Android 14 Adds Support for Using Smartphones as Webcams (esper.io) 69
Esper: Starting in Android 14, it may not be necessary to use a third-party app to turn your smartphone into a webcam for your PC, as that functionality is getting baked into the Android OS itself -- though there's a catch.
When you plug an Android phone into a PC, you have the option to change the USB mode between file transfer/Android Auto (MTP), USB tethering (NCM), MIDI, or PTP. In Android 14, however, a new option can appear in USB Preferences: USB webcam. Selecting this option switches the USB mode to UVC (USB Video Class), provided the device supports it, turning your Android device into a standard USB webcam that other devices will recognize, including Windows, macOS, and Linux PCs, and possibly even other Android devices.
Webcam support in Android 14 is not enabled out of the box, however. In order to enable it, four things are required: a Linux kernel config needs to be enabled, the UVC device needs to be configured, the USB HAL needs to be updated, and a new system app needs to be preloaded.
When you plug an Android phone into a PC, you have the option to change the USB mode between file transfer/Android Auto (MTP), USB tethering (NCM), MIDI, or PTP. In Android 14, however, a new option can appear in USB Preferences: USB webcam. Selecting this option switches the USB mode to UVC (USB Video Class), provided the device supports it, turning your Android device into a standard USB webcam that other devices will recognize, including Windows, macOS, and Linux PCs, and possibly even other Android devices.
Webcam support in Android 14 is not enabled out of the box, however. In order to enable it, four things are required: a Linux kernel config needs to be enabled, the UVC device needs to be configured, the USB HAL needs to be updated, and a new system app needs to be preloaded.
What problem is this... (Score:1)
solving?
Actual webcams are cheap and they easily mount to monitors unlike cell phones.
Anybody think this is an actual useful feature? That maybe time could be better spent fixing existing bugs than adding new features of questionable value?
Re: What problem is this... (Score:3)
Actual webcams are cheep, but theyâ(TM)re another thing that you need to buy, and have around. Theyâ(TM)re also crap compared to phone cameras. Since iOS added support for using the iPhone as a webcam thereâ(TM)s tons of little mounts you can get to stick one on top of your monitor.
Re:What problem is this... (Score:5, Insightful)
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Who cares about webcam quality besides onlyfans and cam whores?
In this economy, that sector is growing.
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People who put on shirts without tomato stains for work.
Re:What problem is this... (Score:4, Informative)
Lately we have started to see some half decent webcams.
The issue seems to be that they all use the same chip that isn't very programmable, so all they can do is work with the sensor and optics to make them look better. Phones do a lot more processing to make their cameras look good. A custom chip would work, but it's a lot of effort.
Microphones are a different thing though. Some laptops have really good mics. Unlike a phone they can space several microphones out, and by comparing the waveforms they can determine how far sounds are from the machine and how far off axis they are. Does wonders for eliminating background noise.
Re:What problem is this... (Score:5, Informative)
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solving?
Actual webcams are cheap and they easily mount to monitors unlike cell phones.
Anybody think this is an actual useful feature? That maybe time could be better spent fixing existing bugs than adding new features of questionable value?
Reuse, repurpose, recycle.
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Reuse, repurpose, recycle.
That should be 'reduce, reuse, recycle.' It's the most important 'R'. It's also the one that gets the least positive attention.
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I actually had to look that up (because no kids around to educate me) and apparently "the R's" exist in a few variations with up to Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose, Recycle https://guide.michelin.com/en/... [michelin.com]
Re:What problem is this... (Score:4, Interesting)
solving?
Actual webcams are cheap and they easily mount to monitors unlike cell phones. Anybody think this is an actual useful feature? That maybe time could be better spent fixing existing bugs than adding new features of questionable value?
It gives you the flexibility of having a webcam without having to drag around another device while saving some coin at the same time. A decent web cam from a reputable company can run 50Euros or more.
More interestingly, it may open up many more options than many webcams offer. For example, the iPhone's implementation allows you to use various camera and mic modes while using it as a webcam. Desk View, for example allows you to show your face and desk at the same time. Center Stage keeps you centered as you move around. Both are features not normally included in an inexpensive webcam.
Many people may not use the new feature and just use the built in camera but for those that will it's a nice addition.
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Compelling response. Thank you.
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> Anybody think this is an actual useful feature?
yes.
Webcam (mic? hopefully too) breaks on laptop, I then almost always have a backup with me.
I mainly work on a desktop, not needing another widget (in the economic sense) specifically for video is nice.
