Use your phone as a webcam, on Mac and Windows

How it works

1. Click Add phone camera in Floonova. A code appears on your computer.
2. Scan the code with your phone. A page opens in the phone's browser. There's nothing to install, and nothing to sign in to on the phone.
3. Pick a camera and tap Enable camera. The main camera is chosen for you. Switch to the selfie camera whenever you like.
4. Put the phone down. Its picture is now the camera bubble on your recording or your live stream.

What you get

• Any phone, either computer. An iPhone (in Safari or Chrome) or an Android phone, with Floonova on a Mac or on Windows 10 or later. They don't need to share an account, or come from the same company.
• No cable. The picture travels from your phone to your computer, encrypted. Nothing is recorded or kept on the phone.
• Your camera, where you want it. A round bubble or a rectangle. Drag it anywhere, change its size, or give it the whole screen, while you record or while you're live.
• It keeps going. Floonova keeps the phone's screen on while it's connected, where the phone allows it. If the phone locks anyway, the camera picks up again when you unlock it.
• 720p on Free, Full HD on Pro.

Good to know

• Sound comes from your computer. The phone sends its picture only. Your voice is recorded by your computer's microphone, or a microphone plugged into it.
• It's a camera for Floonova. The phone shows up in your Floonova recordings and live streams. It doesn't appear as a webcam in other apps, such as video calls.
• If it won't connect, putting the phone and the computer on the same Wi-Fi usually fixes it.

Tips for a better picture

• Use the main camera when you can: on most phones it's the sharper one. You'll see yourself on your computer's screen.
• Prop the phone at eye level, about an arm's length away, on a stand or a stack of books.
• Face a window or a lamp, rather than having the light behind you.
• For a long session, keep the phone plugged in. Filming uses a lot of battery.
• Wipe the lens. Phone lenses pick up fingerprints all day.

Floonova, or your computer's own option?

Apple and Microsoft each have a way to use a phone as a webcam, and they're worth knowing about:

• Continuity Camera turns an iPhone into a webcam for any app on a Mac. It needs an iPhone XR or later and a Mac with macOS Ventura or later, signed in to the same Apple Account, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on. It doesn't work with Android phones, or with Windows.
• Phone Link on Windows 11 can use an Android phone (Android 10 or later) as a connected camera. It doesn't work with iPhones, or on Windows 10.

Both appear to your computer as an ordinary webcam, so if one fits your phone and computer, you can choose it in Floonova like any other camera. Floonova's own phone camera covers everything else: an iPhone with a Windows PC, an Android phone with a Mac, a Windows 10 computer, or a phone that isn't signed in to your account.

Step by step: an iPhone as a webcam on Windows, and an Android phone as a webcam on a Mac.

Questions

Do I need to install an app on my phone?

No. Scanning the code opens a page in your phone's browser, and that's all it needs. There's no account to sign in to on the phone either.

Can I use an iPhone with Windows, or an Android phone with a Mac?

Yes. Any iPhone or Android phone works with Floonova on a Mac or on Windows 10 or later.

Can I use my phone as a webcam for Zoom or Teams?

Not through Floonova: its phone camera works in Floonova's recordings and live streams. For video calls, Apple's Continuity Camera does this for an iPhone and a Mac, and Phone Link does it for an Android phone and Windows 11.

Does my phone record the sound too?

No. The phone sends its picture only, and the sound comes from your computer's microphone.

What quality is the picture?

720p on the Free plan, and Full HD (1080p) on Pro.

Is using my phone as the camera free?

Yes. It's part of the Free plan, at 720p. Floonova is free while in beta; see pricing for what comes after.