Sony has a new program that could replace your webcam with a "real" camera for your desktop or laptop. The company now joins a list of camera makers looking to take advantage of the current need for webcams and home recording as people continue working from home and social distancing. There are meaningful advantages despite the complications of going this route and ultimately, it's a better alternative than purchasing a webcam, especially for anyone who already happens to own a Sony camera.

As anyone who has attempted to purchase new equipment for either video chat setups or home content production will tell you, we're experiencing a shocking supply shortage. When the coronavirus outbreak in the US began, many people understandably rushed to get webcams to meet their home office needs. What started as a webcam shortage then expanded as those people turned to upgrading the other tertiary parts of their office "set" including purchasing dedicated microphones, lighting devices, tripods, and so on. Webcams are slightly easier to find now than they were in Spring 2020, but still, most production equipment is a nightmare to buy online.

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That's the reason Sony's new software solution is a smart, timely idea. The company has released a free program on its website that allows people to use a variety of Sony cameras as webcams. Previously, this wasn't an option with most digital cameras regardless of manufacturer because they either didn't have an HDMI out to connect to a PC, didn't output video through their USB port, or didn't send a "clean" image (a video feed without all those grids, numbers, and icons you see when taking a photo with a digital camera) to a computer. There were ways to solve this problem but, amusingly, the required devices, such as the Elgato Cam Link, have also been consistently selling out during the pandemic.

How to Use Sony's Imaging Edge Webcam

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Once you've landed on Sony's new webpage, everything is so straightforward it almost comes off as barebones. The main screen has two options: "Download" and "How to Use". Naturally, you'd want to click download, however, there's a handy link in the other section to a page listing every model confirmed to work with the software. Often times, this just means it's a Sony camera that has the option to shut down any automatic standby features, which would be necessary for any webcam, so if yours isn't on the list, it may still work if it has that option.

To start, you'll need to disable your camera's Wi-Fi remote feature and enable the PC remote one. This step only applies to a handful of Sony cameras so it can be skipped for most people. Next, connect the camera to a PC using USB. This step also has a slight caveat for certain cameras: they'll have to be set to AUTO mode for a PC to recognize them, but can then be switched to movie mode once the live feed starts. From this point, your camera should function as a webcam. In your video conferencing software of choice, navigate to the video input settings and set the active device as your newly connected camera, and things should be fine from there.

This is obviously a more in-depth path to take than simply plugging in a webcam but it also has tons of advantages. The biggest one is that it allows the use of a fully-fledged camera with optional lenses. This makes it easier to produce high-quality content for services like YouTube or Twitch, or it can simply give you the best looking webcam in a Zoom call. Using a digital camera instead of a webcam also means access to other accessories like attachable mics and GorillaPods. And, if you already happen to have a compatible camera now, this means you can avoid the extremely depressing webcam supply desert. Just be sure to buy an AC power adapter because live streaming will kill your battery.

More: Alternatives to Buying an Overpriced Webcam

Source: Sony