidCam Port.

Make sure both Video and Audio is checked off.

Hit Start. The phone app will launch the camera and youll be able to see the feed on the PC client.

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Advertisement Now how do you get it to work with your videoconferencing software Youll always need to launch the DroidCam PC client and app first (steps 4 and 5 above).

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