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ASUS' 2MP Webcams, Ready to Roll Out!

They track user's face, they even hold business cards, but they won't cook dinner

Dec 20, 2007 13:34 GMT  ·  By
Webcam and business card reader
   Webcam and business card reader

Asustek's successful designs AF-200 and MF-200 have initially been spotted at Computex earlier this year. According to the Asus officials, both models have entered mass production and they will soon be ready to hit the retailers' shelves. The bad news is that they will miss the Christmas shopping spree, so you'd better think of some other things for your present.

The new webcams feature a specially designed ultra big F/1.6 aperture that resembles the gear used in professional photography. Both cameras have a broad angle of view (around 80 degrees) and feature a 2 Mega-Pixels focus function. The 200 series of webcams are about to set a new standard in video conferencing and video calls over the Internet.

The AF-200 comes with auto-focus features, as well as high resolution 2.0 Mega-Pixels auto-focus lens for clear and vivid image. The webcam can take motion pictures at an impressive 30 frames-per-second rate at VGA resolution (640x480 pixels). The video is shot smoothly, without experiencing frozen images or stuttering. The AF-200 can take still images at an ultra-high resolution of 8 mega-pixels. The auto-focus feature allows the user to take snapshots without firstly having to adjust the lens.

The MF-200 model features an ultra large aperture of F/1.6, which makes the camera perform flawlessly under any light condition. When in full light mode, the webcam outputs clear and bright images, while in dim or nocturnal mode, the images appear sharp and well defined. This allows the user to have a clear experience in a video conversation even when the camera is lit only by the display light.

Another innovative feature is the Intelligent Face Tracking Function that keeps the user's face in the center of the video frame. The user does not have to freeze in the same position to be in the center of the screen, the new function takes care of this.

The bundled software includes the ASUS utility for Business Card Recognition, that allows users to automatically save the business card details directly to the computer.