How To Record High Quality Webcam Video On A Budget

An inexpensive alternative to Elgato Cam Link that works just as well

Kirill Zubovsky / August 15th, 2020


Up until now, most podcasters doing live video recording had two options - either record using a webcam with a pretty mediocre quality, or upgrade to a pricey digital camera and use a conversion tool like Elgato Cam Link to capture higher quality video. The latter approach was good, and relatively easy to setup, but there was only one problem - not only was Cam Link expensive, it was also completely sold out from the start of Covid pandemic. Someone saw the problem and solved it for us. Meet this no name knockoff, this lovely Video Capture HDMI Card that does exactly what Cam Link does, but for 1/5th of the price. That's right, it only costs $30! I just tested it and it works great, sending my Sony RX 100 video directly to my Mac with no visible delay or loss in quality. If you want to replicate my setup, you also need Sony RX VII and a usb battery that can keep your camera powered on for hours, without need to recharge. If you are going to use another camera, you will need to find a compatible usb 'fake' battery for your model. There is a chance that your camera is not designed to record forever, and after recording for longer than an hour it will overheat and shut down. Still, high quality recording is worth it. If you want to learn more about recording a podcast with your webcam, check out the course from our friend Bradley - Record Edit Podcast (Become a Webcam Podcaster). Happy Recording!

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