Apple is upgrading its webcam to the bright new MacBook M2, but for those of us who are still using our existing MacBooks, we can use our iPhones as webcams (… if we don’t want to give it a shot on our phone during a Zoom meeting).
At the end of this year, Apple will start selling a Belkin holder that will allow you to stick your iPhone on top of your MacBook. Then, while making FaceTime calls from your laptop, you can use the iPhone’s camera features such as portrait mode, center stage, and studio light, a new feature that illuminates your face. and darkened the background behind you. You can also use the iPhone’s camera in other MacOS applications, such as Zoom.
Without even adjusting the phone, the camera can also somehow provide a desktop view (wide-angle lenses, perhaps?). This can be useful for a math teacher, for example, who wants to write the steps to solve an equation without connecting a tablet. In practice, it probably won’t look as enjoyable as the lecture: Whose desk is it really organized?
Image credits: Apple
The continuity camera is, as its name suggests, part of Apple’s continuity tools. The company will also introduce a delivery feature, which makes it easier to switch between devices while making a FaceTime call. So, for example, if you’re doing FaceTiming on your iPhone, you can place your phone near your MacBook and transfer the call seamlessly to your laptop, instead of hanging up and calling again.
These features are expected to be available later this year, along with the Belkin mount. While all of this is fun and good, maybe next time Apple can just put a better camera on the laptop.