Best video conference cameras you can buy in 2023

The best video conference cameras have to offer are extremely high resolution and are designed to make video conferencing a breeze. If you work from home and have a lot of Zoom, Teams or Skype calls, then investing in a good quality video conferencing camera is going to be worth your while. 

Laptop cameras just don't seem to cut it these days, with poor audio and resolution, and so if you want to come across extra professional, then an external camera is the way to go. 

Now, some of these are on the premium end when it comes to pricing, so if you want something a little cheaper, you can also check out our guide to the  best webcams for home workers. 

Conference cameras offer better video quality than your average consumer webcams, and are ideal for low-light environments or larger office calls. Check them out below...

The quick list

Best video conference cameras to buy

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Best for most people

Poly (formerly Polycom) describes the Studio P15 as a personal video bar, and that’s an apt description. This conferencing camera isn’t designed specifically to go in a conference room, but instead to sit on top of your monitor, replacing your cheap webcam with a high-end camera, speakers, and noise-canceling microphone setup. 

The combination works extremely well. The quality of the video and audio is impressive, which means it can also double as a music speaker. The captured video is sharp and clear, and the auto face tracking works very well.

It isn’t as small as a regular webcam, though, so it won’t work with smaller monitors or laptops using the included clip-style stand. Instead, a tripod-style socket on the base provides an easy way to mount it.

Overall, the Studio P15 is impressive. It is missing the higher-end features of some of the other models (such as HDMI pass-through, cable security, and a stand-alone mode that doesn’t require a computer), but for most home workers or small offices, it will do pretty much everything they might need. 

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Best for big groups

Why have one camera when you can have three? That seems to be the approach of the Jabra Panacast 50, which looks like a soundbar that’s been attacked by a 1970s robot. Three cameras mean that the Panacast can see a full 180-degree field of view, which it then combines into a single 1080P video image. Alternatively, it can use the three cameras to track you and zoom in on your face as you move around the office. 

The video and audio quality of the Panacast 50 are excellent, although this camera only outputs a 1080P image. In the wide-angle view, this is letterboxed into a 1080P image that lacks the detail of 4K cameras. However, most people don’t use 4K for video conferencing as it uses an awful lot of bandwidth, so it is an acceptable compromise. 

There are a couple of other odd choices, here. There is no included remote control and it comes with a wall-mount instead of a table mount. An optional remote is available, but it is kind of essential for these devices, so it is an odd omission. Most people want a table mount to start, as you usually want to test the device out before you screw it permanently into the wall. Again, this is available as an extra-cost option. 

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Best premium

The Logitech Rally Bar Mini offers a lot of features for its considerable price. It has excellent video and sound quality from the large, loud speakers, so it should be at home in all but the largest conference rooms and offices. 

The camera on the Rally Bar Mini pans and tilts, and an AI camera tracks you and moves the camera automatically, so you can move around the office or conference room and still be seen and heard. 

The system can also be expanded so that no computer is required. With an optional touch-screen controller it can work with Microsoft Teams directly, so you can have meetings without the distracting laptops. Additional microphones are also available, but the built-in ones do an excellent job of picking up sound from around the small office already. 

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Best basic

If you simply want a better webcam than the one built into your laptop, the Konftel CAM20 offers that, capturing pin-sharp 4K video with excellent color and detail. In addition to offering excellent video quality, the CAM20 comes with a remote control that allows you to pan, tilt and zoom without touching your laptop. 

Combine this with the wide 123-degree angle of view, and you’ve got a great way to show yourself or the things around you. You can save presets to the remote, so you could, for instance, switch from you to a view of a product you are presenting or another speaker quickly and smoothly

Konftel also offers a package with a USB hub and a Bluetooth speakerphone that expands it into a more fully-featured video conferencing system. So, if you want to start off small and low-cost, but with the option to upgrade later, it’s a great pick. 

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Best 360 view

This Strigiforme-inspired camera is designed to sit in the middle of a table or room, providing a 360-degree view, while picking out the person speaking with eight microphones. If you don’t want to show the whole room, the view of the Meeting Owl Pro can automatically zoom in to show just one or two people. It connects to a computer over Wi-Fi and can work with any standard video conferencing app.

The Meeting Owl Pro comes with a 6.5-foot USB cable, but the premium pack version adds a 16-foot USB cable, so the camera can be well away from the power socket. You can also connect and control the camera over WiFi, so the person making the connection can be across the room. 

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Best Dell

The Dell UltraSharp Webcam is one of the best webcams on the market, with a solid build with a handy magnetic mount system. The large sensor and lens array creates a crisp, detailed image with natural-looking color and well controlled noise. AI tracking also helps you stay in the frame, and it works with all video conferencing apps without needing drivers installed. There is no sound, though: this camera lacks microphones and speakers.

Make sure you check our Dell discount codes to bag a great deal. 

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Best for the boardroom

The big brother of the Logitech Rally Bar Mini, the Rally Bar is bigger, pricier and more complex. It also adds larger speakers and more microphones that help it pick out speech in larger rooms. The lens is also better, with a 15x zoom that allows you to zoom in on one person from a distance. In addition, you can also add up to three external microphones that can be spread around the room. This larger version supports two external displays, one of which shows the view from the camera. 

Like the Mini version, it can be used as a USB device, or turned into a standalone system with the addition of the Tap device. 

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Best for big meetings

The Kandao Meeting is another video conferencing system that combines two into one: the image from two wide-angle cameras is stitched together inside the device to provide a full 360-degree view of the conference room. In addition, eight microphones around the edge of the device pick up voices from all angles, ensuring that everyone gets heard. 

The camera has three modes to present the video. In discussion mode, the Kandao presents a whole 360-degree view of the room on the top of the transmitted image, plus up to four close-up videos of the speakers, with the person speaking highlighted. In Presentation mode, the camera will detect the speaker and use facial recognition to zoom in on them. In Global mode, the camera shows the entire 360-degree view in two halves. That’s a sophisticated selection of modes for different types of meetings. 

In addition, the Kandao Meeting camera offers a pop-up camera mount. When it is not in use, pushing the cameras down into the camera body turns the device off, so it can’t be used to listen in. When the meeting starts, pressing the camera mount again makes it pop up, ready for use. 

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Best affordable

The business version of Microsoft’s own webcam offers a decent range of features for an affordable price. You get decent video quality and a microphone that picks up decent sound. There is no 4K video, though, and there are no face tracking or other features that help keep you in the frame. It’s a bare bones option, but one that is portable and low cost. 

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How to choose

When deciding which video conference camera to get, there are a host of factors to consider. Budget is the most obvious, but also very important. How essential is a great video conferencing experience to your company or job? If it's not that necessary, try one of the best webcams instead.

Once you've decided that a conference camera is the way to go, think about how many people will be using it, and how big the conference space is. If it's likely to be just yourself and one or two others, try the  Dell Ultrasharp Webcam or Poly Studio P15 Personal. If it's a large square room and there are a group of you, then you might be better suited to the Jabra Pancast 50 instead, while for a 360 view in circular rooms, try the Owl Labs Meeting Owl Pro for a head-turning meeting.

Even if you do have the budget to spare, don't waste money on an ultra-high-spec set-up if you aren't going to use it very often. If it's an essential part of your job however, you can't put a price on crystal clear video conferences.