Whilst the iSight continues to live on inside the bezels of iMac’s and MacBook’s, there will be some who still cherish the original Firewire web camera from 2003.
Back in the days when I had a PowerBook G4, Apple hadn’t yet built in iSight cameras that are now found across the range of portable and desktop Macs (excluding the Mac Pro and Mini). Instead, Apple sold an external Firewire camera with built-in mic. Embellished with industrial design that Apple is famous for, iSight was finished in an all-aluminium body with the trademark dotted-grille that you find on the MacBook Pro and Mac Pro. It was a unique design from both an aesthetic and technological perspective. Webcams at the time were big ugly plastic things that didn’t do a very good job of picking up video or audio.
The cylindrical design sat horizontally on a stand, on a latched monitor mount or magnetic holder so that it could sit on top of Cinema Displays. The ball socket which attached to the stand would also allow you to tilt the camera up and down for optimum positioning.
iSight also has a built-in lens cover that was operated by turning the dial that is designed in to the exterior body. This ensured that the camera was powered down and the lens was covered when you wanted to make sure for definite that no one is watching.
iSight camera specification:
3-element F2.8 Autofocus 50mm – inifinity lens
54.3-degree viewing angle
1/4-inch CCD
Even today, I continue to use my iSight for video chats since the camera on my MacBook Pro is usually looking on a side angle when I’m working on an external screen.
Just like the day I first got it, getting the camera to work with iChat, Skype or iMovie is seamless. You just plug it in and it works straight away, although it has become a little bit more difficult of late. The new unibody MacBook Pro doesn’t come with a Firewire 400 port and the iSight only works with Firewire. So to get it working, I daisy chain the iSight in to my Cinema Display which then connects to my MacBook Pro using a Firewire 400 to 800 cable. Why not just use the 400 to 800 cable on the iSight? Because the cable-end is too large for the iSight stand.
The 640 x 480 resolution is a bit dated now but still offers a crisp and clear picture for video streaming. Apple put a decent mic in the iSight for exceptionally good audio clarity which has withstood the test of time, as even my USB desktop mic can’t rival it for sound quality. Apple achieved this high quality audio by including two microphones to improve background noise cancellation.
I wish Apple had continued making the iSight but I guess it doesn’t make sense to do it any longer since third-party alternatives are widely available and most of the Mac range includes one for those who care about having one anyway.
Nonetheless, my iSight will always have a home in the Bookcase.
damn that camera is old. yet somehow it looks like something apple would release today?
I haven’t seen one of these for a looooooooooonnnnnnnnnggggg time. I could never really justify the cost though as video conferencing over the net back then was dire to say the least.
@kanichiwa@5: I still think it looks up-to-date next to the unibody MacBook Pro and Cinema Display. Apple have done a very good at keeping their designs consistent throughout the years so their old and new mix together very well.
@jedimastarasta: I think I paid £70 for it not long after I got a 1.5Ghz G4 PowerBook. Back then I probably had 512Kbps ADSL broadband so it worked reasonably well.