I put two tiny webcams to the test — and there was a clear winner

If the webcam on your laptop just doesn’t cut it anymore or you don’t want to have a big, bulky webcam perched atop your monitor, then you may be looking for something on the smaller side. If that’s the case, I recently tested two tiny webcams that could be the compact camera you're looking for.

There are plenty of great choices on our list of the best webcams but if you want something smaller, you really only have two options: the Opal Tadpole or the Obsbot Meet 2 . Both of these webcams are less than 2 inches tall and wide and they can easily be slipped into a bag to use on the go.

Though their dimensions are quite similar, there are a few big differences between the two you need to be aware of before deciding which tiny webcam is right for you. While one is completely plug-and-play with no software at all, the other comes with an app to let you fine-tune your picture settings. Likewise, one is only compatible with laptops due to its design while the other works with both laptops and desktop computers.

Here’s everything you need to know about the Opal Tadpole and Obsbot Meet 2 including how each tiny webcam fared in a face-off with various lighting conditions. Regardless of which one you get, you don’t have to be stuck with your laptop’s webcam or have a giant one hanging over your monitor.

Tiny size, powerful performance

Up until the start of this year, I mainly used larger webcams on top of my monitor. However, when Opal reached out about sending me one of their webcams, I immediately took them up on the offer, as I knew I had to see and try out the world’s smallest webcam in person. Despite its shortcomings, I’m glad I did.

At 1.37 x 1.57 x 0.78 inches, the Opal Tadpole isn’t that much bigger than one of the best USB flash drives . It comes with a rubber lens cover too, so you don’t have to worry about it getting scratched in a laptop bag or even a purse. I tested the white version of the Opal Tadpole but there’s also an all-black model.

After having spent some time with the Opal Tadpole, I immediately knew I wanted to test out the Obsbot Meet 2 from the moment I saw it. At 1.78 x 1.4 x 0.87 inches without the included magnetic stand, it’s not that much bigger than the Opal Tadpole when seen from the front. However, it’s almost twice as thick.

With the Obsbot Meet 2, you do get a few more color options as it’s available in mint green, white and and gray. While we reviewed the mint green version (pictured above), I picked up the gray one for my own testing and it wouldn’t look out of place next to one of the best MacBooks with its Space Gray-like finish.

Regardless of which tiny webcam you end up choosing, you’ll be able to take video calls in 4K as they both shoot 4K at 30fps. Another thing the Opal Tadpole and the Obsbot Meet 2 have in common is their microphones which we found couldn’t quite keep up with the ones on larger webcams. The Opal Tadpole has a single directional microphone that only captures audio within the camera’s field of view while the Obsbot Meet 2 has dual, omni-directional microphones that pick up a wider range of sound but have trouble isolating just your voice.

Bring your own cable (or don’t)

When we flip these two tiny webcams around, that’s when the real differences between them start to show themselves. The Opal Tadpole has a hardwired, 21.6-inch braided USB-C cable while the Obsbot Meet 2 has a detachable cable thanks to its slightly thicker size. In all honesty, this is what drew me to the latter in the first place as the ability to use your own cables is one of the main things I look for in all of the gadgets I review and especially the ones I purchase for myself.

The Opal Tadpole’s non-detachable cable is actually one of its selling points though. You see, there’s a metal bead in between the cable's two ends that lets you wrap the webcam around your wrist or even hang it on the side of your bag. You can’t remove it either and trust me, I tried.

You may have also noticed that the end of the Opal Tadpole’s USB-C cable is quite thick. Well, there’s a reason for this too. When plugged into one of the best laptops via USB-C, you can quickly tap this rectangular section at the base of the cable to mute or unmute yourself while on video calls. It’s a clever idea, and during testing, this feature worked well enough. I also like how a red LED shows up to let you know you’re muted.

To clip or to mount

Remember when I said one of these tiny webcams was designed specifically for laptops? Well, in the picture above, you can easily see which one I was referring to. While the Opal Tadpole sports a built-in clip, the Obsbot Meet 2 comes with a separate magnetic clip that bends in three directions. At the same time, you also get a ¼ threaded port at the bottom to attach it to other camera accessories instead.

