Editor's take: As the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has forced millions to stay indoors and self-quarantine, folks aren’t getting to use their GoPros as intended. Rather than stowing it in the closet, why not put it to good use? With GoPro's latest beta firmware, you can do just that... albeit with some limitations.
Following cues from Canon and Fujifilm, GoPro has now made it easier than ever to repurpose its latest action camera as a high-definition webcam.
To get started, you’ll need to download the GoPro webcam beta firmware and install it on your camera. You’ll also need to grab the GoPro webcam desktop utility and load it on your computer. From there, simply connect the camera to your system using a USB cable, power it on and load it up using your favorite webcam application.
GoPro’s Hero8 Black can be used as a webcam in many popular video apps including Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Skype and Messenger Rooms, just to name a few.
Notably, only the latest Hero8 Black model is compatible with the webcam feature. Furthermore, it is only available for MacOS at this time but GoPro is actively developing a version for Windows environments.
It’s also worth pointing out that the field of view can’t be adjusted although the ability to do so is labeled as a “future goal.” But really, that might not be a bad thing as the Hero8 Black’s wide-angle perspective could be ideal for certain situations or users.
Masthead credit: Alexandru Nika
https://www.techspot.com/news/85939-convert-hero8-black-wide-angle-webcam-gopro-latest.html
