Best-of guide
A 4K camera, a current 1080p camera and a discontinued one, each picked for a named criterion.
A webcam shortlist usually collapses into a single winner, and the recorded data for the two cameras in this catalogue does not support that. One records 4K capture, autofocus and infrared support. The other records a 1080p image and manual control over exposure. Both are defensible choices for video calls, and they are defensible for different reasons.
Four criteria are used here: the highest resolution and frame rate the camera records, how the camera focuses, how much of the image the user can set by hand, and how the camera is fixed to the desk and whether it can support system sign-in.
The Brio 4K records up to 4K at 30 fps and 1080p at 60 fps, records autofocus, records an adjustable field of view and records infrared support as yes. Its recorded description links that infrared support to Windows Hello style platform authentication, which is a specific job the other camera on this list does not record.
Its recorded intended user is someone who needs 4K capture or platform authentication and is willing to pay for it. The catalogue records no price, so that part of the decision has to be made at the point of purchase rather than from this page.
The Elgato Facecam records 1080p at 60 fps, a fixed focus prime lens and a field of view adjustable in software, and manual exposure control appears in its recorded feature list. Its recorded intended user wants manual control over a 1080p camera for streaming and calls, and the recorded mounting is a monitor mount and a tripod thread.
For a stream or a call where you want to set the image once and leave it alone, that set of recorded specifications is the reason it is here.
The trade-off is resolution against control, and it is not a straight line. The Brio 4K records the higher ceiling, but manual exposure control is not among its recorded features, so on this criterion it has less recorded going for it than the camera with the lower ceiling. The Facecam records the software control and the fixed focus, and a fixed focus means the camera is not adjusting itself to a subject who moves toward it. Which matters more depends on where the camera is and whether the subject moves.
Autofocus and infrared are not the same trade at all. The Brio 4K records autofocus and infrared support, and the Facecam records neither, so the Facecam is the simpler camera by those two measures and the Brio is the more capable one.
No image quality judgement can be made from a resolution line. The catalogue does not record a lens aperture for either camera, a low light figure, a microphone specification, a price, or what the fixed focus prime on the Facecam does at the edge of the frame. It records what each camera is, not how the picture looks. If your decision depends on how a camera behaves in a dim room or how it handles a bright window behind you, that decision needs a source this catalogue does not currently hold.
Methodology
How the products below were evaluated and chosen.
The criteria this shortlist uses
Four criteria decide the order. Capture resolution and frame rate, taken from the recorded resolution. Focus behaviour, taken from the recorded autofocus and lens specifications. Manual control, taken from the recorded exposure and field of view specifications. And mounting and sign-in, taken from the recorded mounting specification and the recorded infrared support. Each product below is placed against the criterion it satisfies, and the order does not claim that one camera is better in general.
Shortlist
Each entry states why it was selected. Top picks are scoped to a use case.
Why it is here: It is the only camera here recorded above 1080p, with up to 4K at 30 fps and 1080p at 60 fps, plus recorded autofocus and recorded infrared support for platform sign-in.
Resolution: Up to 4K at 30 fps, 1080p at 60 fps
Why it is here: The current fixed 1080p camera we cover. It records 1080p at 30 fps, a 78 degree field of view, autofocus with a glass lens, a stereo microphone and a physical privacy shutter.
Resolution: 1080p at 30 fps, 720p at 30 fps
Why it is here: A fixed focus 1080p camera with manual software control. The manufacturer has discontinued it, so it is listed for reference rather than as something to buy.
Resolution: 1080p at 60 fps
Context
What the Brio 4K asks you to give up
Its recorded advantage is resolution and infrared support, and the recorded cost is that manual exposure control is not among its recorded features. Autofocus is recorded, and whether a self-focusing camera suits a fixed setup or a subject who moves is a judgement the specification alone cannot settle.What the Facecam asks you to give up
The recorded ceiling is 1080p at 60 fps, and the recorded lens is a fixed focus prime, so a subject who moves toward the camera sits outside what the specification covers. The recorded software control is a benefit only if you use it, and it asks for setup time that a simpler camera would not.What the C920s asks you to give up
The recorded frame rate is 30 fps at every resolution, so a fast movement is held at a lower frame rate than the Brio records. The recorded field of view is a fixed 78 degrees, where the Brio records three presets. The page does not state a USB version, only a USB-A port, and it does not state whether software is required, so neither is claimed here.Notes
How to read the order
Two entries and two different jobs. The 4K option leads for a buyer who needs 4K capture or platform authentication, and the 1080p option leads for a buyer who wants to set the image manually. Neither is a general winner, and the recorded specifications do not support one.One of these cameras has been discontinued
The Elgato Facecam product page states that the camera has been discontinued. It stays on the site because the recorded specifications are still the honest reference for a fixed focus 1080p camera, but it is not a current recommendation and it should not be bought new.FAQ
The Logitech Brio 4K. Its recorded resolution is up to 4K at 30 fps, and 1080p at 60 fps. The Elgato Facecam records 1080p at 60 fps, so it is the only camera here with a recorded 4K option.
Source:Logitech official site
The Brio 4K records infrared support as yes, and the recorded description links that to Windows Hello style platform authentication. The Elgato Facecam has no infrared support recorded, so this catalogue cannot say whether it works for that purpose.
Source:Logitech official site
The Elgato Facecam. Manual exposure control is in its recorded feature list and its field of view is recorded as adjustable in software. The Brio 4K records an adjustable field of view, but manual exposure control is not among its recorded features.
Source:Elgato official site
No autofocus is recorded for it. The recorded lens is a fixed focus prime, which is a design decision for a fixed setup rather than a gap in the data. The Brio 4K by contrast records autofocus.
Source:Elgato official site
The Elgato Facecam records a monitor mount and a tripod thread, which are two different ways to fix a camera to a desk. No mounting specification is recorded for the Brio 4K, so check the manufacturer before you plan the placement.
Source:Elgato official site
Both are recorded for streaming and calls. The Elgato Facecam's recorded intended user wants manual control over a 1080p camera for streaming and calls, while the Brio 4K records infrared authentication support, which matters for signing in rather than for the stream itself.
Source:Logitech official site
Keep researching
The recorded alternative to the Elgato Facecam is the Logitech Brio 4K, which records up to 4K at 30 fps with autofocus and infrared support for.
The recorded alternative to the Logitech Brio 4K is the Elgato Facecam, a 1080p 60 fps camera with a fixed focus prime lens, software adjustable field.
How to choose a webcam, in the order the decisions actually come: resolution and frame rate, focus behaviour, manual control, mounting and sign-in.
The Elgato Facecam records 1080p at 60 fps with a fixed focus lens, and Elgato's product page states it has been discontinued. The Logitech Brio 4K records up to 4K at 30 fps with autofocus and infrared support. How the recorded specifications differ.
The Logitech C920s records 1080p at 30 fps, a 78 degree diagonal field of view, autofocus with a glass lens, a stereo microphone and a physical shutter.
The Logitech Brio 4K adds 4K capture and infrared support, and the Elgato Facecam is a discontinued fixed focus 1080p camera.