The Opal Tadpole’s built-in clip wouldn’t be so bad if it could open up a bit further. However, since it can only open to 35º, this laptop-only webcam isn’t compatible with every laptop. Instead, it’s designed for devices with very thin lids like an ultrabook or the MacBook Air . During my testing, I used it with my ThinkPad laptop and didn’t have any problems getting the clip to attach to its lid. However, I wasn’t able to try out the Opal Tadpole on my Chromebook Duet 3 as it was just too thick.

On the other hand, the Obsbot Meet 2’s magnetic clip is much more versatile. You can use it with a laptop or with a monitor as I’ve been doing for the past two weeks. The top part of the clip is magnetic and the Obsbot Meet 2 snaps right into place when you put the two together. Likewise, if you want to quickly reposition the webcam — say to show one corner of your room and not the other — you can just swivel it from one side to the other while attached to the stand.

After using the Opal Tadpole with my laptop, I did try and use it on top of a monitor like you can with the Obsbot Meet 2. Unfortunately, the only way I was able to do this was by wedging it between two monitors a few months ago when I put three stacked monitor setups to the test to find out which one I liked best. Even then though, I had to use a USB-C extension cable as the Opal Tadpole’s 21-inch cable just isn’t long enough for this kind of use case

Picture perfect

Now that we’ve compared these two tiny webcams based on their size, design and features, it’s time to see how they stack up when it comes to picture quality and software.

On the software front, Opal doesn’t offer any downloadable software at all for the Tadpole like it does with the Opal C1 . Instead, what you see is what you get with no option at all to tweak its picture settings or even to reposition your shot.

With the Obsbot Meet 2, though, you can download the company’s Obsbot Center software. In addition to loads of different picture adjustment options, the software also comes with beauty settings and a number of other filters. You also get AI auto tracking if you’re the kind of person that likes to move around the room while in a video call.

To compare the image quality of the Opal Tadpole and the Obsbot Meet 2 side by side, I set up a laptop in my kitchen with a blank white wall behind me and started taking pictures in low light and with the lights on. As you can see in the image gallery above, the Opal Tadpole lightens up my face considerably and almost casts a white glow over everything in frame.

The Obsbot Meet 2 goes in the opposite direction by casting me and everything in frame in a yellow glow. In terms of details, the Opal Tadpole’s Sony IMX582 Exmor RS sensor certainly captures more detail while the Obsbot Meet 2’s 1/2'' CMOS sensor gives my face a more rounded look and the details in my cheeks and forehead aren’t nearly as pronounced.

With my kitchen lights on, the Obsbot Meet 2 provides a more natural looking picture with plenty of detail while the Opal Tadpole loses some of its detail while leaving the upper half of my face washed out with too much light. Keep in mind though, with the Obsbot Meet 2, you can go back into its software and configure the image however you like. With the Opal Tadpole though, you’re stuck with what you get and to change how your webcam’s picture looks, you’d need to grab some lights.

For me personally, this one is kind of a toss up as I like the detailed picture you get with the Opal Tadpole in a low light setting while I prefer how the Obsbot Meet 2 looks with the lights on. It’s worth noting that with the lights off at night, neither webcam managed to capture my face.

Packing light

If someone had told me years ago that one day, we’d have webcams this tiny, I wouldn’t have believed them. While a larger webcam like the Logitech Brio 4K or the Insta360 Link 2C will certainly give you better image and audio quality, either of these two tiny webcams will definitely be an improvement over your laptop’s webcam.

I was skeptical about using a webcam with my laptop too until I tried the Opal Tadpole. Unfortunately though, I liked it so much that I really wanted to use it with one of my desk setups . The Opal Tadpole’s narrow clip and short USB-C cable made doing so more difficult but not impossible. I then stumbled upon the Obsbot Meet 2 and knew I had to try it out for myself as it fixed the main issues I had with the Opal Tadpole.

If you’re a laptop-only person, the Opal Tadpole could be a good upgrade and absolutely makes sense if your laptop’s built-in webcam is broken or produces poor video quality. However, if you want the versatility of being able to use your tiny webcam on your laptop as well as your desktop, then the Obsbot Meet 2 is the better choice.

I can’t wait to see how webcam technology continues to evolve. Who knows — maybe in a few years, the Opal Tadpole and the Obsbot Meet 2 will be large in comparison to the next generation of tiny webcams. For now though, I’ll be bringing one with my while I travel and using the other one at home.

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