A Professional Workhorse Webcam – Review Geek

There’s nothing better than a product with an attractive design. And while I wouldn’t call the Brio 500 a “beautiful” webcam, it looks a lot better than most of the webcams I’ve tested. Instead of throwing together the same old eyesore, Logitech created a webcam that actually looks quite modern—it’s an interesting cylindrical shape with a speckled paint job, which I appreciate.

This design is also quite functional. The Brio 500’s privacy shutter is controlled by a dial on the right-hand side of the webcam, as opposed to some big ugly slider. Two microphones surround the webcam’s lens, and an LED indicates when the Brio 500 is active.

I’m also a huge fan of the Brio 500’s mounting system. An adjustable clip attaches to the bottom of the webcam with a magnet—it’s very secure, but it lets you quickly adjust the camera to any angle. Notably, the clip can fit on any monitor or laptop, and it has an optional adhesive pad for semi-permanent installation.

Here’s a quick description of the Brio 500’s three actuation points:

1. This is where the Brio 500 magnetically attaches to its mount. You can use this actuation point to tilt the webcam downward, either to center yourself in the image or capture video of something on your desk.
2. The Brio 500’s second actuation point allows it to accommodate a range of monitor sizes. I’ve extended it all the way to show that it can fit on very thick monitors or laptops.
3. An adjustable foot at the bottom of the webcam mount helps to keep everything stable. A small piece of 3M tape is pre-installed on the webcam foot, but nobody’s forcing you to use it.

I should note that, at first, this Brio 500 webcam felt very loose. It’s because the small magnet at the bottom of the webcam wasn’t tightened all the way—you need to screw it in. And unscrewing this magnet reveals a tripod mount, which is a nice surprise.

My only complaint is the Brio 500’s USB cable, which is not detachable. I would prefer a cable that I can remove and replace once it wears out. But hey, at least you don’t need to worry about losing track of this USB cable.

When you only look at its specs, the Brio 500 doesn’t look very exciting. I mean, it only records at 30FPS in its maximum 1080p resolution! But specs never tell the whole story, especially when cameras are involved.

Remember, this product is intended for remote workers, not livestreamers or YouTubers. You don’t need an extremely high-resolution camera with a crazy frame rate when taking Zoom calls. But you need people to see and hear you clearly—that’s where the Brio 500 excels.

Logitech’s video processing technology is pretty impressive. The Brio 500 uses a combination of face tracking, auto-white balance, and auto-contrast technology to ensure that your face is clear and evenly lit during video calls. Bright objects in your background might get blown out in the process, especially if you disable the HDR mode, but this is a wonderful webcam for taking video meetings in even the worst lighting.

Honestly, the Brio 500’s image quality looks a bit soft in still photos. I imagine that this has something to do with the webcam’s relatively low frame rate (and the fact that I can’t sit still). The Brio 500 is specially designed for video meetings, so I don’t consider this a problem.

The Brio 500’s wide 90-degree FOV is quite nice, and thankfully, you can crop it to a smaller FOV (65-degree or 78-degree) to better focus on your face or hide your surroundings. Cropping seems to reduce the image quality a bit, but not to an extreme level.

Additionally, the Brio 500 sports a neat feature called Show Mode. When you point the webcam down at your desk, it automatically flips the image (and removes visual distortion) so you can show documents or drawings during your meetings. The result is quite impressive, as documents are clear and easy to read when captured in Show Mode.

It seems that the Brio 500 is Logitech’s first attempt to really push the Logi Tune control center. This software, which is a few years old now, lets you personalize Logitech’s work-focused webcams and headsets. It can even integrate with your calendar and various video chat apps, although I’m not sure how this integration is any better than using a calendar app’s interface.

Honestly, I like Logi Tune’s design and approach. It’s a simple and unobtrusive app. On my Mac, I can open Logi Tune from the Menu Bar to quickly change the Brio 500’s white balance, contrast, or field of view. I can also enable features like RightSight.

But compared to Logitech’s old webcam software, Logi Tune is pretty weak. It doesn’t provide detailed controls for the Brio 500, or any webcam, for that matter. Maybe people are better off with a simple interface—it’s just a shame that Logi Tune lacks any advanced settings.

For remote work, the Logitech Brio 500 is hard to beat. It captures a bright and clear image of your face, even in poorly-lit rooms, and its microphones are excellent. Plus, features like RightSight or Show Mode can streamline corporate-style presentations where you may need to stand up or show documents to viewers.