How to Turn Your Android Phone into a High-Resolution Webcam

Lifehacker [Japanese version] Reprinted from an article published on September 16, 2021

Now we live in the age of online meetings. If you use your computer without a webcam, chances are you'll need a good quality video camera from time to time.

But before you go shopping for a new webcam, why not consider using your Android phone as a high-definition camera?

It does a much better job than the low quality webcams that most laptops come with. Plus, it will save you money.

Things to prepare

We are not recommending the luxury of using a brand new smartphone as a webcam.

However, if you have an old one or a second Android phone lying around, you should use it for online meetings.

If your phone's rear camera is working, there's nothing to worry about. The only expense is a tripod for your phone and an Android app.

You can buy a good tripod for your smartphone, or you can make your own if you are good at it. However, if you want to record every online meeting or call, you can't go wrong with a good tripod.

How to Use Your Android Phone as a High-Resolution Webcam

There are many webcam apps for Android, but DroidCam is free, reliable, and highly rated on the Play Store.

DroidCam is free to download and use, but there are some limitations such as video resolution of 480 pixels, adverts, and video options such as camera rotation and flipping are not available.

The paid version of DroidCamX (600 yen) doesn't have these limitations, but the free version is also practical enough.

How to use DroidCam

1. After downloading the app to your Android phone, start your Windows PC or Linux and install the DroidCam client for desktop.

2. After installing both, open DroidCam on both your smartphone and PC.

3. Check the IP address and port in the Android DroidCam app. If you see zeros next to your IP address, make sure your phone is connected to Wi-Fi.

4. On your computer's DroidCam, click the Wi-Fi icon at the top left of the screen, enter the IP address and port, and press Start.

5. When the image of the camera is displayed on the computer, point the tripod or the rear camera of the smartphone toward yourself. You can use the video from this camera to make a call with Zoom or an online meeting app.

Please note that if your DroidCam phone and your computer are using different frequencies on the Wi-Fi network, connection issues will occur.

For example, if your phone is connected to the 5GHz band and your computer is connected to the 2.4GHz band, this setting will not work. Just make sure they're both connected to the same band of the same Wi-Fi network and you should be fine.

The DroidCam also supports a USB cable connection, but the connection procedure is a little complicated in that case, so I think most people shouldn't bother with that.

If you really want to connect with a cable, go to this page on DroidCam's website and click "Connect via USB (Android)" for more information.

Finally, I think you should leave your Android phone plugged in while using it as a webcam. You don't want the camera video to suddenly cut off during an important online meeting when the battery runs out.

Source: Amazon, Google Play Store(1, 2), Dev47Apps(1, 2)