Breakthrough Logitech Webcam Delivers True-to-Life Video with Twice the Image Clarity

Business Wire, July 17, 2006

FREMONT, Calif. -- Premium QuickCam Ultra Vision Webcam Features Precision Glass Lens, Adjusts for Harsh Lighting Conditions with RightLight 2 Technology; Company Upgrades Award-Winning QuickCam Lineup

Logitech (SWX:LOGN) (NASDAQ:LOGI), the world's leading manufacturer of webcams, today unveiled the company's flagship QuickCam(R) Ultra Vision(TM) webcam, offering a true-to-life video calling experience by delivering twice the image clarity as that offered by typical webcams. The stunning new PC device for Internet communications outclasses other webcams by combining an extra-large, precision-engineered glass lens with a low f-stop setting, increasing the amount of light entering the webcam and precisely focusing that light to create sharp, vivid images.

With the QuickCam Ultra Vision, people can share the important little things in life -- from that sparkling new engagement ring to the toddler's first tooth -- with breakthrough clarity as they make video calls to friends and family around the world. Even in difficult lighting conditions -- such as low lighting, or intense back- or side-lighting -- QuickCam Ultra Vision delivers a premium performance, thanks to the new Logitech(R) RightLight(TM) 2 Technology, which intelligently adapts the camera's video settings based on the environment in which the camera is used. Logitech's new webcam also features a premium 1.3 megapixel sensor and supports the High-Definition (HD) video format, allowing people to create video clips and watch them in a wide-screen format.

Upgraded QuickCam Lineup

Logitech also has upgraded other members of its award-winning webcam lineup, adding new technologies and features that make the experience of video communications easier and more natural than ever before. Logitech's performance webcams -- the QuickCam(R) Fusion(TM), QuickCam(R) Orbit(TM) and QuickCam(R) Pro 5000 products -- now include Logitech RightLight 2 Technology and the ability to record HD video. The redesigned mid-range QuickCam(R) Communicate(TM) STX webcam features an innovative privacy shade that, when flipped open, can launch the video IM application of choice (Windows Live(TM) Messenger, Skype(R) Video, Yahoo!(R) Messenger, or AOL(R) Instant Messenger(TM)) and mute a video stream when closed. And Logitech's redesigned QuickCam(R) software is included in all the new webcams, complete with a new icon-based interface that makes it easier than ever to access all of the camera's settings and features, including the popular Logitech(R) Video Effects(TM) software.

"Our 2006 webcam lineup is loaded with innovations that address consumer needs and that could come only from a company such as Logitech, which has more than a decade of experience making webcams," said Gina Clark, Logitech vice president of product marketing for Internet communications. "We've redefined performance at the high end by combining the most premium lens on any webcam with the new RightLight 2 Technology. You have to see it to believe the video quality -- it is true to life."

Logitech RightLight 2 Technology

Logitech RightLight 2 Technology is a system of hardware and software technologies that intelligently optimizes video settings in low-light and uneven lighting environments, such as when a window creates harsh back- or side-lighting. The breakthrough technology automatically adjusts for these conditions, helping to improve the overall video experience. The technology is an enhancement of Logitech's first-generation RightLight Technology, which corrects for dim lighting conditions.

QuickCam Ultra Vision

Available in the U.S. and Europe beginning in August, the QuickCam Ultra Vision webcam has a suggested retail price of $129.99 in the U.S. The camera lens system comprises five extra-large lenses, several of which are made with glass, providing exceptionally sharp and clear video. Most webcams on the market are made up of only plastic lenses, producing images that seem distant and are often distorted. Also, by featuring an f-stop setting of 1.6 -- most webcams on the market have an f-stop setting of 2 or greater -- the QuickCam Ultra Vision webcam is able to capture more light, producing greater image detail in dimly lighted, or back- or side-lighted conditions.

The stunning webcam design incorporates the most premium materials Logitech has ever assembled into a webcam. In addition to the glass lens, chrome details draw attention to the webcam's built-in microphone, lens housing and the edges of the cylinder-shaped webcam. Each edge features a button -- one that launches a mirror video window so that people can check their image before they engage in a video call, and the other to take quick snapshots. The webcam also features a soft-blue back-lighted ring, surrounding a Logitech logo, which illuminates when the camera is active.

As with Logitech's other performance cameras, the Logitech QuickCam Ultra Vision webcam includes Logitech(R) RightSound(TM) Technology and Logitech Video Effects software. Logitech RightSound Technology combines a webcam's microphone with acoustic echo-cancellation software, offering people the flexibility of conducting video calls without wearing a headset. Integrated with the webcam's software drivers, Logitech's advanced software algorithms eliminate echoes created by a webcam microphone and speakers in close proximity.