Veho Discovery VMS-001 USB Microscope

What's better than being able to look at things in microscopic detail? Being able to look at things in microscopic detail and then send pictures of it to your mates, of course.

This, among other things, is all possible with Veho's Discovery VMS-001 USB microscope. Simply plug it into a spare port on your PC and find something interesting to stick in front of its face.

You'll be able to examine objects at up to 200x magnification and if that wasn't enough, if you find something particularly interesting to share with the world then it comes with 2GB of online storage for showing off your close up snaps.

The Discovery VMS-001 is available now for £49.95 from I Want One Of Those.

United Pepper Lili and Oscar

Fairtrade isn't just about coffee and bananas - United Pepper is pushing ethical shopping, along with strong environmental credentials, into the computer peripherals market.

Lili and Oscar may look a little usual compared to your run of the mill webcam or USB hub, but their distinctive bodies are made from easily recyclable cotton, sand, Kapok (tree-fibre) and paperboard. All packaging is 100 percent recycled and 70 percent of each product is produced in a fairtrade environment.

Lili is a 1.3 megapixel webcam with microphone and Oscar is a four port USB 2.0 hub. Their development has been supported by Oxfam and each product begins life in Vietnam, in a workshop adhering to the fairtrade principles - which includes a safe, comfortable and hygienic workplace; fair price paid for completed work; and equality between men and women, with no child labour.

Lili is available for £30 and Oscar costs £20. See United Pepper for further details.

Clever Stuff Disgo Video

Being the next big thing on YouTube has never been more attainable thanks to Clever Stuff. Its Disgo Video camera retails for just £40, bringing your 15 minutes even closer in reach.

The pocket-sized camera shoots video at 640x480 resolution, just slightly lower than DVD quality, and records footage to SD card. There's even a 1GB card included, enough for one hour of video. It's powered by two AA batteries and has a large 2in screen to review footage on and a built in speaker.

You can hook it up directly to a TV or connect it to your PC via USB to edit the footage or upload it to video sharing sites. There's even some video editing software included in the package.

The Disgo Video is available now for £40, see Clever Stuff for more information.

3D face recognition camera

Canadian company Bioscrypt is making a popular science fiction concept a reality with the world's first 3D face recognition camera.

Instead of logging onto your PC or a network or website with a guessable password, the VisionAccess 3D DeskCam scans your face using infrared and visible light. As it records up to 40,000 different points on your mug, such as the forehead, eye sockets, and nose bridge, the presence or lack of facial hair on separate days makes no impact on identification, while it's claimed the camera can even differentiate between identical twins.

Due out in the second half of this year for around $350 (roughly £180), you can find out more about the VisionAccess 3D DeskCam at the Bioscrypt website.

Two-megapixel Creative webcam

Webcams aren't generally renowned for their picture quality, usually providing visuals that are grainy and drained of colour. This certainly isn't the case with the Creative Live! Cam Optia AF, which offers a two-megapixel resolution and auto-focus technology to guarantee sharp images.

Said to be the most advanced webcam on the market, it also features two microphones with noise reduction to isolate voice signals and minimise background noise, and smart face-tracking to keep you in the centre of the shot. The camera is packaged with a host of useful programs for editing images and video, applying voice effects, making video calls, sending v-mail, and remote monitoring.

The Live! Cam Optia AF goes on sale next month for around £80. Find out more at Creative Europe.

Set your sights on a sniper webcam

Snipers used to be the scourge of online gamers, hiding in corners and taking spot shots at innocent Quake players. Eventually, however, the gaming community embraced the fun that could be had with a powerful rifle and a zoom lense, and games like Splinter Cell get some of their greatest moments from the ability to perch on a rooftop, picking off unwary enemies before they even know you're there.

Unfortunately you can't use this particular device to usefully zoom in on enemies in games, but it does let you chat to your friends via your favourite instant messenger or video compatible VoIP software. It's a webcam, disguised as a sniper sight and mounted on a fully adjustable tripod. It has a 640 by 480 pixel, 30 frames per second camera and a detachable zoom lens that can magnify your view by up to 18 times - great for spying on your neighbours.

For more information and more interesting gaming-inspired devices (including USB memory drives incoroprated into dog tags), check out Cyber Snipa's website.

Budget webcam for bloggers

Many web loggers like to illustrate their daily posts with digital photos but transferring, optimising and uploading shots from your camera can often a take a while.

The Hercules Blog Webcam aims to simplify the whole process with an array of time-saving functions specifically designed for today's busy bloggers. These include a burst function that captures up to 20 images at intervals of between one and five seconds; automatic conversion of pictures and video into a web-friendly file size and format; and the ability to post photos and messages to your blog simultaneously.

A built-in microphone, face-tracking zoom and sturdy screen clamp make the camera equally useful for online video chats; it supports all instant messaging software and is bundled with Windows Live Messenger.

Priced at a great-value £29.90, find out where to buy the Hercules Blog Webcam here.

USRobotics VoIP webcam

If you're one of the millions of people who saved a fortune on their phone bill this year thanks to Skype, here's a device to take your VoIP experience to the next level in 2007.

The USRobotics USR809640 is a small but perfectly formed webcam that can be positioned securely on any monitor, laptop or desktop to bring pictures to your internet calls. Optimised for Skype, the USR Mini Cam captures still images of 1.3-megapixels and full motion video at up to 30 frames per second.

The camera automatically adjusts to low-light conditions, and includes image tuning options such as brightness, saturation, contrast. It also features a face-tracking auto-focus and a 70-degree viewing angle to ensure you remain in the frame no matter how lively your conversation.

On sale from January for a budget price of around £25, find out more about the USR809640 at the USRobotics website.

D-Link wireless security camera

Employing a webcam as part of your home security system provides a great means of catching intruders and burglars in the act. The trouble is that by the time you come to review the captured footage, the perpetratrors could be miles away.

With the D-Link DCS-2120 Wireless Internet Camera, you can monitor your house remotely via your 3G phone or PDA. A live video feed can be accessed over the web on your portable device or PC, allowing you to take and save snapshots wherever you are. The camera uses motion detection to trigger video and audio recording or send email alerts, and even works in rooms with low lighting.

Web User's Best Price:

Philips wonderful webcam

Much like digital cameras, webcams are constantly increasing in quality as they decrease in cost, so that even full-featured models are now affordably-priced.

The Philips SPC710NC is one such 'cam, offering everything you need for clear and comfortable online video chats. Its stable mount allows you to position it securely on any monitor, laptop or desktop, and the built-in microphone lets you add sound to video clips with no need for a separate recording device. Other notable functions include face tracking to keep you in the centre of the picture, a rotating lens for capturing images at different angles, and a 5x digital zoom for close-ups.

Video is shot at 30 frames per second and still images at SVGA resolution, while the webcam is compatible with most free messaging services. Priced at £59.99, full details are available at the Philips website here.