What I don't get is this:
> Selecting this option switches the USB mode to UVC
Why "switches the USB mode" , and not "adds an UVC interface descriptor to the USB device" , if for instance the webcam is to be used over a USB tethered connection (while tran
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The current UI for USB mode uses radio buttons.
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I remember webcams connected through USB hubs, while using the same hub for data transfer. Same concept...
AFAIK transfer mode is a property of specific endpoints, which are contained in interfaces. Isochronous (usb has no async, that much I remember) interfaces are always alongside "normal" interfaces. There might be an issue when negotiating bandwidth.
Digging deep in memory for 5+ years unused knowledge here...
TBH I'm more inclined to believe the reason to be as simple as
> The current UI for USB mode us
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One of the main advantages of modern smartphones is that they replace a lot of single purpose things in our lives. Webcams are just another thing they could easily replace.
So the answer to the question of "how this is actually a useful feature" is "it's another gadget that is fully replaced by a device that is always with you, another gadget you don't have to buy or own to have functionality available to you".
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I don't see how. If you're using a desktop, you've got to find a way to mount your phone, so you'll need to buy a mount. A webcam, with that problem already solved, is a $20 purchase. You'll also need to mount your phone in a sensible place. Ideally, that would be at the top of your primary display, like it is in your laptop. You really don't want your oversized smartphone obscuring the display, but mounting it higher puts the camera way too high. Mount it on the side and it'll look like you're facing
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I had a matte grippy desk surface before, where phone could be easily propped for work. Switched to a low friction anti-fingerprint surface a year ago, and noticed that phone couldn't be easily propped. Went to Ikea and bought a 2-3 EUR bamboo phone holder. Because as you mention above, I need to see my phone and be able to use it while working.
So either you have a desk that's grippy enough to prop the phone, or you have a phone holder, or you don't actually need to use your phone for work all that much.
As
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What does any of that have to do with using your phone as a webcam?
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You: "list issues with using your phone as a webcam".
Me: "puts your list in context and see what the solutions that already exist are in context of a typical work environment".
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There seems to be some confusion over what "using your phone as a webcam" means...
I'm currently on 11, and it has picture overlay for video from the front camera for video calls over all applications, as well as proper multitasking and split screen to run two applications on the same screen at once.
We're not talking about using your phone for video calls or video conferencing, but as a dumb camera attached to a desktop computer. That's what "using your phone as a webcam" means.
I had a matte grippy desk surface before, where phone could be easily propped for work.
I address this in my post. That puts the camera at a weird angle. Either too low or too low and off to the side.
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>We're not talking about using your phone for video calls or video conferencing, but as a dumb camera attached to a desktop computer. That's what "using your phone as a webcam" means.
And yet this is your previous post:
>Oh, and if you need a webcam for video conferencing, you'll probably also want access to your phone. A phone is simply not a sensible replacement for a webcam.
Which is why I explained that android had multitasking for ages and explained specifically how you will continue having access t
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You can't be serious... Do you understand the difference between using your phone to make a video call and using your phone as a webcam? Are you being intentionally obtuse? Are you having a stroke? It's like I'm talking to Ted Stevens!
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Do elaborate how these two uses are so massively different for the purposes of this discussion (note the important part, "purpose of this discussion", i.e. context of this discussion as outlined above), because there's clearly an idea in your head that you believe I should be able to read, and I'm failing as a mind reader.
Which is a failing that I readily admit to. I can only read what you actually write, not what you think.
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This is ridiculous. Try to follow along:
This is a webcam [amazon.com]
This is a smartphone [amazon.com]
Smartphones have a camera built-in.
Some computers also have a camera build-in.
Not all computers have a camera.
Still with me, champ? Things are about to get highly technical...
If you want to make video calls, you need a camera.
If you want to make video calls from your computer, your computer needs a camera.
If your computer doesn't have a camera, you can use a webcam.
A webcam is a camera that you can plugin to a computer.
A computer
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So your attention span is exactly ten words. As beyond that, I specifically delineated what the scope of my question was.
And you dismissed that and answered as if nothing beyond first ten words exists all while assuming I'm an idiot.
Classy.
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How's it going by the way? You seem to be really scattershot in your stalking lately. I'm guessing they really put the squeeze on your types with the massive economy crash and real estate investment panic currently going on with your home country.
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It is more a question of allowing people to use the hardware they own in the way they choose.
