The coronavirus pandemic around the world has forced millions of people to start working from home. They are switching to the video conferencing apps like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Skype to attend digital meetings on the go. The practice has led to a surge in webcam demand across the globe. Either they are out of stock or costing double/triple from the original price. Then there’s also the fact that laptops and MacBooks come with absolute garbage webcam. The good news is, you can easily use your iPhone as a webcam on PC or Mac.
There are a couple of more reasons to use the iPhone as webcam. First, the process is fairly easy to set up, and second, most laptops come with average quality webcams compared to the iPhone camera. In this post, we are going to talk about the process to set the default iPhone camera as a webcam on PC and Mac. Let’s start with Mac.
Even if you own a MacBook that already has a webcam, you should consider using your iPhone’s camera for video calling purposes. This is because the video quality will be noticeably superior when using the iPhone as the webcam. There are several iPhone apps that let you use the phone as a webcam on the Mac. Among them, EpocCam fits the description with easy setup and adequate features. Follow the steps below to set it up.
A couple of notes before we begin. It’s always advisable to read the privacy policy before installing any software. And second, these apps will ask for camera and microphone permission to run properly, do allow it.
How to Use iPhone as a Webcam on Mac
Step 1: First, you need to download the EpocCam app (App Store link) from the App Store on the iPhone.
Step 2: Head over to Mac and visit kinoni.com and download the macOS drivers for the app. Go to the download location on the device, extract the file, and install them on Mac. The drivers enable the option to choose EpocCam as the default camera in apps like Skype and Zoom.
Step 3: Download the EpocCam Viewer app (Mac App Store link) from the Mac App Store.
Step 4: Open the EpocCam app on the iPhone and it will display a blank screen and it will ask you to connect to the Mac using the same Wi-Fi network or via USB cable.
Step 5: Use USB cable to connect iPhone to Mac or make sure that both the devices are connected to the same Wi-Fi.
Step 6: You will be able to see the live front-facing camera preview in the Mac’s EpocCam Viewer app.
As you have installed the required drivers for the EpocCam app, you will be able to choose it as the default video camera in apps like Skype and Zoom. For example, you can open Skype, go to Settings -> Audio & Video, and select EpocCam as the default camera for the service.
EpocCam is free to download. It works on both Mac and Windows. As expected, the free version lets you use both front and the rear camera but the output is limited to 640 x 480 video resolution. It also comes with ads and watermarks.
You can download EpocCam web camera for the computer for $8 which bumps up the video quality to 1080p full HD, allows you to use the iPhone as a microphone, removes ads, and watermark. Let’s talk about Windows users.
How to Use iPhone as a Webcam on Windows
EpocCam works on Windows too. But as you can see from the list above, the free version is fairly limited with ads and subpar video resolution. iVCam app on iPhone and Windows allows full HD streaming and comes with a cleaner UI. The software is specifically designed keeping in mind iPhone and Windows users. Let’s set it up. Shall we?
Step 1: Download the iVCam app from the App Store (App Store link) on the iPhone.
Step 2: Move over to Windows PC and download iVCam software (download link) from the official source.
Step 3: Install the software on the PC and make sure that both the iPhone and Windows PC are connected to the same Wi-Fi network.
Step 4: Open the app on the iPhone and your Windows PC. They will then automatically connect and you will be able to see a live feed from the iPhone camera on the Windows PC.
iVCam isn’t limited to streaming iPhone camera to PC. One can also apply effects, take screenshot or videos of the feed, and use flash during low-light. You can bump the resolution to 1920 x 1080 at 60fps. And yes, it’s all included in the free version. The pro version is priced at $10 which removes ads and watermark.
iVCam works perfectly fine with Skype and Zoom too. No need to download separate drivers for that. Open Skype, go to app Settings -> Audio & Video and select iVCam as the default video camera for the service.
For the best experience, try to use an iPhone stand, table-top mount, or a tripod. And as you are streaming a live feed from phone camera to laptop, it may drain your phone battery so consider using a power bank or power adapter as well.
Which service are you going to use your iPhone as a webcam on PC and Mac? Are you already using an app to do that? Tell us more about it and your overall experience in the comments section below.
