Samsung announced a collaboration with Microsoft that will offer various benefits to users of Galaxy devices. One of the most important has to do with the interaction between your mobile phone and a Windows computer. This year you can use your Galaxy S24 as a webcam for video calls in Teams and other apps.
During your CES 2024 conference, Samsung revealed all the news that will reach its various product lines. Although mobile phones have a separate event, the South Korean usually presents some advances during the first weeks of the year. On this occasion, the protagonist is artificial intelligence and its advances in the brand’s devices.
As part of an alliance with Microsoft, Samsung confirmed that Galaxy smartphones can be used as a webcam in Windows. Users will have the option to select the main or front camera and apply effects powered by artificial intelligencesuch as background blur or auto framing.
“Working today often requires a lot of video calls, so we thought about making the powerful cameras on our smartphones enhance those virtual meetings,” said Jonathan Gabrio, director of Samsung’s connected experience center. “Starting with our top-of-the-line models later this year, people will be able to use the fantastic clarity and resolution of their Galaxy smartphone cameras to enhance a meeting on services like Microsoft Teams.”
Gabrio said that this function will be available for flagships launching in 2024, like the Galaxy S24. The manager did not confirm whether they will provide the new feature to previous or lower-range models. Let us remember that the camera of a Galaxy A54 (or even a Galaxy M) is better than any Chinese webcam that we found at a premium on Amazon.
Using your Samsung Galaxy as a webcam is something that should have happened three years ago
The possibility of using your mobile phone as a webcam is a feature that many will find useful. The good news is that you can do it easily and without paying for additional applications. The bad news is that arrives a little late to the party.
The Demand for webcams reached all-time high in 2020, when the pandemic made teleworking mandatory. Some users chose to pay a premium for the Logitech C920, while others took advantage of their mobile and they used EpocCam or DroidCam to get out of trouble. The Android apps did not have all the benefits that are now advertised, but they resolved the need to have a camera for video calls.
Three years later, the world reached the new normal and the demand for these devices has normalized. Curiously, manufacturers like Google or Samsung realized that using the mobile phone as a webcam is important. While the former already offer the option in Android 14 for the Pixel, Samsung will take a few months to launch it in its high range.
Details may be revealed during the Galaxy S24 presentation, scheduled for next January 17th. In it, Samsung will not only announce the new hardware in its next high-end range, but also the advances in artificial intelligence, the result of the alliance with Microsoft.