WebCam Live! Motion: A Cut Above the Rest Tom's Hardware Review

Their verdict: The WebCam Live! Motion beats the Orbit MP in its "...the Creative Live! Motion, with its superior video quality and a more robust offering of initial software, is a slight cut above [Logitech's Orbit MP]."

Video & Messaging Performance
Tom's Hardware said that the Live! Motion webcam offers superior video quality compared to the Orbit MP: "[WebCam Live! Motion] also has high-quality sound and the picture speaks for itself... For daytime chats, the Live Motion displays color better than the Orbit, thanks to the advanced CCD lens, but with some adjustments in the options menu, the Orbit also performed well. Both webcams produced nearly instantaneous video transmission at high-resolution with all IM programs. Nighttime with the lights off, their performance is excellent, but the edge once again goes to the Live! Motion and it's representation of color."

WebCam Live! Motion Software Suite
The Creative Live comes with a robust assortment of software: Creative Webcam Center, Creative Photo Manager, Video Impressions 2 and Sightspeed (basic membership included), which provides a nice platform for video calls/messaging. You also receive Orb, which downloads TV listings for your area. The Webcam Center offers Capture, Remote Monitoring, Motion Detection, Time Lapse Video and a link to your recording folder. There is also a broadcast video option for Yahoo! Messenger. Tom's Hardware felt that the Video Impressions 2 program is a nice addition, especially if you're a neophyte. And that it is fairly simple to create your own custom video, and for the experienced user, it's great if you want to create something fast.

Adjusting the Video
In addition to normal and multiple face-tracking which Orbit MP offers, the WebCam Live! Motion also has a Smart Face Tracking feature, which waits until you stop moving and then adjusts with an auto-zoom feature.

Photo Performance
The reviewers commented that although the Creative [WebCam Live! Motion] doesn't let users select megapixel resolution, it does offer a panoramic (1920 x 720) photo option at the 640 x 480 Video setting.

Motion Detection & Remote Monitoring
Tom's Hardware was impressed by this advanced feature found on WebCam Live! Motion: "Now, you might wonder about how good the Motion detection/Remote Monitoring software is. In my case, I turned it on, went to get something to eat and returned two hours later to see if it caught anything. Imagine my surprise when it picked up a spider moving on my desk and then on my keyboard - apparently trying to type his name. I was shocked at how sensitive it was, and satisfied that I had a little something extra in case someone decided to "borrow" something from me without asking."

Adapted from Tom's Hardware review of WebCam Live! Motion