Connect with us

Technologies

Why Your MacBook Air Webcam Looks Bad in Zoom Meetings and How to Fix It

Here are some lighting and positioning tricks to help you make up for that grainy 720p webcam on older Macs.

Almost every new MacBook sold today has an upgraded high-resolution webcam, but that only helps if you’ve bought one in the last year or so. Many MacBook owners are still using either older Intel versions or the 13-inch M1 MacBook Air or MacBook Pro, and all of those systems are held back by one unfortunate quirk: a flat-looking 720p-resolution webcam with lots of noise and a lack of depth-sensing technology. 

A lot of Windows laptops are barely better, many with similar outdated webcams, but at least some have better light sensitivity, color accuracy or depth sensing for facial-recognition logins. However, many Windows laptops were even ahead of Apple in adding better 1080p webcams over the past few years. 

The side effect of MacBooks being in wide circulation and tending to last for many years is that there’s a lot of older hardware out there. And that means your Zoom or other video meetings are not going to look great, both because of the camera and because many people don’t have their laptops set up to capture a decent-looking image. 

M2 MacBook Air

$1,049 at Best Buy

Use your iPhone camera instead

There’s at least a reasonable chance you’re beaming into an online Zoom meeting (or other video meeting) from a pre-2022 MacBook Air or something similar. That means you’re not looking your best. Especially for a smaller, low-slung laptop like the Air, your camera isn’t going to be at an optimal angle if it’s sitting on your desk or kitchen table and aimed up at you. 

One option is to use your phone’s camera. Either the front or back cameras will be better than any laptop you have. For TV appearances from my work-from-home office, I sometimes use my phone mounted from an eye-level tripod clip. 

The latest MacOS version, called Ventura, adds a powerful new feature called Camera Continuity. Take an iPhone with iOS 16 and a MacBook with Ventura, and you can easily link them, using the phone’s superior camera as your webcam. It’s a feature that took far too many years to get, but it solves a ton of problems. Even better, it works on (some) older Intel Macs, and you can see the exact list of compatible systems here. 

If you’re using your iPhone as a wireless MacBook webcam, you’ll probably want to mount it. There are commercial mounts you can buy, like this one from Belkin, or you can try 3D printing this custom version I designed. 

img-1323img-1323

I designed this iPhone MacBook mount for 3D printing. 

Dan Ackerman/CNET

Before Camera Continuity, I’d use EpocCam software from Elgato, which ran on my phone and allowed me to use it as a wireless camera for my MacBook. The Pro version costs a few bucks, and didn’t work for every scenario, but it was a reasonable solution when using a compatible app like Zoom or Microsoft Teams. You could also attach an external webcam from Logitech or another company. 

But even with a better camera, your video presence will benefit from proper position and lighting. Here are some tips based on my experience beaming into live TV spots from my MacBook during the pandemic. 

Raise your laptop

If your laptop is anywhere close to a good ergonomic position for your hands, then it’s nowhere near the best spot for a Zoom meeting. Get some big books. Get some giant board game boxes. Prop that sucker up. Use big coffee table books or something else heavy, so you won’t get as much wobble. Don’t use empty cardboard boxes. 

Where do you want the camera pointing? Get it to sit just above eye level. 

2020-mba2020-mba

A not-great shot from the 2020 MacBook Air webcam. Note the soft image quality, and the laptop should be propped up higher. 

Dan Ackerman/CNET

Good lighting cures (most) ills

Low-res webcam signals look especially bad in low-light situations. Even higher-res cameras benefit from lots of light. That’s why movie and TV sets and professional photography are flooded with giant lights. You don’t need all that, but a good source of natural sunlight is an easy and inexpensive way to drastically improve your webcam shot. Face the window, don’t put your back to it. You want the camera to see the light from the window, not the window itself. 

If natural light isn’t available, don’t spend a ton on a fancy light setup. This set from UBeesize is under $35 and includes an 8-inch ring light, a tripod to mount it on and phone clip as well. Many people at CNET use this setup or something similar for remote work.

Know the Macs with a better webcam

Among current MacBooks, the M1 MacBook Air and 13-inch M2 MacBook Pro both have that old 720p webcam. But the MacBook Pro 14 and Pro 16 have excellent 1080p cameras, along with the 2021 24-inch M1 iMac and the 2022 M2 MacBook Air. Previously, you could only find that in the discontinued $5,000-and-up iMac Pro and 27-inch iMac. The M2 MacBook Air is the biggest game-changer, if you ask me, as it has an excellent 1080p webcam, and is just a great all-around laptop. 

My colleague Brian Cooley has many more general webcam setup tips, including some good headset mic suggestions — although your phone headset or AirPods should be fine for anything short of a live hit on CNN.

Related Topics:

Technologies

Pope Francis’ Funeral: How to Stream Live or Watch the Replay

Here’s how to stream the pope’s funeral very early Saturday, and what you can expect to see during the service.

After a week of global mourning for Pope Francis, who died on Monday at age 88, the pope’s funeral will be celebrated on Saturday . Francis’ funeral will be held Saturday at 10 a.m. local time at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City (which is very, very early if you’re tuning in from the US or Canada), and he will be laid to rest at the Papal Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome. 

The Vatican will be livestreaming the papal funeral and procession, though not the burial, on its YouTube channel as it happens. The funeral will also be televised live on CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox, as well as on streaming services like Disney Plus, Hulu, Peacock and Paramount Plus. Due to the time difference, it seems likely that many interested North American viewers will catch it when it’s replayed later on Saturday. Numerous networks will rebroadcast the service later that day.

