With the upcoming updates to Android, you may be able to use your phone as a webcam without needing any third-party apps for the same. According to Android geek and enthusiast Mishaal Rahman, Android may get native support for phone as webcam for devices such as PCs, Macs, and Chromebooks. Rahman discovered the information in the AOSP repository. This feature will allow users to use a plug-and-play setup to transform their mobile phones into fully functioning webcams.
Previously, with the launch of Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, Google had allowed its users to use external USB cameras on mobile phones, which allowed users to use the phone as a webcam for tablets and PCs. However, most users prefer third-party applications to use their mobile phones as a webcam.
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According to Mishaal Rahman’s recent tweets, Google may finally be taking steps to provide this feature with the new Android version, possibly Android 14. Rahman uncovered the information in the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) repository, where it was indicated that Google may be working on a “DeviceAsWebcam” feature.
Replying in the same thread, Mishaal also explained that Google will be working on UVC model, which is new for Android phones. He tweeted, “Android has supported external plug-and-play USB webcams for a while now, but support for using your phone as a UVC gadget is new, though there are plenty of third-party apps that accomplish similar functionality.”
If applied, this feature will provide a high-quality and seamless video calling experience from mobile phones that support the UVC (USB video class) gadget mode. This feature will also eliminate the need for any unreliable third-party application for video calling.
So far, it is not clear which Android update will include this feature; speculations remain that Android 14 will include the phone as a webcam feature, but no announcements have been made by Google.
During the lockdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, organizations around the world had to work remotely, which led to video conferencing becoming a necessity for the employees and the organizations. Although most computers and laptops are equipped with in-built webcams, mobiles do not have this feature. Also, generally video quality provided by laptop webcams often is not up to the mark.
A need for good-quality webcams and video conferencing tools was realized, and considering this need, Apple introduces the Continuity Camera feature for iOS devices. However, the Continuity Camera feature only works in iOS and Mac environments.
However, now that Android may get native support for phone as webcam feature, even Android users will be able to use their mobile phones as webcams and use them on any device.
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