An Android phone is a USB device. The hardware supports this functionality. It should be possible to use it.
I can't say that I would want to do this with my phone... but there is no real reason for Google to not allow me to do so.
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Yeah, I really don't understand the skepticism.
If only this had been a standard feature of Android in March 2020 when WfH drove a spike in new hardware sales.
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I don't really have skepticism for the feature. I'm just wondering if it's worth more than fixing existing bugs that are annoying and actually waste my time.
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Well, it's a feature I would definitely have used.
I donated my laptop with an inbuilt webcam to my mother early in the pandemic so should could Zoom into her community groups. Her old laptop didn't have one.
My working from home setup involves 3 screens via RDP - running off an USFF PC. Given that I prefer a mouse and full 104 size keyboard, a PC works better ergonomically on my desk than a laptop just for the webcam feature - for which I bought a cheap Logitech webcam.
And on the days where I am working in t
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Actual webcams are cheap and they easily mount to monitors unlike cell phones.
I've never met a cheap webcam that has even remotely passable visual quality. Heck most expensive ones don't.
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If you want this feature now (Score:3)
scrcpy [github.com] already offers this feature - at least if you run Linux: scrcpy can appear as a V4L2 capture device.
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Oh look a feature of ios that android is lagging behind on.
Oh look! A smug cellphone owner who can't even sideload an app without Apple's permission...
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Nobody cares, lol, except the 1% of tinkerers who wouldn’t be on iOS regardless. Not judging, I was in that 1% when I had Android, but John Q. Public literally could not care less.
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Yeah... Kind of like using your cellphone as a webcam. Almost nobody cares.
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I support ~300 users and at least 1/3 of them use that feature multiple times a week.
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No, they don't. Android 14 hasn't even been released. Why tell such a stupid lie?
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Kind of like using your cellphone as a webcam. Almost nobody cares.
Got a source for that?
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I don't miss the ability to side-load on an iPhone. I, also, don't miss having to check to see if the manufacturer or the carrier has pushed an app I don't want onto my phone and hoping it hasn't been tagged as a system app making it uninstallable.
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Sounds like Apple copied OBSDroid.
Excellent app. The OBS plugin is open source.
But don't (Score:2)
all PC's (Laptops, notebooks and all-in-ones) come with Webcams these days
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Apple’s implementation it makes it trivial to use your phone to scan documents. We used to have to buy these [amazon.com] for employees doing remote presentations. Now they simply can use their phones to achieve the same end. You can also position a phone for a better perspective, like a selfie, it’s usually more flattering when the camera is slightly above or level with you, as opposed to looking up like a laptop camera. We still provide external webcams to employees for this reason, the ones that sit
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In Google's case, it appears as a webcam. As in, your phone appears to be a webcam using the bog standard USB VIdeo Class device driverless webcam.
So it basically is seamless - it's like you
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Those aren't PCs. Give back your pcmr badge now.
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Yes, and they're exactly the same quality today as the potato cams of 1995.
So, just to clarify... (Score:2)
Instead, you need a new system app, a USB driver update, and some complicated configuration changes. I think most people would opt for the third-party app.
Re:So, just to clarify... (Score:4, Interesting)
You no longer need a third-party app.
Instead, you need a new system app, a USB driver update, and some complicated configuration changes. I think most people would opt for the third-party app.
You no longer need a third-party app *in the computer*.
Which means you can use this webcam function for computers that you are not authorized to install software by yourself.
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and some complicated configuration changes
Citation Required. Even when you do something weird like emulate mirrorless cameras as a webcam there's zero complicated things about it. Install driver package, select the camera in Teams / Skype / whatever you use. If it's your only camera you can skip the second step entirely.
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Which can be seamlessly enabled with any device shipping with a kernel built specifically for Android 14. Android 14 isn't even out yet?
Obviously if you're beta testing 14 on a Pixel or similar originally released with a kernel from Android 12/13 you'll need to upgrade the kernel to access the feature - which is what the summary is referring to.
Why not other peripherals? (Score:2)
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The things you list sound horrible. Why would I want a tiny borderline unreadable screen attached to my PC? Same as input devices, a smartphone is literally the worst thing I can think of for all those. There mere existence of a trackpad is a compromise for when a proper input device is not available, why would I want that experience on a PC? And keyboard ... gamepad? No what I actually do every so often is attach actual keyboards and actual gamepads to my smartphone because the phone is useless at this.
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I'd rather it be wireless. (Score:2)
Laptops (Score:1)
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