If you choose to stay up, or get up early, here’s when the live broadcast of the pope’s funeral will air in your time zone in the continental US on April 26:

  • ET: 4 a.m.
  • CT: 3 a.m.
  • MT: 2 a.m.
  • PT: 1 a.m.

The papacy of Pope Francis was notable for the progressive reforms he brought to the Roman Catholic Church. He appointed more than half of the current College of Cardinals and attempted to foster more positive attitudes toward members of the LGBT community and migrants worldwide.

What to expect from the funeral 

The funeral will follow many rituals, though not all traditional protocols will be followed. Most popes are buried in St. Peter’s Basilica or its grottoes, but the AP reports Francis chose the St. Mary Major Basilica to reflect his veneration of an icon of the Virgin Mary that is located there, the Salus Populi Romani (Salvation of the People of Rome).

His funeral will be less elaborate than those of other popes per his own wishes. Francis simplified papal funeral rites last year, permitting his burial outside the Vatican, and emphasizing his role as a bishop rather than as pope (the pope is also the Bishop of Rome).

Previous popes were buried in three coffins: one of cypress, one of lead and one of oak. Francis requested to be buried in a single wooden, zinc-lined coffin and not to be placed in an elevated bier as other popes were.

The coffin will be taken from St Peter’s Basilica and placed on a dais in St Peter’s Square, where Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re will lead the service. After the service, the coffin will return to St Peter’s Basilica before it is carried across the River Tiber and to the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major for burial. The ceremony is estimated to end around 2 p.m. local time, or four hours after it begins.

Pope Francis’ funeral Mass will be the first of nine Masses held daily at St. Peter’s until May 4. This is an ancient tradition of the Catholic Church that observes nine days of consecutive mourning. According to Vatican News, a different group of mourners will participate each day, though the Eucharistic celebrations are open to everyone.

Who will attend Pope Francis’ funeral?

Hundreds of people, including world leaders and royals, are expected to attend Pope Francis’ funeral. 

US president Donald Trump confirmed on his Truth Social Platform that he and first lady Melania Trump will be at the funeral. This will be Trump’s first foreign trip in his second term. He is expected to have a seat in the third row, though the Vatican has yet to release an official seating chart. It is tradition for the first row of seats to go to Catholic royalty, and the second row to non-Catholic royals.

Prince William, who is attending on behalf of King Charles, will sit in the second row, which is reserved for non-Catholic royals. Former president Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden, devout Catholics, will also attend the funeral.

Conclave: What happens next to choose the new pope

After Pope Francis’ funeral, the cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church will vote on his successor in an assembly of cardinals known as a conclave.

There are many matters for the cardinals to settle before the conclave begins, but once it does, it can take days or even weeks to conclude. Two-thirds of the cardinals’ votes are required to elect the next pope. The conclave occurs behind closed doors and the vote tally is never made public.

Read more: Where to Watch Conclave, the Vatican Thriller About Electing a New Pope

Look for the white smoke

The ballots are burned after each round, and chemicals are added to the flames to produce black smoke if there’s no majority. When a new pope has been selected, the chemicals will be added to the flames so they produce white smoke. Crowds gather in St. Peter’s Square to watch for the results.

If you’re fascinated by the process, you can watch a dramatized version of the events in 2024 film Conclave.

In the movie, Ralph Fiennes stars as Cardinal Thomas Lawrence, who spearheads the election of the next pope while investigating rumors about potential candidates. The film is based on the 2016 novel by Robert Harris and is completely fictional — though it does represent some of the events of how actual papal conclaves take place. In March, the film won the Academy Award for best adapted screenplay.

You can stream Conclave on Amazon Prime Video, or rent it for $6 on Apple TV, Fandango at Home, YouTube or Google Play Movies.

Continue Reading

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for April 26, #685

Hints and answers for Connections for April 26, #685.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections puzzle features a lot of short words, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. That purple category requires a lot of thinking — probably most people will solve it only by solving the other three and having four words left over. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Rainbow.

Green group hint: San Fernando ____.

Blue group hint: Think Robert.

Purple group hint: Mixed-up hue words.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Tint.

Green group: Valley.

Blue group: Bobs.

Purple group: Color anagrams.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is tint. The four answers are color, hue, shade and tone.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is valley. The four answers are dale, dell, glen and hollow.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is Bobs. The four answers are Dole, Hope, Marley and Ross.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is color anagrams. The four answers are Dre (red), Gary (gray), genre (green) and lube (blue).

Continue Reading

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for April 26, #215

Hints and answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, No. 215, for Saturday, April 26.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Connections: Sports Edition is tough today. The purple category theme threw me because of one phrase I didn’t know. And let’s hope you’re familiar with college coach surnames. Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.  

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Try to achieve.

Green group hint: Move through it.

Blue group hint: Sideline bosses.

Purple group hint: Like a carton.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: What one strives for.

Green group: Room to run.

Blue group: College football coaches.

Purple group: Box ____.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is what one strives for. The four answers are aim, goal, objective and target.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is room to run. The four answers are gap, hole, opening and space.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is college football coaches. The four answers are Day, Lanning, Smart and Stoops.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is box ____. The four answers are lacrosse, office, score and seat.

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © Verum World Media